# HMT Kalamassery’s Land: From Factory Estate to Development Bank

> In the 1960s HMT received a land bank of roughly 900 acres at Kalamassery for its machine-tool factory. Over the following six decades much of that estate was handed on – to a medical college, the naval depot, the electricity board, a private developer whose land became the Adani Logistics Park, road projects and, as proposed in 2025, a Judicial City. This page traces that land, as of October 2026.

- URL: https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/hmt-kalamassery-land-and-factory-1960s-2020s/
- Publisher: Ashraf Gents Hostel, Ashraf house, NAD Rd, signal, Kalamassery, Aluva, Kerala 683563, India (+91 90746 23855)
- Published: 2026-10-08 · Updated: 2026-10-08
- Topic: History & archive
- Cite as: Ashraf Gents Hostel. “HMT Kalamassery’s Land: From Factory Estate to Development Bank.” Published 8 October 2026. https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/hmt-kalamassery-land-and-factory-1960s-2020s/

## Key facts

- HMT’s Kalamassery land was part of a land bank of about 900 acres acquired in the 1960s for a machine-tool factory, Onmanorama reported in November 2025.
- The foundation stone of the Co-operative (now Government) Medical College campus was laid on HMT Estate land at Kalamassery, and the college moved there in 2004, according to Wikipedia.
- HMT sold 70 acres at Kalamassery to Blue Star Realtors, an HDIL subsidiary, in a sale registered at Edappally in November 2006; the Adani Group acquired Blue Star Realtors in December 2018.
- A 2014 Kerala High Court judgment held HMT’s remaining land could not be subjected to land-ceiling proceedings; the Supreme Court ordered status quo on the state’s appeal in 2016.
- On 26 November 2025 the Supreme Court issued notice to HMT on Kerala’s plea to take possession of HMT’s last 27 acres at Kalamassery for a Judicial City.

## A factory that came with a township

When Hindustan Machine Tools chose Kalamassery for a new plant in the early 1960s, the state government gave it a very large estate. Onmanorama, summarising the land’s legal history in November 2025, describes a land bank of about 900 acres acquired in the 1960s for the machine-tool factory. HMT dates the Kalamassery complex itself to 1964. Besides the factory, the estate held staff quarters in what is still called HMT Colony.

Our [HMT Kalamassery guide](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/hmt-kalamassery-guide/) covers the factory and what it makes; this page follows the land. In short, because HMT held far more land than a machine-tool plant needed, its estate became the place where Kalamassery’s later public projects were sited.

## Timeline of the HMT land

| Date | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1960s | About 900 acres acquired for HMT’s Kalamassery factory | Onmanorama (26 November 2025) |
| 1964 | HMT’s Kalamassery complex begins | HMT Machine Tools |
| Late 1990s–2004 | Medical college campus built on HMT Estate land; foundation stone by E. K. Nayanar, campus in use from 2003–04 | Wikipedia; CAPE |
| 2000 | Notification after which HMT retains 100 acres | Onmanorama |
| November 2006 | 70 acres sold to Blue Star Realtors (HDIL), registered at Edappally | HMT statement via Oneindia |
| 30 January 2008 | Kerala Cabinet orders a Chief Secretary inquiry into the 70-acre sale | Wikipedia, 2008 in Kerala |
| 2014 | Kerala High Court rules the land cannot be subjected to ceiling proceedings | Onmanorama |
| 2016 | Supreme Court issues notice on the state’s appeal and orders status quo | Onmanorama |
| December 2018 | Adani Group acquires Blue Star Realtors | Deccan Chronicle |
| 23 August 2025 | Adani Logistics Park groundbreaking on the former HMT plot | Adani Group |
| September 2025 | Kerala Cabinet gives in-principle approval for a Judicial City on 27 acres of HMT land | Onmanorama |
| 26 November 2025 | Supreme Court issues notice to HMT on Kerala’s plea for the 27 acres | Onmanorama |

## Public uses: medical college, depot, power and roads

The biggest public use was education and health. Wikipedia records that then Chief Minister E. K. Nayanar laid the foundation stone of the Co-operative Medical College campus on HMT Estate land, and that the college moved to the Kalamassery campus in 2004; its sponsor, CAPE, dates the inauguration to 2003. The roughly 60-acre campus is now [Government Medical College, Ernakulam](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/govt-medical-college-ernakulam-history/), and the campus also houses the Cochin Cancer Research Centre – see the [CCRC building timeline](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/ccrc-building-timeline/).

