The head of North East property, care and leisure company Malhotra Group Plc has unveiled plans for a £150m development in his Indian hometown.
Meenu Malhotra, chair and founder of the Newcastle group, said he has long held an ambition to give something back to his home town of Ludhiana, Punjab, which would create jobs as well as boost its economy through a raft of facilities.
Mr Malhotra has now unveiled a series of images which show his plans for the multimillion-pound scheme, which represents one of the largest investments in the company’s 40-year history, set on a 12 to 15-acre plot of land he has owned for a number of years.
All the consents needed for the huge project – including planning permissions - are being granted with the aim of allowing the development to get under way this year.
Mr Malhotra will oversee construction of a “one stop shop” creating around 2,000 jobs, featuring 11 towers housing 1,100 two and three bedroomed apartments, a 550,000 sq ft shopping mall with national and international retail outlets and restaurants, a hotel plus a multiplex cinema.
The centre tower – which will be 15 storeys high – will also include an additional restaurant for residents.
Based within five miles of the city of Ludhiana, the secure and gated complex which will also offer sports facilities including swimming pool, badminton and tennis courts, snooker and table tennis rooms and walking tracks.
The Malhotra Group is now in talks with Indian project management and consultancy companies to develop the scheme and recruitment is already under way.
Mr Malhotra said: “I have always referred to Newcastle as my adopted home and am very grateful to the people of the North East for their continued support.
“But at the same time I have always been a patriotic Indian, proud Punjabi and my home town of Ludhiana remains very close to my heart.
“I believe this is a fantastic opportunity for the area and I have been delighted by the encouragement and support we’ve had from the Punjab Government who have welcomed the project and the mega investment we are making.”
He added :“It will provide much needed job creation and personally will give me the opportunity to share my passion mentoring SMEs, assisting start-ups and little angels, which I’ve done for many years in the UK.”
Mr Malhotra will divide his time between India and the UK, in order to lead the development on behalf of both Malhotra Group and the family.
He said: “I will remain at the helm of UK operations, however during my visits to India the company’s day to day business affairs will be in the very capable hands of my younger brother Bunty, who heads our care division, and my eldest son, Atul, who heads our leisure division.
“My plan is now to focus on the job at hand for the benefit of the people and economy of Ludhiana, by delivering an international facility. It is a huge responsibility, most humbling and I feel very privileged to be working in India.”
