Bangalore: Canara Bank has lent support to Biocon Foundation and OTTET (Orissa Trust of Technical Education) for a public private partnership (PPP) with the Odisha government to deliver a novel e- healthcare program for the underprivileged and rural communities in the state.
OTTET has been actively engaged in an e-health program with the Odisha government to provide access to quality healthcare for 51,000 villages in the state. Now, Biocon Foundation has joined hands with OTTET to augment and implement a unique mega-ICT based e-Health project in the state.
Under this partnership Biocon Foundation & OTTET will set up an electronic diagnostic facility, an e-Health Centre, managed by local young entrepreneurs, at all Primary Health Centers (PHC) in Odisha. The entrepreneurs will be provided financial assistance by Canara Bank and will be trained by Biocon Foundation & OTTET to support the medical officer at the PHC for various healthcare and diagnostic services.
Success in my Habit
Friday, March 7, 2014
Daimler India to start manufacturing buses from Chennai plant
Chennai: Truck manufacturer Daimler India Commercial Vehicles will start manufacturing buses from its facility near Chennai by the second quarter of 2015.
The company laid the foundation stone for the Rs. 425 crore (€50 million) factory on Thursday adjacent to its truck manufacturing plant at Oragadam, an industrial suburb of Chennai. Daimler India, the subsidiary of Daimler of Germany, is consolidating its entire truck and bus manufacturing operations in India with this plant.
Intra-city Transport
The factory with a capacity of about 1,500 buses a year, with capacity to increase to 4,000 units, will make Mercedes-Benz, rear-engine luxury buses and Bharat Benz front engine buses for the ‘volume market’ catering to intra city transport, school and staff buses.
The company has also entered into a supplier arrangement with Wrightbus of Northern Ireland to build the bus body for the Bharat Benz range.
Addressing the foundation stone laying ceremony, Marc Llisotella, Managing Director and CEO, Daimler India, said the company launched Bharat Benz, a new brand, of trucks in April 2012 and has over 14 variants in the market. The company hopes to replicate its success with trucks with the bus brand. Wolfgang Bernhard, Daimler AG Board Member in charge of trucks and buses, said the 28-acre facility at the truck factory complex will make nine tonnes to 16-tonne and heavier category, multi-axle buses. Daimler India will also export the buses and chassis to Africa and South East Asia, beginning with Indonesia. The company will use the Bharat Benz dealership network to market the buses in India.
Hartmut Schick, Head, Daimler Buses and CEO, EvoBus GmbH, said Daimler India will supply the Bharat Benz chassis to Wrightbus to build the complete bus. The international bus body building company has the flexibility and speed for this operation.
Mercedes Benz chassis will be built at the new factory and the engines imported from Brazi;. Daimler will build the high end Mercedes-Benz buses itself.
India and China are the key markets for Daimler. With an annual demand of about 40,000 buses, India’s market is half that of China. But with a population matching China’s, the growth potential is huge, he said.
The company laid the foundation stone for the Rs. 425 crore (€50 million) factory on Thursday adjacent to its truck manufacturing plant at Oragadam, an industrial suburb of Chennai. Daimler India, the subsidiary of Daimler of Germany, is consolidating its entire truck and bus manufacturing operations in India with this plant.
Intra-city Transport
The factory with a capacity of about 1,500 buses a year, with capacity to increase to 4,000 units, will make Mercedes-Benz, rear-engine luxury buses and Bharat Benz front engine buses for the ‘volume market’ catering to intra city transport, school and staff buses.
The company has also entered into a supplier arrangement with Wrightbus of Northern Ireland to build the bus body for the Bharat Benz range.
Addressing the foundation stone laying ceremony, Marc Llisotella, Managing Director and CEO, Daimler India, said the company launched Bharat Benz, a new brand, of trucks in April 2012 and has over 14 variants in the market. The company hopes to replicate its success with trucks with the bus brand. Wolfgang Bernhard, Daimler AG Board Member in charge of trucks and buses, said the 28-acre facility at the truck factory complex will make nine tonnes to 16-tonne and heavier category, multi-axle buses. Daimler India will also export the buses and chassis to Africa and South East Asia, beginning with Indonesia. The company will use the Bharat Benz dealership network to market the buses in India.
