Chandigarh’s economy is changing in character as the knowledge revolution sweeps the country. There has been a decline in traditional industrial activity in Chandigarh and a rapid increase in activity relating to the services sector. This is a especially evident in the fields of financial services, IT Services, Insurance Services, Hospitality, Health and Education services. The emphasis of the Administration is to promote Chandigarh in the knowledge sector. A proposal for developing Chandigarh as a financial services hub is also actively under consideration of the Administration. Projects like Chandigarh Technology Park, the education city and the film city are further likely to boost employment potential in Chandigarh and also give impetus to the economic activity here.

Keeping in view the increase in the number of visitors on account of economic resurgence in and around the Chandigarh. Airports Authority of India (AAI) in association with Chandigarh Administration has undertaken the upgradation of Chandigarh Airport.

Chandigarh Technology Park (CTP) is an extremely important project for the Union Territory of Chandigarh as it provides world class integrated infrastructure necessary for the setting up of facilities/campuses by leading Technology Companies and other IT/ITES/BPO companies for the first time in this region. Chandigarh has traditionally been a city where not many multi-national companies had earlier set up their facilities and therefore a large number of professionals had left Chandigarh in the past for other cities, in search of high level employment. The level of educational facilities here had been much higher than the level of employment opportunities available, especially in the knowledge sector. North India, as a whole had lagged behind the southern States, and CTP is a major step in the direction of redressing that imbalance. Chandigarh is fast becoming one of the most preferred destinations for technology companies, in the country, especially since it boasts of an excellent quality of life, and huge base of Human Resources and proactive policies of the Administration which are conducive to such investment.

By setting up the Chandigarh Technology Park, Chandigarh Administration has taken a step towards providing world class facilities in Chandigarh so that not only employment at the highest level but also the economy of Chandigarh and the region would get a boost. Chandigarh Administration looks at Chandigarh as a regional hub for IT alongwith Mohali and Panchkula. CTP is dedicated to the application of IT for the benefit of society by involving the Technology companies in the e-Governance programmes also.

CTP was conceived in 2001 by Chandigarh Administration over an area measuring 123 acres. The CTP has been approved as a Special Economic Zone by the Government of India. Chandigarh Administration has developed sufficient infrastructure for the Technology Companies to set up their facilities at CTP. CTP comprises of flexible options for Technology Companies with plots of various sizes including Ready Built Space plots, Build to Suit Sites and large and small campus sites. An area of 60 acres is earmarked for use by technology companies. The remaining area is for green spaces and services. 30 acres were allocated for the main campus, 5 acres for the small campus, 12.5 acres for the Ready Built Space and 12.5 acres for the Build to Suit Sites.

Infosys Technologies Limited was allotted 30 acres as the main anchor company and has by now constructed 525,000 Sq. ft. of their state of the art campus. Infosys plans to employ 5000 professionals at this campus. They are also constructing state of the art food courts, gymnasia, serviced apartments and related facilities for their employees on campus.

The Ready Built Space developed by the leading developer DLF Limited is spread over an area of 12.5 acres and comprises 6 blocks measuring of total of 650,000 Sq. ft. DLF is leasing out this Ready Built Space to IT Companies. They have set up an attractive ultra modern building with hi-tech facilities. IBM Daksh, Outer Bay and Net Solutions are among the companies which have begun fitting out their premises at the DLF building.

Out of 42 applicants Build to Suit sites measuring 1 to 2 acres have been allotted to Amadeus, KMG Infotech, Microtek, Bebo Technologies, Synapse and Alchemist. 10 more applications have been received for 4 more advertised sites. The applicants include RT Outsourcing, FCS Technologies, IDS InfoTech and Second Foundation USA. We have another 7 built to suit sites measuring approximate area which would be advertised shortly. The emphasis is to encourage not only large companies but also Research and Development units.

An Entrepreneur Development Centre (EDC) over an area of 1.54 Acre is being established through a leading developer at the RGCTP. This would comprise of floor space of 60,000 Sq. ft. and would be available for IT/ITES/BPO Company for incubation purposes and for setting up Plug & Play facilities. A research laboratory would also be part of this EDC and would provide modern facilities for companies to work in. A commercial site measuring about 4.5 acres is to be auctioned at CTP for a Hotel /Convention centre.

The basic infrastructure for CTP has been set up by Chandigarh Administration through the Engineering Department which has constructed the access roads, internal roads, street lighting, sewerage, drainage, water supply and power supply for the CTP. The buildings in the CTP are energy efficient and comply with the latest environment norms. A special environment policy for CTP has also been notified. The Ministry of Environment and Forest has accorded the environment clearance for the Chandigarh Technology Park.

Chandigarh Administration is committed to providing holistic facilities for companies investing in Chandigarh. The second phase of CTP comprising of an additional 250 acres is being developed as a Technology Habitat in order to provide integrated facilities to professionals working at the CTP in order to avoid the infrastructural problems being faced in some other cities on account of the growth of the IT sector. Out of this 115 acres will be for the Technology Park and 135 acres for the integrated support facilities. The Administration is providing residential, commercial, community and sports infrastructure for the IT companies to flourish in a manner that is conducive to their growth with a futuristic outlook.

It is expected that about 1000 Engineers/Professionals shall start working at CTP by December 2005. A total of 20000 professionals are expected to work at the CTP once it is fully established.

CTP has so far attracted investment of about Rs. 400 crore of Infosys and DLF. Annual Software Export of about Rs.1000 crores are likely to take place from CTP in the next 3 years.

The following companies are now part of the Chandigarh Technology Park.

220 KV power supply Ensured captive water supply dedicated tertiary sewerage treatment plant and recycled water for garden use Developed land Dedicated Telecom bandwidth and Telephone Exchange On campus amenities.Retail and Banking facilities Public transport hub Restaurants and Sports club Ample on-site parking.

Wide range of options to cater to the specific requirements of clients, with scalability and design flexibility, dedicated infrastructure for the site with redundancy in bandwidth and power supply to ensure maximum uptime Single stop clearances and support for all architectural, engineering and infrastructure issues Special task force setup for speedy transfer and occupancy, Excellent Infrastructure, First-Mover Advantage (attractive pricing), Freehold Allotment of Land Exemption from Property Taxes.