Aims to develop Vizag as a Global IT destination 

The state government of Andhra Pradesh recently unveiled the much-awaited IT Policy 2024-2029, which aims to position the state as a preferred destination for IT investments.

This new policy holds significance as it would hopefully set the tone for big ticket investments into the sector and more importantly grounding of those investments.

Due to varied reasons in the past the IT sector in AP has been laggard and has often fallen short of capitalizing on big ticket investments in the sector.

Although there are no clear numbers, industry experts put the state’s IT export numbers to be in the range of Rs 2500 crs to Rs 4000 crs.These numbers are miniscule when compared to the IT and software export numbers of our neighbouring states such as Telangana, Karnataka & Tamil Nadu all of whom are well above Rs 2.5 lakh crores threshold.

However, with the new policy and under the able leadership of the young and dynamic minister for IT, Mr Nara Lokesh industry is optimistic of getting a much-needed boost in this sector and thereby positioning AP as an attractive destination for IT companies.

At the outset the policy overall looks to strengthen the IT and global capability centres in AP with a focus on creating infrastructure, employment creation while fostering a hybrid and co-working space culture.

‘AP’s new IT policy is a well-rounded initiative that lays the groundwork for a robust, inclusive, and future-ready IT landscape’ said Mr Bala Prasad Peddigari, Chief Innovation Officer and Global Head – Technology Advisory Services, Tata Consultancy services (TCS) speaking to Vizag Industrial Scan.

Concurred Mr Murali Krishna Gannamani, Chairman & MD Fluentgrid Limited & Vice Chairman of CII, Andhra Pradesh and said ‘This comprehensive policy addresses critical infrastructure gaps across physical, financial, and digital realms, while also driving large-scale job creation’.

Emphasis on Co-working Space: The new IT policy moots a 3-model approach i.e. co-working space developers, neighbourhood work space developers and IT campus developers.

The policy focuses on creation of large-scale capacities in co-working spaces and neighborhood workspaces to provide flexibility in work spaces and foster work life balance to the employees in the IT and the GCC sector, which may result in improved productivity.

‘By promoting co-working spaces and smaller neighbourhood workspaces, the policy aligns with the rising trends of hybrid work models and decentralized workforce structures. This resonates with the evolving needs of IT professionals and freelancers’ said Mr Bala Prasad.

Vizag as IT Hub:The policy lays significant emphasis on making Visakha- patnam as Global IT Destination and aims to attract top IT firms to establish state-of-the-art IT campuses and innovation hubs, equipped with advanced facilities and reliable high-speed internet.

‘The new IT policy is a welcome initiative highlighting 3 critical aspects such as declaring Vizag as the IT capital, driving GCC and Cloud centric growth and building knowledge economy through Deeptech’ said Mr Krishna Mohan Gadiparthi, founder of a leading cybertech company Inspiredge.

Financial Incentives: And to make AP attractive to a plethora of IT companies to set up base here, the policy offers a slew of incentives such as rental subsidies, power incentives, employee incentives and many others. Eligible developers would receive capital and rental/lease subsidies, among other incentives. ‘Supporting companies with rental subsidy, 100% EPF reimbursement and a unique direct incentive for employees in the form of HRA upto Rs. 1 Lakh per employee for three years, among other benefits for a limited period are noteworthy,’ said Mr Gannamani.

Release of Pending Incentives: With the new policy out the state’s IT fraternity is also hoping that their long pending past incentives are now released.

‘On the pending incentives we are hoping there will be a phased resolution to rejuvenate the confidence of the existing companies’ said Ms Lakshmi Mukkavalli, president ITAAP. Echoing similar sentiments, chairman of ITAAP’s Investment committee, Mr RL Narayana said ‘Incentives are there not only for investing companies but also for the employees, to encourage investment and talent migration.

A firm date on disbursal of the pending incentives would enhance the impact of the new policy and the same has been assured already by the Govt’.

The industry also awaits the addendum to the new IT & GCC Policy, along with the operational guidelines, which it says will give more clarity on how companies can take advantage of the sops offered.