Hartmut Schick, Head, Daimler Buses and CEO, EvoBus GmbH, said Daimler India will supply the Bharat Benz chassis to Wrightbus to build the complete bus. The international bus body building company has the flexibility and speed for this operation.
Mercedes Benz chassis will be built at the new factory and the engines imported from Brazi;. Daimler will build the high end Mercedes-Benz buses itself.
India and China are the key markets for Daimler. With an annual demand of about 40,000 buses, India’s market is half that of China. But with a population matching China’s, the growth potential is huge, he said.
IT firms getting more business from Europe
Bangalore: For the first time since the 2008 financial crisis, Indian software exporters are beginning to see early signs of outsourcing business from Europe.
iGATE has won a $35 million, five-year outsourcing contract from Länsförsäkringar Alliance, a large Swedish financial services company. Around the same time, Royal Philips of the Netherlands extended its existing seven-year outsourcing agreement with Infosys to provide finance and accounting-related services for another five years.
Some of the outsourcing is coming through the inorganic route. For instance, late last month, Tech Mahindra, one of the top five Indian IT outsourcers, said that it would acquire the software services unit of German chemicals company BASF.
Similarly, in January, Virtusa acquired TradeTech, a Swedish financial services company.
Winds of change
Outsourcing deals, which were hard to come by in the pre-2008 era for Indian firms, got worse after the great recession. But they are starting to come back. “In the past, European companies were not convinced, unlike their American counterparts, regarding cost reduction as the sole motive to outsource. They demanded more value, which Indian outsourcers were unable to offer then. This is changing,” says Sanjoy Sen, a senior director at Deloitte.
In 2012, European companies were sitting on $1 trillion of working capital, according to European consultancy firm REL. This translates to roughly ten times the size of the Indian outsourcing sector. But when compared to the overall contribution, Europe accounts for around 30 per cent of the $100 billion IT exports sector.
A growing number of European companies believe that offshore firms are ideal partners to help them stay competitive, be more agile and address talent shortages,” says Peter Schumacher, President & Founder, Value Leadership Group.
Further, a study by Ernst and Young has estimated that 75 per cent of IT services have not been outsourced.
All that is starting to change, according to Indian IT companies. Some of them are putting in strategies to reap benefits once outsourcing demand opens up completely. For example, late last year, Wipro appointed Carl-Henrik Hallstrom as Regional Head for the Nordic region.
iGATE has won a $35 million, five-year outsourcing contract from Länsförsäkringar Alliance, a large Swedish financial services company. Around the same time, Royal Philips of the Netherlands extended its existing seven-year outsourcing agreement with Infosys to provide finance and accounting-related services for another five years.
Some of the outsourcing is coming through the inorganic route. For instance, late last month, Tech Mahindra, one of the top five Indian IT outsourcers, said that it would acquire the software services unit of German chemicals company BASF.
Similarly, in January, Virtusa acquired TradeTech, a Swedish financial services company.
Winds of change
Outsourcing deals, which were hard to come by in the pre-2008 era for Indian firms, got worse after the great recession. But they are starting to come back. “In the past, European companies were not convinced, unlike their American counterparts, regarding cost reduction as the sole motive to outsource. They demanded more value, which Indian outsourcers were unable to offer then. This is changing,” says Sanjoy Sen, a senior director at Deloitte.
In 2012, European companies were sitting on $1 trillion of working capital, according to European consultancy firm REL. This translates to roughly ten times the size of the Indian outsourcing sector. But when compared to the overall contribution, Europe accounts for around 30 per cent of the $100 billion IT exports sector.
A growing number of European companies believe that offshore firms are ideal partners to help them stay competitive, be more agile and address talent shortages,” says Peter Schumacher, President & Founder, Value Leadership Group.
Further, a study by Ernst and Young has estimated that 75 per cent of IT services have not been outsourced.
All that is starting to change, according to Indian IT companies. Some of them are putting in strategies to reap benefits once outsourcing demand opens up completely. For example, late last year, Wipro appointed Carl-Henrik Hallstrom as Regional Head for the Nordic region.
Passport Seva goes rural through Common Services Centers
The Ministry of External Affairs, along with CSC e-Governance Services India Limited {which is promoted by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY)}, is all set to launch Passport related services through the vast network of over one lakh Common Services Centers (CSCs) across rural hinterland. The initiative would largely bridge the digital divide in the country.
