Karnataka Plans Task Force To Spur It Growth

The Karnataka government yesterday unveiled a new policy that seeks to constitute a special taskforce to evolve a development model for the information technology industry in the state and perpetuate the states dominance in the sector.

The state government also plans to form a separate board for speedy clearance of IT projects.

The policy offers a package of incentives and concessions, including sales tax, purchase tax and entry tax exemptions.

Releasing the policy in the Vidhana Soudha, state industries minister V Deshpande said software industry projects had been taken out of the purview of the pollution control clearance board.

Deshpande said the state was targeting exports worth Rs 5,000 crore by the turn of the century.

 

The policy has called for establishing a second electronic city near Bangalore and setting up an autonomous Indian Institute of Information Technology in Bangalore.

The proposed taskforce will draw representatives from leading IT companies in the state, besides state departments and agencies. It will submit its recommendations within three months.

The brief of the taskforce will cover a development model for the IT industry, identifying potential locations for establishment of additional electronic cities and software technology parks, assessing the manpower requirement of the state during the ninth plan, and suggest new courses in the academic and training institutes.To cope with the phenomenal growth of the computer industry and the requirement of trained manpower, Karnataka Electronics Company Ltd has proposed to set up training centres in each district for the educated unemployed. Under the new software policy, school children will be taught how to use computers. A three-month course in the use of information technology and working on computers will be compulsory at the college level.

Upgradation of the existing software technology park in Bangalore is also on the cards, Deshpande said. The policy aims at increasing domestic and export earnings by the software and hardware sectors of the IT industry by offering tax incentives and financial assistance.

Deshpande said the proposed Indian institute of information technology would be funded by the Centre, the state government, foreign foundations and non-resident Indians. The institutes will conduct research in software engineering and productivity and short-term courses for industry, he said.

The proposed institution is expected to come over 100 acres. It will be modelled on the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, and act as a nodal agency for IT education in Karnataka.

The state government also proposes to set up electronic cities in Mysore, Dharwar, Hassan and Mangalore. The government will upgrade and strengthen the existing software technology park in the electronic city in Bangalore, and promote new software technology parks in potential locations, Deshpande said.

The development of IT industry in the state would be dovetailed with the development of telecommunication network in the state, according to Deshpande.

The government also plans to establish an organisation in Bangalore to help IT units obtain quality certificates like ISO 9000 and SEI certification.

The state will approach the Centre to designate an officer in Bangalore for granting clearances and approvals under the 100 per cent EoU scheme. Besides, the Karnataka State Industries and Investment Development Corporation and Karnataka State Finance Corporation will formulate a special package to provide financial assistance to IT units through equity contribution, reduced margins and interest rates.