IT's still a top priority for AP

New initiatives for IT sector on the anvil

The Andhra Pradesh state government is in a hurry to finetune and rectify possible lacunae in its IT policy in order to tap the full potential of the IT industry. The state now aims to take the industry to the second tier cities like Warangal, Vizag and Vijayawada.

Chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, who reviewed the issues of the IT sector with the top government officials here on Tuesday, asked them to quickly come out with the required policy recommendations along with other plans to expand the industry.

Going by the mood and the corresponding spade work of the state's IT department, Rajasekhara Reddy appears to be as savvy as his predecessor with regards to the IT sector.

It may be recalled that while being in the opposition and also after coming to power, Rajasekhara Reddy had criticised the previous regime for allowing the state to slip to fifth place from the third place in terms of IT exports.

The state government has already constituted a 'Think Tank' in July consisting of 28 members, including representatives from the industry.

According to officials, the sub-committees on IT, ITES and hardware that have been formed within the Think Tank are expected to come out with several recommendations in the next couple of weeks.

One of the issues that the Think Tank is reportedly looking into is the availability of quality human resources to ensure that nothing hampers the ongoing BPO boom.

New standards are also expected to be set for IT education by the government which may even consider introduction of certification.

"The existing IT policy of the state will lapse in May 2005. We are now aiming at strengthening it with further inputs from the industry players," a senior government official told Business Standard.

The government also appears to have succeeded in allaying fears that IT may take a backseat in the new regime's priorities. Government officials denied reports that the industry people have started looking at other places for future development plans.

"In the past three months, another 10 IT companies have approached the state government with plans to start operations in the state," an official said.