The CSC Scheme was approved by the Government of India in September 2006 for setting up of 100,000+ (One Lakh+) Internet enabled centers in rural areas under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP). The CSCs are the delivery points for Government, Private and Social Sector services in the areas of agriculture, health, education, banking, insurance, pension, utility bill payments, entertainment, etc. to rural citizens of India at their doorstep. The passport related services are being added as part of their bouquet of services.
Under the Passport Seva, the Ministry of External affairs has made it mandatory to complete the entire form filing process on-line, including payment of applicable fee and scheduling of appointment for seeking Passport related services. The CSCs would facilitate filling and uploading of Passport application form, payment of applicable fee (through debit/credit card or through SBI internet banking/challan mode) and scheduling of appointment for the visit to the Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) at nominal charge not exceeding Rs. 100/-. As per the appointment schedule, an applicant will have to visit the PSK for completion of application submission process (including collection of digital photographs/biometrics, verification of supporting documents and approval). The services through CSCs would be available throughout the week, including during the weekend.
The services would be shortly launched in pilot mode at 15 select CSC locations in Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand in the second week of March 2014. The full roll out across the country is expected to conclude by end of March 2014.
For more details related to passport services, Passport website (www.passportindia.gov.in) or the National Call Centre (toll free number 1800-258-1800) may be accessed.
The CSC Scheme was approved by the Government of India in September 2006 for setting up of 100,000+ (One Lakh+) Internet enabled centers in rural areas under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP). The CSCs are the delivery points for Government, Private and Social Sector services in the areas of agriculture, health, education, banking, insurance, pension, utility bill payments, entertainment, etc. to rural citizens of India at their doorstep. The passport related services are being added as part of their bouquet of services.
Under the Passport Seva, the Ministry of External affairs has made it mandatory to complete the entire form filing process on-line, including payment of applicable fee and scheduling of appointment for seeking Passport related services. The CSCs would facilitate filling and uploading of Passport application form, payment of applicable fee (through debit/credit card or through SBI internet banking/challan mode) and scheduling of appointment for the visit to the Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) at nominal charge not exceeding Rs. 100/-. As per the appointment schedule, an applicant will have to visit the PSK for completion of application submission process (including collection of digital photographs/biometrics, verification of supporting documents and approval). The services through CSCs would be available throughout the week, including during the weekend.
The services would be shortly launched in pilot mode at 15 select CSC locations in Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand in the second week of March 2014. The full roll out across the country is expected to conclude by end of March 2014.
For more details related to passport services, Passport website (www.passportindia.gov.in) or the National Call Centre (toll free number 1800-258-1800) may be accessed.
GDP may grow 5.6% next fiscal: India Ratings
New Delhi: The economy is likely to grow 5.6 per cent in the next fiscal, India Ratings and Research has said. This is lower than the Government’s estimate of 6 per cent.
IMF has projected a growth rate of 5.4 per cent while NCAER says it will be 5.6 per cent. The World Bank has given most optimistic estimate of 6 per cent. Growth in 2013-14 is estimated at 4.9 per cent.
“The economic growth in FY15 (2014-15) is likely to be contributed majorly by the industrial sector, which is estimated to grow by 4.1 per cent. This is good news for centre as well state government finances,” it said in a report on public finances. State finances were likely to remain resilient to the slowdown, it said, estimating some slippage in the fiscal deficit of states, which could go up to 2.3 per cent against 2.2 per cent in 2013-14.
Value added tax (VAT) on petroleum products could pose a concentration risk for the consolidated state finances if crude oil prices decline, though this presently looks difficult. The petroleum sector contributed nearly 30 per cent (with a growth of 14.4 per cent on yearly basis) to the VAT collection of states.
Aggregate debt of states as a percentage of GDP is likely to increase to 21.7 per cent in the current fiscal from the budgeted estimate of 21.5 per cent. Despite this slippage, debt will be sustainable as the agency believes nominal growth of the economy in excess of interest rate on debt will continue to support the agency’s debt sustainability expectations. However, indirect risk such as guarantee and deficit, state PSUs' debt could impact the credit profile of some states.
It expects the liquidity of state governments to remain comfortable in 2014-15. Even in the current fiscal most states did not face difficulty due to a surge in investment in the national small savings fund.
