ETL Infra plans big investments in TN

ETL Infrastructure Services Ltd, promoted by Elnet Technologies Ltd and Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Ltd, plans big investments in Madurai and other southern districts of Tamil Nadu.

The company is presently building a heritage resort hotel in Madurai, which is known for temples and textiles, at a total investment of Rs 75 crore.

Targeted at tourists and businessmen, the hotel to be named 'Heritage Madurai', will come up on 14.5 acres. It will have 68 rooms in the first phase and is expected to be ready by June 2007. The number of rooms will be increased to 100 in the second phase.

ETL has acquired the Old Madurai Club property, originally designed by eminent Sri Lankan architect Geoffrey Bawa, to renovate and add more facilities to create an architecturally unique resort.

"Madurai has a colonial history and we see this as a revival of something which has been forgotten. We have taken over a colonial building, refurbished it and are developing it as a resort hotel by maintaining the designs and traditions of the city," said Jair D'souza, vice-president (commercial), ETL Infrastructure.

The company plans to build another heritage hotel in Pudukottai at an investment of Rs 35 crore. The company has already acquired the property and this facility is also expected to be ready by mid-2007.

As Madurai is seen as a potential Tier-II destination for IT, ITES and manufacturing sector and several companies eyeing the city, ETL also plans to build a shopping complex and a world-class convention centre in the temple city at an investment of Rs 100 crore.

ETL is also in the process of developing a special economic zone for the textile industry at Perundurai. Another textiles SEZ is planned in Tuticorin.

ETL has built an IT/ITES SEZ called 'Chennai One' on Chennai's IT Corridor of Old Mahabalipuram Road. The facility is presently occupied by companies like TCS, Wipro, Siemens, HCL and Ford Business Solutions, among others. The ETL group has interests in the textiles and coffee business.