Koppal Toy Cluster In Karnataka Set To Commence Operation In March 2022

The Koppal Toy Cluster (KTC) in Karnataka will commence operations in March 2022, Aravind Melligeri, chairman and CEO of Aequs told The Hindu

KTC is being set up by Aequs Infra, a group company of Belagavi-based Aequs Pvt. Ltd.

According to Melligeri, six toy and toy-component makers have signed MoUs with Aequs Infra while another three players, including Viscon Polymers, manufacturer and exporter of custom rubber moulded products, have started construction of their production facilities at KTC.

Spread over 400 acres, Koppal Toy Cluster has been designed to house an entire Toy Manufacturing Ecosystem to support toy manufacturers, suppliers, and vendors across the toy value chain. The Toy cluster aims to brings together in-campus business support services, including social infrastructure and residential accommodation, to support the workforce.

The cluster will include raw material suppliers, shared infrastructure such as plug and play industrial sheds, research and development, design and prototyping, testing, training, quality certification, customs, ancillary industries and service providers etc.

The cluster is also estimated to attract an investment of over ₹4,000 crore and create over 25,000 direct jobs (mostly for women in North Karnataka) and over a lakh indirect jobs.

The cluster plans to address the manufacturers’ requirements through a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) for exports and a Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) for the domestic market.

Envisaged under the Product Specific Industrial Cluster Development Programme of government of Karnataka, this will be the first cluster in India dedicated for manufacturing toys.

Koppal in Karnataka has a rich heritage in toy manufacturing and is also home to the famous Kinhala toys.

A global investors virtual meeting in August 2021 saw various global toymakers in attendance.

Karnataka government has promised that toy cluster at Koppal will get help in getting access to finance and modern technology for large scale production of these traditional toys.

An engineering and manufacturing focused entity, Aequs is also working on developing manufacturing ecosystems at two other locations – Belagavi (Precision Engineering & Aerospace sector)and Hubballi (Consumer Durable Goods and Appliances).