IMF has projected a growth rate of 5.4 per cent while NCAER says it will be 5.6 per cent. The World Bank has given most optimistic estimate of 6 per cent. Growth in 2013-14 is estimated at 4.9 per cent.
“The economic growth in FY15 (2014-15) is likely to be contributed majorly by the industrial sector, which is estimated to grow by 4.1 per cent. This is good news for centre as well state government finances,” it said in a report on public finances. State finances were likely to remain resilient to the slowdown, it said, estimating some slippage in the fiscal deficit of states, which could go up to 2.3 per cent against 2.2 per cent in 2013-14.
Value added tax (VAT) on petroleum products could pose a concentration risk for the consolidated state finances if crude oil prices decline, though this presently looks difficult. The petroleum sector contributed nearly 30 per cent (with a growth of 14.4 per cent on yearly basis) to the VAT collection of states.
Aggregate debt of states as a percentage of GDP is likely to increase to 21.7 per cent in the current fiscal from the budgeted estimate of 21.5 per cent. Despite this slippage, debt will be sustainable as the agency believes nominal growth of the economy in excess of interest rate on debt will continue to support the agency’s debt sustainability expectations. However, indirect risk such as guarantee and deficit, state PSUs' debt could impact the credit profile of some states.
It expects the liquidity of state governments to remain comfortable in 2014-15. Even in the current fiscal most states did not face difficulty due to a surge in investment in the national small savings fund.
Thursday, March 6, 2014
GVK commissions 330 MW hydel project in Uttarakhand
Hyderabad: GVK Power & Infrastructure Ltd has commissioned its 330 MW Shrinagar hydro-electric project developed on the Alakananda, in Uttarakhand.
Energy generation
The plant, in Garhwal district, is expected to supply 12 per cent of the energy to Uttarakhand at no charge. The balance 88 per cent power generated will go to the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd under a Power Purchase Agreement.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav inaugurated the project in the presence of Samajwadi Party President and Union Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav.
The 248-metre-long project has been developed at 90 metres from deepest foundation level dam. It is expected to utilise the net head of around 66 metres between the diversion dam and the power house to generate electricity.
The water conductor system consists of two head race tunnels, RCC troughs, power channel and penstocks.
Energy generation
The plant, in Garhwal district, is expected to supply 12 per cent of the energy to Uttarakhand at no charge. The balance 88 per cent power generated will go to the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd under a Power Purchase Agreement.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav inaugurated the project in the presence of Samajwadi Party President and Union Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav.
The 248-metre-long project has been developed at 90 metres from deepest foundation level dam. It is expected to utilise the net head of around 66 metres between the diversion dam and the power house to generate electricity.
The water conductor system consists of two head race tunnels, RCC troughs, power channel and penstocks.
Reliance Jio signs deal for Bharti's towers
New Delhi: Weeks after bagging 1,800 MHz spectrum in 14 circles, Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio has started widening its telecom tower agreements to work towards a seamless launch. The company, that already holds pan-India spectrum in the 2,300 MHz band, has signed a tower deal with Bharti Airtel as it works to roll out its high-speed 4G plans where it will also offer voice over internet.
Reliance Jio signed a Master Services Agreement under which it will utilize the telecom tower infrastructure of Bharti Infratel to launch services. As per the agreement, the pricing would be at arm's length, based on prevailing market rates.
The deal with Bharti comes in even as Reliance Jio has an agreement with Anil Ambani's Reliance Communications (RCoM) for sharing of network. Reliance Jio has an inter-city optic fibre as well as tower sharing deal with RCoM, and its new tie-ups will mean that its outsourcing benefits will go to various operators and not just to the cash-strapped RCoM.
Reliance Jio signed a Master Services Agreement under which it will utilize the telecom tower infrastructure of Bharti Infratel to launch services. As per the agreement, the pricing would be at arm's length, based on prevailing market rates.
The deal with Bharti comes in even as Reliance Jio has an agreement with Anil Ambani's Reliance Communications (RCoM) for sharing of network. Reliance Jio has an inter-city optic fibre as well as tower sharing deal with RCoM, and its new tie-ups will mean that its outsourcing benefits will go to various operators and not just to the cash-strapped RCoM.
