Durgapur, Aug. 17: The Durgapur development authority has cleared a proposal by construction firm Shapoorji Pallonji & Co to set up an infotech special economic zone (SEZ).

The SEZ will come up on 25 acres allotted by the Asansol Durgapur Development Authority (Adda), whose board okayed the proposal today.

Bansagopal Chowdhury, the Adda chairman, said the SEZ would be set up near the Software Technology Park in Durgapur’s Bidhannagar and will house a number of infotech companies.

“Shapoorji Pallonji will develop infrastructure for the Rs 100-crore project on 25 acres in Durgapur’s Bidhannagar area. The company will have to follow the land utilisation pattern fixed by Adda,” Chowdhury told a media conference. He said 5 per cent of the turnover of the project would go to the authority.

The project needs clearance from the approval board under the Union commerce ministry. If land acquisition is completed, approvals come through faster.

The project, expected to be up and running by 2012, would generate around 4,000 jobs, Chowdhury said, adding that infotech SEZs have never been targeted by the Opposition.