At a time when all government agencies are busy promoting projects that are in the pipe-ine for the forthcoming Global Investors Meet (GIM), the Transport Department hardly has anything to show for itself.
There is only one project for which the department is looking for private investment though that too might fail to impress investors as the department is facing land scarcity in Bengaluru. The investors participating in GIM- 2012 would be inclined to invest in Bengaluru-based projects given that Namma Bengaluru is a favourite brand for private investors as the city is an IT-BT hub.
In GIM-2010, most foreign investors had shown interest in projects planned for Bengaluru while those in other cities in Karnataka had caught less attention. This time too, it is expected that a number of investors will be interested in Bengaluru-related projects. Speaking to this newspaper, Commissioner for Transport, Mr T. Sham Bhat said: “We don’t have any projects in the pipe-line that could be shared at the GIM. The basic problem is that we don’t possess land in Bengaluru though we have land in other parts of the state. Investors are more interested in investing in Bengaluru projects. We are just showcasing the details of a project: ‘fitness testing centre’; however, in this case too, the land is not available in the city.”
It is said that the projects showcased in the GIM will be taken up on a Public- Private- Partnership (PPP) model. The state government will provide equity in the form of land, while the projects will be executed by private players and a number of government agencies have already listed projects for GIM 2012. The booming IT-BT industry, rising real-estate projects, high profits from ventures are few of the reasons why investors are always interested in Bengaluru.