MUMBAI: Software major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has bought over 22 acres of land from another Tata Group company- Rallis India- at an investment of Rs 133 crore. TCS plans to set up a sprawling campus on the site which will have a state-of-the-art training facility for its employees.

Rallis, on the other hand might use the money raised by this sale to retire its debts, sources say. Rallis closed the financial year ending March 2001 with a net loss of Rs 25.58 crore. Tata Group holding in Rallis is about 48 per cent.

In a statement issued by Rallis, the company said that the board of directors of Rallis India Ltd has approved a proposal to dispose off its land at Suren Road in Andheri to TCS, subject to obtaining clearances from all the authorities. The land admeasuring 22 acres has been valued at Rs 133 crore.

TCS CEO S.Ramadorai said in a statement: "For some time now, TCS has been looking for a suitable plot of land which could be developed to showcase our standing as a large software and services company. I am delighted that we have found this land in Mumbai, our headquarters. The state of Maharashtra has always been extremely supportive of everything that we have done, and with this purchase, we will ensure that TCS creates a software park second to none".

TCS plans to develop a software park-like facility that would be used to showcasing its capabilities to its potential clients out of one location. The building of an ultramodern campus would give an opportunity of creating a brand new training facility to supplement the existing one at Thiruvananthapuram, which is currently totally full with TCS employees requiring initial training.

TCS will use this facility to consolidate its operations in Mumbai and to set up a huge facility. Currently TCS operates out of 12 different locations in Mumbai alone. Over the next 12 to 24 months, it will shift its operations to the facility to be constructed at Andheri and gradually move out of the existing facilities, a TCS representative said. TCS however, plans to retain the Air-India building and SEEPZ premises.

"This purchase marks a major milestone in the realization of 'TCS' business vision of becoming a global top 10 consulting firm. This property will give us the opportunity of creating a state of the art software park befitting the stature to meet our business needs," the spokeperson said.

Mumbai currently has 4,500 TCS employees which is expected to grow to over 10,000 over the next few years.

Courtesy: The Times of India
Date: 4^th July 2001