India's e-commerce to zoom to $76 bn by 2020
Ahmedabad: India’s e-commerce is expected to go up from the current $1 billion to $76 billion in the next six years, by 2020.
Only in 2013, online shopping has increased by 88 per cent, according to Saran Chatterjee, Vice-President, Product Management, Flipkart India Pvt Ltd.
This phenomenal increase in e-tailing will be due to deeper penetration of Internet-based smartphones that would make online shopping easier, he said.
While Internet has now reached almost 11 per cent population of India, smartphone business is witnessing a 150 per cent year-on-year growth.
A recent report by Boston Consulting Group noted that, at present, 45 per cent of online consumers in India use only their mobile devices to access the Internet. This is expected to increase to 60 per cent over the next three years. Mobile traffic is growing at two times the rate of desktops.
Flipkart, India’s largest e-commerce platform, is now focusing on mobile phone-based retailing in which Gujarat now ranks 8th in the country. Online marketplaces are already booking 20 per cent of their orders through mobile phones while one-thirds of Flipkart’s customers now place orders this way. “Smartphones have overtaken personal computers,” Chatterjee said.
By 2015, he said, Flipkart aims to grow its merchandise value to $1 billion.
Most articles ordered online are books, electronics and accessories. While books constitute the maximum volumes handled, electronics accounts for the maximum revenue transacted.
Launched as an online books marketplace in 2007, Flipkart now offers products across over 20 categories. It has 1.40 crore registered users and daily visits of more than 20 lakh.
Only in 2013, online shopping has increased by 88 per cent, according to Saran Chatterjee, Vice-President, Product Management, Flipkart India Pvt Ltd.
This phenomenal increase in e-tailing will be due to deeper penetration of Internet-based smartphones that would make online shopping easier, he said.
While Internet has now reached almost 11 per cent population of India, smartphone business is witnessing a 150 per cent year-on-year growth.
A recent report by Boston Consulting Group noted that, at present, 45 per cent of online consumers in India use only their mobile devices to access the Internet. This is expected to increase to 60 per cent over the next three years. Mobile traffic is growing at two times the rate of desktops.
Flipkart, India’s largest e-commerce platform, is now focusing on mobile phone-based retailing in which Gujarat now ranks 8th in the country. Online marketplaces are already booking 20 per cent of their orders through mobile phones while one-thirds of Flipkart’s customers now place orders this way. “Smartphones have overtaken personal computers,” Chatterjee said.
By 2015, he said, Flipkart aims to grow its merchandise value to $1 billion.
Most articles ordered online are books, electronics and accessories. While books constitute the maximum volumes handled, electronics accounts for the maximum revenue transacted.
Launched as an online books marketplace in 2007, Flipkart now offers products across over 20 categories. It has 1.40 crore registered users and daily visits of more than 20 lakh.
Empowered Institution (EI) Approves PPP Projects Worth Rs. 1369.51 Crores
The Empowered Institution (EI) in its Fifty-third (53rd) meeting granted approval to five (5) projects worth Rs. 1369.51 crore. Two (2) Projects granted in-principle approval were from Government of Madhya Pradesh for setting-up of 50,000 MT Modern Food Silos at Indore and Bhopal each. The EI also granted final approval to three projects approving a total Viability Gap Funding (VGF) of Rs. 260.92 crore. These comprised two road sector projects and one in the power transmission sector as follows, ‘Two laning of Guna - Ashok Nagar - Ishagarh (SH 20) road’ in the State of Madhya Pradesh and ‘Four laning of Mohania - Ara Section of NH 30 in the state of Bihar and ‘Development of 400 KV DCDS Sarni (Satpura) - Ashta transmission line project for evacuation of power from 2X250 MW extension units at Satpura Thermal Power Station’ in the state of Madhya Pradesh. The aforesaid Fifty-third (53rd) meeting of the Empowered Institution’s (EI) was held here yesterday under the Chairmanship of Dr Arvind Mayaram, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance.
Over 20 small IT firms get nod to invest in Punjab
More than 20 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the information technology sector have recently received land allotment letters from the Punjab government for setting up their units with an investment of Rs 500 crore. Earlier, these companies had signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with the state government during the Investor Summit in December last year.
