The Cabinet on Wednesday decided to release 90 acres more to the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) as part of the proposal to develop a new facility for BrahMos Aerospace Thiruvananthapuram Ltd (BATL) in the district.

Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan said at a post-Cabinet briefing that the State government had released 90 acres earlier. The project required 180 acres in all, and the additional authorisation for the 90 acres was necessary for the grant of approvals from the DRDO, according to him.

The Supreme Court had in December 2025 given its approval for the transfer of land under the Nettukaltheri open prison complex to BATL. This unit, the second of BATL in Thiruvananthapuram district after the one at Chakka, is expected to be dedicated to advanced missiles and strategic hardware.

BATL was established at Chakka in 2007 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Indo-Russian joint venture BrahMos Aerospace Pvt Ltd (BAPL) by taking over Kerala government-owned Kerala Hi-Tech Industries Ltd (Keltec). It has been manufacturing systems, components for various organisations including DRDO, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), BAPL and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd.

BATL’s new facility is expected to emerge as a major link in the development of strategic industries in the aerospace and defence sector in and around Thiruvananthapuram. In the final Budget of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government, then Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal had announced a ‘Defence Corridor’ linking various defence and space research institutions in the region, including BATL. In the first Budget (Revised Budget for 2026-27) of the United Democratic Front (UDF) government, Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan has announced a ‘Southern Kerala Economic Corridor’ linking Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Alappuzha districts into a unified economic zone of “national strategic importance.”

Published - July 29, 2026 09:27 pm IST