Will investments by Infy, Adani fuel IT sector growth in Vizag?

The announcement by IT giant Infosys to set up a development centre with 2,500 to 3,000 employees and Adani Group getting ready to launch work on its ambitious data park along with allied infrastructure have rekindled the hope of making Visakhapatnam a prominent IT hub into a reality.

Visakhapatnam: The announcement by IT giant Infosys to set up a development centre with 2,500 to 3,000 employees and Adani Group getting ready to launch work on its ambitious data park along with allied infrastructure have rekindled the hope of making Visakhapatnam a prominent IT hub into a reality.

The two anchor projects will also help arrest brain drain and bring local talent from Andhra Pradesh and neighboring Odisha and Chhattisgarh to Visakhapatnam. Most of young talent from the region work in Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai. Though Bhubaneswar also has some big players operating, Visakhapatnam has better scope for expansion due to its picturesque location and social infrastructure.

After bifurcation in 2014, there was not much progress notwithstanding the claim by then government to make Visakhapatnam a prominent IT hub. The turnover of the city, known for its cosmopolitan culture due to migration and settlement of people from all corners of India in search of jobs in various industries, has more or less remained stagnant. Lion's share of Rs 2500-odd crore turnover comes from BPM and KPM companies. Conduent is one among few units which invested in the city post-bifurcation.

Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (VMRDA) recently gave clearance to the layout for the data park project at Kapulauppada. Vizag Tech Park, the special purpose vehicle formed by Adani Enterprises, will invest Rs.14,634 crore on the data park, a 200-MW renewable energy plant, emerging technology university, business park and an entertainment zone.

Another significant development was the recent visit of Infosys Global Infrastructure Head Neledi Prasad Mishra and Regional Head Amol Kulkarni who announced in Visakhapatnam that they have zeroed in on a site to establish a facility with scope for employment of 2500 to 3,000. They also have further plans to scale up, the officials told Minister for IT and Industries Gudivada Amarnath after calling on him here on Friday.

The Minister later said Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has decided to greet investors in IT sector with a red carpet by offering them land and other concessions. He said both Adani and Infosys projects will enhance the brand value of Visakhapatnam. The development of Bhogapuram International Airport will further boost the brand image.

Infosys has inspected certain sites including the Millennium Tower A and B and some IT units at Rushikonda. There is buzz that it may open its office initially by taking one of the existing local IT company's building on lease. HSBC building, which got vacated by HSBC, will soon be occupied by WNS, a prominent BPM company.

"Adani data park and Infosys-both the anchor projects will be a game-changer for changing the IT landscape of this beautiful city," IT Association of Andhra Pradesh president Sridhar Kosaraju told Bizz Buzz on Sunday.

Visakhapatnam has good scope to make strides in startup space due to availability of incubation centres by AP Innovation Society, Andhra University and Nasscom. Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) also has plans to set up an incubation hub in the city.