The companies that received allotment letters include Emerson Electric Company (India) Pvt Ltd. (which will invest Rs 51.73 crore); Knack BPO Pvt. Ltd (Rs 56.25 crore); Netsmartz Infotech India Pvt Ltd., Chandigarh (Rs 51.54 crore); Bebo Technologies Pvt Ltd (Rs 32.7 crore); Maxval Technologies Pvt Ltd. Belapur Station Complex, Mumbai (Rs 27 crore); Allengers Medical Systems Ltd. (Rs 25 crore); SE-Biz Infotech Ltd. (Rs 21 crore); Dr ITM Limited (Rs 20.61 crore); Xeam Ventures Pvt Ltd (Rs 16.74 crore); Aequor Information Technology Pvt Ltd (Rs 15.75 crore); Offshore A-One Technology Pvt Ltd. (Rs 12.85 crore); Kiran Foreign Trade Pvt Ltd (Rs 11 crore); and Cyber Futuristics India Pvt Ltd, UP (Rs 9.2 crore).
To ensure speedy implementation of these projects, land has been allotted to each company on lease for three years, and if any company fails to invest within the stipulated time, the MoU will be cancelled by the state government.
Handing over land allotment letters to the SMEs recently, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal said, "It is a just a beginning and in the next three years Mohali would be the first planned IT destination of the country, which would further give a big push to economic activities in the state."
In addition to these SMEs, software giant Infosys has laid the foundation stone for its campus spread over 50 acres and committed an investment of Rs 425 crore in the first phase to create a built-up area of 650,000 square feet to seat 5,000 software professionals within 24 months.
Further, the setting up of two Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) centres as well as state-of-the-art incubation facilities at Mohali and Amritsar are expected to play a pivotal role in promoting the IT culture in the state. The recently announced industrial policy also offers incentives to IT SMEs.
According to entrepreneurs, the handing over of allotment letters to SMEs and the new STPI centres will go a long way in encouraging new IT/ITES entrepreneurs to set up shop and start operations in the region.
The incubation facilities in the STPI centres will provide entrepreneurs with facilities such as ready to use plug-and-play facilities - including a data centre and a network operations centre - and a readymade business environment. The two centres are expected to be ready in the next two years.
The companies that received allotment letters include Emerson Electric Company (India) Pvt Ltd. (which will invest Rs 51.73 crore); Knack BPO Pvt. Ltd (Rs 56.25 crore); Netsmartz Infotech India Pvt Ltd., Chandigarh (Rs 51.54 crore); Bebo Technologies Pvt Ltd (Rs 32.7 crore); Maxval Technologies Pvt Ltd. Belapur Station Complex, Mumbai (Rs 27 crore); Allengers Medical Systems Ltd. (Rs 25 crore); SE-Biz Infotech Ltd. (Rs 21 crore); Dr ITM Limited (Rs 20.61 crore); Xeam Ventures Pvt Ltd (Rs 16.74 crore); Aequor Information Technology Pvt Ltd (Rs 15.75 crore); Offshore A-One Technology Pvt Ltd. (Rs 12.85 crore); Kiran Foreign Trade Pvt Ltd (Rs 11 crore); and Cyber Futuristics India Pvt Ltd, UP (Rs 9.2 crore).
To ensure speedy implementation of these projects, land has been allotted to each company on lease for three years, and if any company fails to invest within the stipulated time, the MoU will be cancelled by the state government.
Handing over land allotment letters to the SMEs recently, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal said, "It is a just a beginning and in the next three years Mohali would be the first planned IT destination of the country, which would further give a big push to economic activities in the state."
In addition to these SMEs, software giant Infosys has laid the foundation stone for its campus spread over 50 acres and committed an investment of Rs 425 crore in the first phase to create a built-up area of 650,000 square feet to seat 5,000 software professionals within 24 months.
Further, the setting up of two Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) centres as well as state-of-the-art incubation facilities at Mohali and Amritsar are expected to play a pivotal role in promoting the IT culture in the state. The recently announced industrial policy also offers incentives to IT SMEs.
According to entrepreneurs, the handing over of allotment letters to SMEs and the new STPI centres will go a long way in encouraging new IT/ITES entrepreneurs to set up shop and start operations in the region.
The incubation facilities in the STPI centres will provide entrepreneurs with facilities such as ready to use plug-and-play facilities - including a data centre and a network operations centre - and a readymade business environment. The two centres are expected to be ready in the next two years.
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