Fareed Abdulrahman, Chief Executive Officer of SmartCity, the promoters of the proposed SmartCity Kochi project, has lamented the absence of a campaigner on the part of the State government to drive the cause of the project.
According to information reaching here, Mr. Abdulrahman is said to have told the reporters on the sidelines of a function in Dubai on Wednesday that while the SmartCity had entrusted him with all responsibilities related to the project, such a key person was missing on the government side.
He said while the Chief Secretary had been the contact person for the project that post had been occupied by quite a few persons. Comparing the situation with the company's similar project at Malta, Mr. Abdulrahman said there a Minister had been entrusted with handling the project all along.
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He said that the delay in the implementation of the project had adversely affected the image of SmartCity.
Asked who stood to lose due to non-implementation of the project, Mr. Abdulrahman said SmartCity was definitely a loser with its investment of Rs.120 crore remaining blocked along with its inability to utilise the land designated for the project. People who had hopes of better prospects on the implementation of the project would also be disappointed as also the people of the State, he said.