An artist’s impression of an Infospace building

Close to five million sq ft of cutting-edge IT domain across a campus-style development. A richly-landscaped park at the heart, containing retail, entertainment and living spaces to suit the lifestyle of professionals working at the address, at work and play.

Infospace, Bengal Unitech Universal’s 50-acre IT park coming up in Rajarhat’s Action Area I, promises to raise the bar in terms of the “standard of futuristic office space in the state”, architecturally, functionally and as an employment energiser.

“Infospace will catapult Calcutta on to the global IT map. Once complete, it will create 50,000 direct employment and 100,000 indirect employment opportunities,” declares NRI businessman Prasoon Mukherjee, director of Bengal Unitech Universal, a joint-venture between his Universal Success Enterprises and Unitech Ltd.

In the first phase, 750,000 sq ft of space will be ready for fit-outs by May 2007, and then around 700,000 sq ft will be delivered every nine months “till we reach 4.2 million sq ft”, the last phase to be delivered in June 2010, Mukherjee adds.

Designed by RMJM of Hong Kong — the firm which has also created the Beijing Olympics Convention Centre — the Rs 1,000-crore IT park in Rajarhat has a radical layout.

Each individual building is made up of a series of three modular blocks that provide multiple configurations of floorplates catering to every kind of user, thus ensuring sustainability through maximum flexibility.

'Unlike traditional IT park buildings in India, which utilise large single blocks, these smaller-building modules allow high levels of natural day light to filter through and provide better visual links to the external landscape, ensuring higher user comfort,' explains Gordon Affleck of RMJM, who headed the design team.

The building orientations provide a series of sheltered formal drop-off courtyards that lead directly to the landscaped spine through the multiple-height lobby spaces.

'The traffic planning has been done to minimise the impact of vehicular access while maximising the extent of pedestrian only landscaped areas,' points out Ajay Chandra, director, Bengal Unitech Universal.

The ancillary product-mix at Infospace comprises retail,star hotels and service apartments, according to Sameer Bahri, head of operations, east. Space is available on lease only, and the IT park has secured 'primary approval' for an SEZ (special conomic zone) from the Centre.

'As an indication of our thrust on IT, special offers are extended to IT professionals in our 100-acre residential property Uniworld City (co-ming up two km from the Infospace site), with sops ranging from Rs 90,000 to 2.5 lakh,' Mukherjee says. It is learnt 22-25 per cent of bookings at Uniworld City till date, are by IT and ITES professionals.