KOVAI RISING

Coimbatore, one of the country’s fastest growing tier-2 cities, is known for its entrepreneurial spirit and more than 25,000 micro, small and medium enterprises or MSMEs. But most of the industrial units, predominantly in engineering and textiles, were concentrated in small pockets such as Ganapathy and Singanallur. The rest of the district was largely agrarian.

Neelambur was one such dry suburb with large tracts of uncultivated and uninhabited land. This eastern periphery of the city presents a completely different picture now. It has emerged as a hub of the automobile and pump manufacturing industry. Not just Neelambur, other suburbs are also undergoing a transition from an agrarian to an industrial economy. Coimbatore is on the cusp of a major industrial expansion and these suburbs have become growth engines.

In the latest masterplan for Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu govt identified eight suburbs as economic capital growth nodes. Neelambur along with three neighbouring villages was identified as a hub for automobile, motor, and pump manufacturing industries. Chettipalayam, Kalla-palayam and two more villages form the second node with electrical automation industries. Sarkarsamakulam and Kannamapalayam with numerous food processing industries are the third node.

Once-sleepy Sarava-nampatti and Keeranatham are an IT and ITES node. Periyanaickenpalayam and Idikarai form the pump and electrical engineering node, while Madukarai has been identified as cement industries node, and Somayampalayam the steel and chemical industries node. The core city of Coimbatore will function as a node for small scale industries.

“In the past, various industries were found close to each other. In the current phase of expansion, each locality has its own industrial sector. For instance, Arasur has been populated by pump industries, while Kallapalayam has foundries,” says D Vignesh, president, The Southern India Engineering Manufacturers’ Association.

Each growth node will have two to four localities aiding in the growth. Chettipalayam, Othakkalmandapam, Pappampatti and Kallapalayam areas have electrical automation manufacturing industries, including L&T and Schneider, in addition to CODISSIA Industrial Park. Kallapalayam has engineering industrial units and Chinnakuyili has foundries. Warehouses of Amazon and Flipkart are located in Chettipalayam, making it ideal for growth as a logistics hub.

These nodes have been identified and categorised based on the existing industrial units and their potential for growth in the immediate as well as long term. For instance, Arasur already has 1,500-odd pump and motor manufacturing units. It is expected to attract 1,500 more in the coming decades. Kallapalayam has 300 foundries, which number might grow to 1,000 by 2040.

These emerging clusters will enable faster growth and better city planning, say industrialists. Besides new units, existing units within the city are also moving to these localities. For instance, pump and motor units from Ganapathy are relocating to Neelambur. This relocation paves the way for expansion of residential areas into the erstwhile industrial areas.

P Kathiravan, dean, department of archtitecture, Karpagam Academy of Higher Education, who drafted Master Plan-2041 for Coimbatore Local Planning Area, says there will be a migration of working-class population towards these economic growth nodes in due course. “So, a greater number of residential and commercial buildings will come up in these areas,’’ he adds.

“But there are no transport facilities from Chettipalayam to Kallapalayam for a stretch of 7 km. Likewise, Pappampatti to Kallapalayam too does not have adequate transport facilities. Once bus services and drinking water supply are provided, newer townships will come up in these areas,” says V Sundaram, vice-president, Indian Chamber of Commerce, and Industry (ICCI), Coimbatore.

The state government is gearing up to meet this challenge. The authorities are drawing up plans to provide proper roads, drinking water and solid waste management schemes for these localities. The respective local bodies are also rising to the challenge of making their areas attractive for industries.


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