Neelambur and adjacent suburbs of Coimbatore are seeing an industrial expansion ; these areas have been designated as hubs for economic growth. These nodes have been divided up by the government into distinct industries. Along with infrastructural upgrades, residential and commercial growth is anticipated as the working class population moves.
COIMBATORE: Known for its entrepreneurial spirit and more than 25,000 micro, small, and medium-sized firms, or MSMEs, this tier-2 city is one of the fastest growing in the nation.
However, the majority of the industrial operations were concentrated in tiny areas like Ganapathy and Singanallur, mostly in the textile and engineering sectors. Most of the district’s remaining area was agricultural.
One such arid neighborhood was Neelambur, which had vast stretches of unoccupied and uncultivated land.
The eastern edge of the city now provides an entirely different image.
It has become a center for the car and pump manufacturing industries. Not just Neelambur, but neighboring suburbs are seeing their economies shift from rural to industrial.
These areas have become development engines as Coimbatore prepares for a significant industrial expansion.
The government of Tamil Nadu designated eight suburbs as development hubs for economic capital in the most recent masterplan for Coimbatore. It was determined that Neelambur, together with three nearby towns, served as a center for the motor, pump, and vehicle manufacturing sectors.
Together with two more villages, Chettipalayam and Kallapalayam comprise the second node of the electrical automation industry. The third node consists of the processing industries in Sarkarsamakulam and Kannamapalayam.
Saravanampatti, who used to sleep, and Keeranatham, an IT and ITES node.
Madukarai has been selected as the cement industries node, Somayampalayam as the steel and chemical industries node, and Periyanaickenpalayam and Idikarai as the pump and electrical engineering nodes. Small-scale industries will converge on Coimbatore, the city’s central business district.
“In the past, different enterprises were located near to one another. Every community in the present growth phase has its own industrial sector. For example, foundries are located in Kallapalayam, but pump industries are concentrated in Arasur “The Southern India Engineering Manufacturers’ Association President, D Vignesh, explains.
There will be two to four locations supporting the expansion of each growth node. Along with CODISSIA Industrial Park, electrical automation manufacturing companies including L&T and Schneider are located in the Chettipalayam, Othakkalmandapam, Pappampatti, and Kallapalayam regions. Chinnakuyili has foundries, while Kallapalayam has engineering industrial facilities.
Chettipalayam’s location near the Amazon and Flipkart warehouses makes it a prime location for expansion as a logistics center.
Based on the current industrial units and their potential for both short- and long-term growth, these nodes have been identified and categorized.
Arasur, for example, now operates over 1,500 pump and motor manufacturing facilities. In the ensuing decades, 1,500 additional people are anticipated to visit.
There are now 300 foundries in Kallapalayam, but by 2040, there may be 1,000.
Industry leaders claim that these new clusters would facilitate better city planning and faster growth. In addition to new apartments, the city’s current apartments are also relocating to these areas.
For example, the Ganapathy pump and motor units are moving to Neelambur. The growth of residential areas into the formerly industrial regions is made possible by this move.
According to P Kathiravan, head of the Karpagam Academy of Higher Education’s department of architecture, who oversaw the creation of the Coimbatore Local Planning Area’s Master Plan-2041, working-class people would eventually move to these areas of economic growth.
“So, a greater number of residential and commercial buildings will come up in these areas,” he continues.
However, there are no transportation options available for the seven km between Chettipalayam and Kallapalayam. Similarly, there are inadequate transportation options from Pappampatti to Kallapalayam either.
Newer townships would develop in these locations as soon as bus services and a drinking water supply are available, according to V Sundaram, vice-president of the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), Coimbatore.
The state administration is prepared to take on this task. Plans for suitable roads, potable water, and solid waste management are being developed by the government for these areas.
The corresponding local authorities are also stepping up to the plate to draw industry to their areas.
