Rs 26,000 crore ECC offers massive opportunities for private sector

Stakeholders meet with DMICDC to discuss investment potential in Dwarka project. Major players from hospitality, retail, construction and other sectors have held wide-ranging discussions with the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC) on investment and partnership opportunities in the Rs 26,000 crore International Exhibition-Cum-Convention Centre (ECC) proposed to be built in Dwarka, New Delhi. At a series of stakeholders’ consultation meetings chaired by Alkesh Sharma, CEO, DMICDC, industry representatives were briefed on the plans and their views sought on the project that envisages creation of a world-class integrated smart business district that will be the largest mixed use area in Delhi. The meeting was attended by the top executives of JW Marriott, Taj Hotels, The Leela, Hilton, Asian Hotels West, Experion, Developer Group, Reliance Industries and Phoenix Mills, among others. Expected to be commissioned by July 2019, the ECC will be among South East Asia’s biggest convention centres, sprawled over 90 hectare in Sector 25, Dwarka, with overall built-up space of 1.07 million sq m. The anchor ECC facilities including exhibition halls, convention centre, banquet halls and a multi-purpose arena will have 428,000 sq m of space and will be developed, along with the trunk infrastructure for the district, by the Government of India. The remainder will be mixed use development including hotels, food and beverage (F&B) outlets, office space, commercial and retail services and other leisure facilities, all of which are proposed to be developed in public-private partnership (PPP) mode, opening up massive investment opportunities. The ECC is estimated to generate up to 500,000 direct and indirect jobs. In line with government focus on Green India and Swachh Bharat, the entire district has been planned to get LEED Platinum certification. DDA has transferred the land to the Department of Industrial Promotion and Policy (DIPP) and key approvals on the project master plan, height and urban design have been received from relevant departments. The remaining clearances are expected over the coming two-three months. The government is also planning to create a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to manage the entire project. Says Alkesh Sharma, CEO, DMICDC, “This is a very significant infrastructure project both in terms of stimulating the economy and generating employment. We have held this stakeholder consultation with the objective of involving the mixed-use developers early in the planning process to ensure business inputs are adequately captured and a partnership approach with private players is adopted.”