Leela Group charts Rs 500cr spread

To invest in IT, hotels and apparel manufacturing

Leela Group, a major in hospitality and garment industry, is planning to invest over Rs 500 crore in IT infrastructure, hotels and apparel manufacturing segments in Kerala.

The group is looking at the possibility of setting up business hotels in Kochi and Kumarakom, a group source said. This is apart from the proposed airport project at Kannur.

The group's 'Leela infopark' is located adjacent to the Infopark in Kochi and will be developed in three phases.

In the first phase, the group has built 1.36 lakh sq ft space, which has been taken up by companies such as OPI and IBS. The second phase, which will see the group adding 3.5 lakh sq ft, is expected to be ready in the next three years. The entire project will cost Rs 200 crore. The group is also planning to set up a 4.5 lakh sq ft facility in Thiruvananthapuram.

Leela Group has identified Kochi as an emerging destination for ITES, particularly business process outsourcing. It has, therefore, earmarked a sizeable portion of funds for developing IT infrastructure in Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram.

The company is planning to renovate the building at Kovalam in Thiruvananthapuram for the hotel at a cost of Rs 170 crore. The renovation work will be done for interiors while the external structure will be kept intact.

The group will invest over Rs 30 crore in the apparel manufacturing unit at Thiruvananthapuram. It is also planning to increase the employee strength from the present 1,300.