Aim is to generate five-lakh IT jobs in five years, says Lokesh

Data centers will be set up on IT hills in Visakhapatnam in three months and TCS will establish its campus in the Port City soo, he says

Andhra Pradesh Minister for IT and Human Resources Development Nara Lokesh has said the State government is chalking out plans to generate five-lakh IT jobs in the next five years.

Replying to a question by JSP’s Visakhapatnam-East legislator Ch. Vasmi Krishna Srinivas in the Legislative Assembly on Thursday (November 21, 2024), Mr. Lokesh said that TCS would establish a campus in Visakhapatnam in the next three months.

“IT spaces need to expand to Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. Therefore, the government has initiated plans to create co-working spaces in these cities. The government will soon launch a new IT policy. Professionals from Srikakulam too are working from home. Several companies, including Adani, are showing interest in coming to Visakhapatnam,” he said.

“It cannot be achieved by Lokesh alone. Everyone’s cooperation is needed. Our government’s goal is to create five-lakh jobs,” he said, adding, “Legislators must also help in attracting global IT companies, particularly those led by Telugu individuals, to the State. I am ready to travel anywhere to meet interested companies. So, I encourage MLAs and influential Telugu people to connect me with such companies. Together, we can work towards achieving the goal.”

While the government was working to create an IT ecosystem, data centers currently exist only in Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Chennai. A $300 billion investment was being made in data centers globally. If the data center policy introduced by the TDP government had been implemented effectively, Visakhapatnam could have become a global data center hub, he pointed out.

Going further, the Minister said a national-level framework for data centers was being developed, and within the next three months, data centers would be set up on the IT hills in Visakhapatnam.

“We are in discussions with NIXI (National Internet Exchange of India), and efforts are being made to bring a sea-landing Internet cable from Singapore,” he said.

Tata Group Chairman Chandrasekaran mentioned that even a month’s delay in setting up units could affect company projections.

“To avoid such issues, we are focusing on the ‘speed of doing business’, with weekly follow-ups on industry-related approvals,” he added.

Published - November 22, 2024 06:08 am IST