Kochi Feb 24 PTI In a major step to fuel the development of IT sector in Kerala the Geo group announced construction of a 12-storied building at the Infopark here with an investment of Rs 160 crore The groundbreaking ceremony for the building which will come up adjacent to the World Trade Centre in the Infopark was held on Wednesday Kerala IT Parks CEO John M Thomas Greater Cochin Development Authority GCDA Chairman Chandran Pillai Kinfra Export Promotion Industrial Park CEO Ambili T B Geo Group Project Coordinator and Legal Advisor Adv Rajan Banerjee V Guard Chairman Joseph Chittilappilly and Principle Architect K C George were also present during the ceremony Geo Group Chairman N V George said the construction will begin on March 7 and the first tower among the three built in the Special Economic Zone will be completed in 30 months The project once completed will open doors to 5000 to 6000 direct and 10000-12000 indirect job opportunities In its initiative Geo Group plans to bring both work and leisure under the same roof Facilities like recreational area clubhouses jogging track gym swimming pool vertical garden central courtyard and car parking for 700 vehicles are included in the plan Infopark said in a release It said the building will have solar-powered energy backup for limiting carbon emissions and have plans to convert it into a completely carbon-neutral establishment in the near future George said the Geo Group was coming forward with such an initiative to promote the Back to Office campaign after the Covid pandemic We have been working with Infopark for many years for the development of the Kochi IT Parks infrastructure In 2013 Geo Infopark established a 60000 square feet IT establishment in the Kinfra Campus near Infopark Phase I which is now home to various IT and ITES companies he noted IT Parks CEO Thomas said a lot of developments were taking place in the IT sector of the state and it would be vital for Infopark and Kerala IT Parks that a co-developer is coming forward with a new venture Kerala IT Park is encouraging the Co-developer based development and it will be a key example for others Good facilities bring in good companies Geo Groups business connections across the globe will attract many companies to Kerala and Infopark he said PTI RRT ROH ROH