Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 22 (IANS): The Kerala government has given the go-ahead for a Rs.1,200-crore investment proposal here, said a statement issued Friday.

The project in Technopark by Taurus Investment Holdings LLC, Boston, the US, has been named "Taurus Downtown Technopark".

With a projected investment of Rs.1,200 crore, it will see development of more than 20 lakh sq. feet of IT special economic zone (SEZ) and non-SEZ space.

It will also create supporting facilities like retail space, hotels and a state-of-the-art plug and play office facility for start-ups and small businesses in the non-SEZ part of the project.

The project is expected to generate about 25,000 direct and 75,000 indirect employment opportunities.

Expressing satisfaction, Taurus India managing director Ajay Prasad said "Taurus is waiting for the completion of the process of allotment of the project and hopes to receive the Letter of Intent from Technopark at the earliest. The company is already in talks with major global players who are either waiting to enter India or planning to expand in India, including Allianz, Fidelity Investments, Deutsch Bank, Oracle and others," he said.

Taurus India is a fully owned subsidiary of Taurus Investment Holdings LLC. Over the past decade, Taurus has entered markets as diverse as Israel, Argentina and Turkey.