Despite the hype over the growth potential of Visakhapatnam as a prominent hub, the so-called IT capital of Andhra Pradesh still awaits investment by big-ticket projects to give a boost to Brand Vizag.
During 2019, barring the inauguration of Millennium Tower at IT Special Economic Zone, Madhurawada, and construction of half a dozen buildings admeasuring four lakh sft on the foothills of Hill No. 2, Rushikonda, nothing much has materialised.
Franklin Templeton, a leading asset management firm, has been allotted land near Rushikonda for its facility in the city by the erstwhile TDP government, but it is yet to ground work. However, the first tower of Millennium Tower with an investment of nearly ₹200 crore is operational and the second tower is in an advanced stage of construction.
One positive sign during the year is Visakhapatnam’s recognition as a leading player in BPO sector. Under the India BPO Scheme, as per the population, Andhra Pradesh is eligible to get 2,200 seats, but the State has been sanctioned 14,692 seats, highest among all the States. A lion’s share of the seats are from Visakhapatnam making the city one among top five tier-two destinations for BPO segment.
Conduent, a $6 billion American company, has started its BPO/software operations in the city during the year. It has been allotted space in the Millennium Tower and the company has so far recruited over 1,200 people by spending a huge amount on interiors after signing a nine-year lease agreement with the State government.
After taking the new building of Tech Mahindra on lease and naming it as Tech Hub, plug and play facilities have been allotted to many MSME units, WNS and Patra India BPO. Now the facility has turned into a beehive of activity.
While uncertainty clouds over ₹70,000-crore investment plan by Adani Group in data technology park, AP MedTech Zone has moved to its own campus near the steel plant from Rushikonda. Uber started a Centre of Excellence while Federal Bank has launched its centre to take care of its back-end operations. Concentrix, a prominent BPO, is on a massive expansion.
IT City
The APIIC has completed the layout and is laying approach road for the IT City at Kapuluppada.
Plotting has been done in the site earlier allotted to a Delhi-based company for development of Knowledge City. The IT City aims at providing individual plots to MSME players and large units in an area of 400 acres.
Improvement in the ecosystem by increasing frequency of flights to Singapore, domestic connectivity with major metros, highway expansion, opening of a convention centre and food joints and service apartments in and around IT SEZ, Madhurawada has brought cheers among the IT investors and employees.
“We are expecting that the State government will announce new IT and industrial policies and release the incentives due for a long time to those who have invested in IT units in the Madhurawada SEZ,” Rushikonda IT Park Association vice-president O. Naresh Kumar told The Hindu .
