IT industry hopes of incentives as Vizag gets executive tag

Visakhapatnam: Sounding upbeat over the plans to make Vizag as the Executive capital of Andhra Pradesh, the IT Association of Andhra Pradesh is hoping that the new-found tag would propel the IT ecosystem in the city given that IT promoters always evince interest in establishing units closer to the power corridors.

IT Association of AP president, R.L. Narayana said that the executive capital tag would spur the growth of BPO and IT-enabled services in the city as also other parts of the region. He said that the State topped in generating BPO and IT-enabled services under India BPO Promotion Scheme (IBPS) initiated by the Union Government’s body Software Technology Parks of India (STPI).

However, the IT and ITes sector in Andhra Pradesh is playing a ‘wait-and-watch’ game for the disbursal of their pending incentives and the final draft of the new IT policy.

The State Government last month issued an order to release incentives to IT units. A ‘Consultative Committee on Information Technology Industry (CCITI)’ would be formed comprising representatives from IT/electronics industry and the other stakeholders. CCITI would administer the incentives in a time-bound and transparent manner.

The AP IT policy, AP Electronic Policy, Innovation and Start-up Policy framed in 2014 lapses this year. The incentives pending to the sector is around Rs 50 crore.

Putting to rest rumours that the new government had damaged the prospects of IT investments, RL Narayana said that none of the steps taken by the government has dampened prospects of IT investment. He said that IT units are keenly waiting for the incentives as promised by the TDP regime and also the assurance of the incumbent government.

“We are waiting for the final draft of the new IT policy. The investors will assess the policy before playing their investment card. AP IT department had invited IT Association of Andhra Pradesh and other stakeholders in order to elicit suggestions for the drafting of IT policy,” he pointed out.

ITAAP members denied reports that IT firms were asked to leave Rushikonda IT SEZ in view of the probable plan of the government to make the Secretariat function from IT Hills.

Commenting on the MNC, Conduent, which is operating from Millennium Tower and reports suggested that the Secretariat could come up there, there was not a single official communication from the government to the company to vacate the building, he maintained.

There are about 1, 600 employees working with Conduent at Millennium Tower. The employees were worried when news spread about the possible shift of their office.