Country’s first Space Park to come up in capital

Thiruvananthapuram: The country’s first state-of-the-art space systems park will come up at the Knowledge City in the state capital. This will help attract global startups working in space sector and also make Thiruvananthapuram a major manufacturing hub for space-related technology, research and development.
Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Knowledge Centre and Space Museum, to be developed by Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) as a memorial to the former president will also be located here, as part of the overall infrastructure of the Space Park. The state government has issued orders to make Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Centre and Space Museum part of the Space Park and to allot the land required for the facility. This will be an added attraction to the Space Park and the entire investment will be made by the VSSC.
The government will lease out 20.01 acres to the Kerala State Information Technology Infrastructure Ltd (KSITIL) to develop the Space Park at the Knowledge City. Of this, 16.07 acres, now having SEZ status will be de-notified by KSITIL. The land belongs to Technopark. The project will be implemented by the electronics and IT department, of the state government.
Primarily a manufacturing hub for companies using GIS and other data systems, the integrated complex will also have startup incubator, accelerators including Airbus Bizlab, skill training systems and production units.
“With the Space Park materialising, the state capital will become a key hub of space technology in the country,” said IT secretary M Sivasankar. “The Space Park is being set up to leverage the opportunities provided by Space 2.0 and it will generate lots of high-tech jobs,” he said.
“Besides VSSC, some other major centres of Isro are also located in and around the city, and together with Space Park they will help create a robust ecosystem for space technology applications and research, Abdul Kalam museum being another attraction,” he added.
CEO of state-owned ICT Academy Santhosh Kurup has been appointed as the special officer of the Space Park project. KSITIL, as co-developer of the project, will collect premium from the companies taking up space in the complex.