The laying of foundation stone for the Rs 1700 crore (Rs 17 billion) Smart city project, a joint venture between the Kerala Government and Dubai's TECOM Investments, was held at a function in Kochi on Friday.
Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan and TECOM Executive Director, Fareed Abdul Rehaman, jointly laid the foundation stone at a function held at Edachira in nearby Kakkanad.
Chairman of TECOM and SmartCity, Dubai, Ahmed Bin Byat, who was to participate in the function, could not make it and his speech was read out by Fareed Abdul Rehaman.
In his inaugural address, the chief minister said the project was being started with a lot of expectations as it is expected provide huge employment opportunities.
Kochi, Kerala's commercial hub,