Bengaluru to get Dubai-like Design District

An avant-garde ‘Design District’ will come up in Bengaluru on the lines of Dubai’s d3, IT/BT Minister CN Ashwath Narayan said on Wednesday. 

The proposed Bengaluru Design District will be set up with an investment of Rs 1,000 crore, the minister told reporters after returning from his 4-day trip to the Dubai Expo. 

“Karnataka is an ideal destination for investments and investors from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) agree on this. As a result, Bengaluru will soon get a world-class Design District. This will be way ahead of the one in Dubai in terms of quality,” Narayan said. 

The Bengaluru Design District will come up on an area spread over 100-150 acres. “Here, everything businesses need at a global level will be designed. It will be a place where design, art and fashion will meet,” Narayan said, adding that a Bengaluru Design Festival will also be held here. 

The Dubai Design District (d3) claims to be home to “the biggest global, regional and local brands within the art, design and fashion industries.”

Narayan also said “fruitful talks” were held with investors, especially Decker & Halabi, on establishing a water theme park in the state. 

“A delegation of GCC will visit Karnataka in November to sign investment agreements,” Narayan said. 

According to him, the Evolvence Group, Crescent Group, Decker & Halabi, Aster DM Healthcare, Meitra Hospital and Mubadala Investment Company among others have shown interest to invest in Karnataka. “This will help create jobs in logistics, health, education, ports, wellness and other areas,” Narayan said. 

The Gulf Islamic Investment Group alone will invest Rs 3,500 crore in India over a 3-year period. “The group will open an office in Bengaluru and an agreement was signed with them in Dubai,” Narayan said. 

Narayan, who is also the higher education minister, said several foreign universities are interested in setting up campuses in Karnataka. “Agreements will be finalised soon,” he said. 

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