Narendra Modi to visit GIFT city today: A look at Gujarat’s grand financial and IT hub

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) today to launch India International Bullion Exchange (IIBX) and NSE IFSC-SGX Connect. He will also lay the foundation stone of the unified regulator International Financial Services Centres Authority’s headquarters building. Must read: PM Modi to inaugurate India's first international bullion exchange in Surat: What is it? Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman are also expected to attend the event. What is the GIFT City? GIFT City is India’s maiden International Financial Services Centre (IFSC). As per the official website, it is a planned business district in the state of Gujarat. It is the new business destination offering competitive edge to financial services and technology related activities. Spread across 886 acres of land with 62 mn square feet of built up area, the GIFT City includes offices spaces, residential apartments, schools, hospitals, hotels, clubs, retail and various recreational facilities, making it a “Walk to Work” City. GIFT City consists of a conducive Multi-Service SEZ (Special Economic Zone) and an exclusive domestic area. Being located on the banks of river Sabarmati, the GIFT City connects the business capital, Ahmedabad, to the political capital, Gandhinagar, of Gujarat. Located at around seven km from Gujarat’s capital Gandhinagar, it was once a barren land and is now emerging as the country’s first greenfield integrated city. What does it offer? As per The Hindu, more than 12,000 people were already working by December last year at offices set up by more than 200 entities in the GIFT City. It offers business opportunities in a broad array of segments, including banking, capital markets, asset management, insurance, IT services and BPO services. According to The Hindu, the 62 million square feet built-up area constitutes 67 per cent commercial, 22 per cent residential and 11 per cent social space. Further, the entire city project has been divided into a multi-service Special Economic Zone (SEZ) spread over 261 acres and exclusive domestic tariff area (DTA) spread over 625 acres. As per the report, entities have been offered a range of tax exemptions to start their international operations from the GIFT City. As a result, both the BSE and the NSE have set up their international stock exchanges, 17 banks including 12 domestic banks and five international banks issued licence to operate, 100 plus broking services, depository clearing operations and over 19 companies have begun operations for non-life reinsurance business, The Hindu reported. The rapidly developing city has been attracting more and more companies. The Global Financial Centers Index, London, dated September 2020 has placed the IFSC at GIFT City right at the top among 15 centres globally, which are likely to gain greater significance in the next 24 months. During the inauguration of the international stock exchange, PM Modi had said that “in 10 years from now, GIFT city should become the price setter for at least a few of the largest traded instruments in the world, whether in commodities, currencies, equities, interest rates or any other financial instrument.” As per the project’s official website, the Gujarat Government has already developed key infrastructure amenities including water treatment and cooling plants, underground utility tunnel, automated waste collection and segregated plant. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.