K'taka to issue final notification for 2,072 acres to develop ITIR soon

Some 55 software, hardware companies, including top names show interest to establish their presence at Information Technology Investment Region

Karnataka will soon issue the final notification to acquire 2,072 acres Devanahalli taluk for the proposed development of Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR). This follows approval from the Union Cabinet on June 4, 2013 for the project.

The Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) has already issued preliminary notification under Section 28 (1) of KIAD Act. The final notification will be issued very soon, S R Patil, minister for IT/BT, science and technology said.

Replying to a question raised by Jagadeesh Kumar R of Hebbal constituency during the Question Hour on the floor of state legislative assembly, here on Thursday, the minister said the government would think of acquiring remaining 8,000 acres once the land for the first phase of the project is acquired. The government will appoint project developers to develop the project, he said.

Kumar suggested that the government should issue notification for acquiring the remaining land immediately as the delay in notifying land would cause hardship to farmers in the region.

For this project, first of its kind in the country, the government proposes to identify 10,500 acres in Devanahalli (5,400 acres) and Doddaballapur (5,090 acres) taluks.

The ITIR project is a prestigious project of the state government. Once the project is fully developed it will create 4 million jobs including 1.2 million direct jobs in the information technology sector. It will transform Bangalore into the worlds leading IT hub in the next 20 years, Patil said.

The ITIR project will be developed in two phases. The first phase will be developed between 2012 and 2020, and the second phase would be taken up between 2020 and 2032. The state has provided Rs 20 acres to Karnataka State Electronics Development Corporation Ltd (Keonics) this year, he said.

The Centre will provide the required infrastructure facilities like rail network, roads and telecommunication for the proposed ITIR project, he said adding, The state government is committed to developing this project. There is no question of going slow or delaying the project.

To facilitate the setting up of ITIR, the assembly passed a bill in this regard in July 2010. The project is governed under the Karnataka Information Technology Investment Regions Act, 2010. Later, the government forwarded the proposal to the Centre for its approval.

The ITIR will be a self-sustaining integrated investment region housing IT, ITeS and hardware parks, supported by residential townships, a mini airport, high-speed railway network, shopping malls, hospitals and educational institutions among others.

It is estimated that the project would see an investment of Rs 2 lakh crore over the next 20 years.

Already, over 55 software and hardware companies including leading names like Infosys, TCS and Wipro have shown interest to establish their presence at the ITIR.