Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister firmly believes that the future of Odisha is as a knowledge-based economy, so there has been a major emphasis on bringing Electronics and Information Technology (E&IT) companies to the State, informed Electronics and Information Technology Minister Tusharkanti Behera.
The Minister along with Principal Secretary, E&IT Manoj Kumar Mishra held a presser at the Geeta Gobinda Sadan here today to inform about the highlights in the Budget 2023-24 in respect of the E&IT Department
Behera said that the Government has approved 4 new policies, namely IT/ITeS Policy, Electronics Policy, Data Centre Policy and BPO Policy. These policies are among the best in the country and are expected to attract significant investment. This year’s budget allocation of the E&IT department is of Rs 356 Crore.
In the last few months, the government has been able to realize the investment intents signed during the Make in Odisha Conclave. IBM, Deloitte, Happiest Minds, Incture, Innovare tech, Opex America, Yovant and many other IT companies have already opened their centres in Odisha, which is likely to generate employment of over 12,500. Many other companies will also soon be starting their operations in the State. These initiatives are likely to generate an estimated additional employment of 24,000.
The government has taken a significant decision to reduce lease rentals to Rs 20 per square foot for IT companies in the State-owned IT towers which has made Odisha a preferred IT destination.
To add to the momentum, the Government also plans to create 2 million square feet of ready-built space with plug-and-play facilities for IT/ESDM companies. This will further attract IT companies and provide employment to the youth.
The government will initiate an ambitious O-CHIP Programme (Odisha Chip Programme) with an investment of Rs 30 Crore to create an ecosystem in Electronics design and manufacturing. It will be a government-supported CoE (Centre of Excellence) that will have top-rated industry associations and academicians from top research under one umbrella, which will create more than 5000 high-end jobs in the near future.
To make citizens of Odisha digital-ready, Odisha for AI programme is to be initiated. Under this program, AI city clusters will be created and training will be provided to all eligible and interested people.
All government officials will also be provided AI training for capacity building. Puri-Bhubaneswar-Cuttack has been envisioned as India’s first AI cluster.
Principal Secretary Mishra informed that an undersea cable landing station at Puri is being planned to make data reliable and affordable.
This Landing Station will invigorate the Data Centre, Entertainment, Telecom and FinTech markets. Odisha thus can become the Digital hub for East, Central and North East India.
Basic digital infrastructure has already been created in 133 blocks of the State and the Government has now made a provision of Rs 26.6 Crore for internet leased line at the Block level which will considerably improve digital accessibility for citizens in rural areas.
1 Gbps high-bandwidth will also be provided to all GP’s for facilitating VC at GP level nearby Government institutions such as schools and hospitals. This will enable enhanced delivery of content and the development of smart school programs. It will considerably reduce rural and urban disparity in broadband connectivity.
To provide mobile networks in areas where there are no telecom services, the Government has initiated giving free land for mobile towers and the State is working closely with all mobile operators to ensure that mobile coverage is available everywhere in the State by March 2024.
Today, Odisha is the only State which has an enterprise platform like OSWAS, which has been allocated Rs 19.75 Crore under the budget, for the efficient use of technology for improving governance. Now, the flow of files and information in the Government of Odisha is seamless extending to all the district-level officers as well. This will be further strengthened across all officers. To ensure better integrity of government data, CSOC will be strengthened and an allocation of Rs 20 Crore has been made for it.
The Government has also strengthened the Mo Seba Kendras to ensure the effective public delivery of Government services. This has been done by creating one umbrella website/application called Odisha One which now has more than 550 services available to citizens.
The government plans to increase Mo Seba Kendras to 10,000 this year by opening these in GP offices.
Director (Technical), Information and Public Relations Department, Surendranath Parida, and Joint Director Gurbeer Singh coordinated the programme.