Onmanorama lists other parcels handed over from the original estate: land for the [Naval Armament Depot](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/naval-armament-depot-aluva-history/) – which gives NAD Road its name – and for the Kerala State Electricity Board, plus 3 acres to the National Investigation Agency. It also reports that portions were allowed for the Seaport–Airport Road and the KINFRA Hi-Tech Park in 2024 and 2025 on similar terms. The Kochi Metro casting yard and ‘Metro Village’ were located at HMT Colony during construction, according to Wikipedia. The [Seaport–Airport Road history](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/seaport-airport-road-history/) covers the road side.

NUALS’s 10-acre campus sits inside the KINFRA Hi-Tech Park, according to the university. We have not found a document stating which parts of the park were originally HMT land, so we do not say NUALS stands on former HMT land.

## The 2006 sale and its long afterlife

After a 2000 notification HMT kept about 100 acres outside the factory, which the state said had a permanent exemption under section 81(1)(a) of the Kerala Land Reforms Act. In 2006 HMT sold **70 acres** of it to Mumbai-based Blue Star Realtors, a subsidiary of HDIL, which planned an IT township. HMT’s general manager said in February 2008 that the sale followed a transparent tender with 11 bids and was registered at Edappally in November 2006. Critics alleged the price – reported as ₹91 crore – was far below the land’s value, and on 30 January 2008 the Kerala Cabinet ordered an inquiry. In the High Court, the state government later filed an affidavit saying the sale was legal.

The IT township was never built. In December 2018 the Adani Group bought Blue Star Realtors, and with it the land; the [Adani Logistics Park](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/adani-logistics-park-land-history/) broke ground there on 23 August 2025.

## The last 27 acres and the Judicial City

Of the 100 acres, 70 went to Blue Star and 3 to the NIA, leaving **27 acres**. The state tried several times to resume HMT land under the land-ceiling law; a 2014 Kerala High Court judgment went against it, and the Supreme Court in 2016 issued notice on the state’s appeal and ordered status quo. In September 2025 the Kerala Cabinet approved a [Judicial City](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/judicial-city-proposal-history/) for the High Court on those 27 acres, and on 26 November 2025 a bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant issued notice to HMT on the state’s plea to take possession, with compensation to be deposited pending the appeal. As of October 2026 we found no final order.

## Why it matters near the NAD signal

Almost every big institution within a few kilometres of the NAD signal – the medical college, the cancer centre, the logistics park, the proposed courts – sits on land that HMT once held. Ashraf Gents Hostel, a men-only hostel and PG at the signal, lists the Medical College, NUALS and the Adani port area among places within about 3 km; ask on the call (+91 90746 23855) about rooms. More land and project histories are in the [Kalamassery history archive](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/kalamassery-history-archive/).

## Frequently asked questions

**How much land did HMT get at Kalamassery?**

Onmanorama describes a land bank of about 900 acres acquired in the 1960s for the machine-tool factory.

**Is the Government Medical College on HMT land?**

Wikipedia says its foundation stone was laid on HMT Estate land at Kalamassery, and the college moved there in 2004.

**Who bought HMT’s 70 acres?**

Blue Star Realtors, an HDIL subsidiary, in a sale registered in November 2006. The Adani Group acquired Blue Star in December 2018, and the Adani Logistics Park is being built there.

**Why does the Judicial City need Supreme Court permission?**

The 27 acres are covered by a 2016 Supreme Court status-quo order in the state’s appeal against a 2014 High Court judgment, so the state asked the court to modify it.

**Is NUALS on former HMT land?**

NUALS is in the KINFRA Hi-Tech Park, but we found no document confirming which parts of the park were originally HMT land.

## Sources

- [Onmanorama: Kerala approaches Supreme Court for permission to use HMT land for Judicial City (26 November 2025)](https://www.onmanorama.com/news/kerala/2025/11/26/kerala-approaches-supreme-court-permission-hmt-land-judicial-city-kochi.html)
- [Oneindia: Land sold through very transparent process – HMT (5 February 2008)](https://www.oneindia.com/2008/02/05/land-sold-through-very-transparent-process-hmt-1202231005.html)
- [Wikipedia: 2008 in Kerala](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_in_Kerala)
- [India Environment Portal: HMT land sale legal, says State government](https://indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/news-clippings/hmt-land-sale-legal-says-state-government)
- [Deccan Chronicle: Adani Group acquires HDIL’s Blue Star Realtors (December 2018)](https://www.deccanchronicle.com/business/companies/041218/adani-group-acquires-hdils-blue-star-realtors.html)
- [Adani Group: Adani Logistics Park breaks ground in Kalamassery](https://www.adani.com/newsroom/media-releases/adani-logistics-park-breaks-ground-in-kalamassery-kochi)
- [Wikipedia: Government Medical College, Ernakulam](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_Medical_College,_Ernakulam)

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Facts about Ashraf Gents Hostel come from the hostel’s own profile, photos and Google Site; rates are indicative and confirmed on the call. Quoting with a link back to the URL above is welcome.