Master Plan approved for Rs 26k-cr convention centre in Delhi

Government has approved the project master plan for a proposed Rs 26,000 crore international exhibition-cum-convention centre (IECC) in the national capital.
The state-of-the-art facility which, when completed, will be one of the biggest in Asia. It is proposed to be set up in Dwarka, south-west Delhi, the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC) said in a statement.
The DMICDC is the knowledge partner for the project, which is envisioned as a major national infrastructure designed to catalyse trade and industrial development through meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) and serve as an economic growth anchor, it said.
"The master plan was approved at the second meeting of the Project Steering Committee under the chairmanship of Shaktikanta Das, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs," it added.

It said the proposed development was approved by the Cabinet in March this year, and 89.72 hectares of land in Sector-25 Dwarka was transferred to the DIPP for the project.
With an overall built-up space of 1.02 million sq metres, the IECC will house exhibition halls, convention centers, banquet halls, an arena, a financial centre, hotels, food and beverage outlets, commercial and retail services and common internal infrastructure facilities.

The IECC, which will be able to host 5,000 to 10,000 delegates, will be around 15 minutes away from the international airport here, in close proximity to mixed use and entertainment district, with hotels available on site and within short distances.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will take up the extension of Airport Express metro line to provide dedicated metro connectivity to the ECC complex, it added.
The various other stakeholders in the project, including National Highways Authority of India, Delhi Jal Board, Delhi Development Authority, Transco and BSES Rajdhani Power Limited, have also agreed to extend all necessary infrastructure and support for the project for road connectivity, power supply, fresh water and sewage disposal system.
"Phase I of the project is expected to be commissioned by June 2019," it said.
The IECC is designed to be a world-class platform for trade and business exchanges and will enable India to capture a bigger share of the global MICE market currently worth an estimated USD 280 billion, it added.