Lucknow IT City gets SEZ status

UP cabinet on March 15 approved bidding terms for companies interested in setting shop in the IT City

The Centre has granted the status of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) to the proposed IT City on the outskirts of the capital city of Lucknow.

The Centre approved the state proposal regarding the SEZ status to the proposed IT infrastructure on Lucknow-Sultanpur highway, which is aimed at boosting IT investment in the state.

The Uttar Pradesh had cabinet on March 15, the day Akhilesh Yadav government completed a year in office, approved the bidding terms for companies interested in setting shop in the IT City.

Soon after coming to power the government had announced to set up an IT City and an IT Park in Lucknow to allow the state capital to emerge as a major IT destination. It had also announced similar infrastructure to be developed in Agra as well in future.

Now, the SEZ status would provide the much needed boost to the project, wherein the companies would get various tax and duty exemptions, faster clearances and other government support and sops.

Addressing the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) UP State Council annual session ‘UP Rising – Plethora of Opportunities across sectors’ here, state chief secretary Jawed Usmani said UP was committed to soliciting more investments and assured all help to industry.

“The 11,000 kms of Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor is perhaps the most important for UP, we intent to use it as the fulcrum ground for the development of the state. The bouquet of fresh policies announced by the government are extremely inviting for the private sector. Together we can make UP the most preferred investment destination, he underlined.

Ajay Shanker, Member Secretary, National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council, said UP was at the cusp of game changing transformation and had the late mover advantage like the East Asian economies.

“Let us use the tool of technology to work on  skills development in empowering the young population here, give them income rather than degrees. UP should look forward to organic and incremental transformation and aim for success in labour intensive manufacturing,” he suggested.