TIZ, a State Government project under the Technology Business Incubator (TBI) of the Technopark, provides incubation facilities for ‘startups’ in the sectors of telecom, IT, agriculture, tourism, electronics and biotechnology. It offers support to aspiring entrepreneurs in conceptualisation, mentoring, creating infrastructure and linking them with potential investors. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy inaugurated the first phase of the Technology Innovation Zone (TIZ) at the Kinfra Hi-Tech Park at Kalamassery on 20thy October 2014. The Technology Innovation Zone (TIZ) would have a total built-up area of over 3,00,000-sft and have all the amenities of a futuristic business incubator. The Central and state governments have jointly invested `150 crore for the project. Initially, the TIZ will start functioning in a 10,000-sqft facility set up on a 13.2-acre land at the Kinfra Park, with the capacity to accommodate 40 startups. The operations of the TIZ will be monitored by the Startup Village, Kochi. The implementing authority of the project is Technopark, Thiruvananthapuram.
The project is spread across 13.2 acres at the Kinfra Park. Work on the remaining buildings is progressing and would be completed by 2016-end. Once fully operational, TIZ would have a total built up area of over 3,00,000-sft and will have all the amenities of a futuristic business incubator, including fab-labs (fabrication labs) and a data centre apart from a convention centre, food courts and an exhibition lounge. “The TIZ will function with an eye on the future, and with the objective of sustaining the current entrepreneurship boom in the State,” said Infopark CEO Hrishikesh Nair. Minister V K Ebrahim Kunju will preside over the function. IT Principal Secretary P H Kurian, Kalamassery municipality chairman Jamal Manakkadan, District Collector M G Rajamanickam, Kalamassery municipality councillor Naseema Majid, Kinfra managing director G C Gopala Pillai, Startup Village chairman Sanjay Vijayakumar and Startup Village CEO Pranav Kumar Suresh attended the function
