Infosys to set up SEZ in Mysore

Infosys to set up SEZ in Mysore
Deccan Herald

ELECTRONICS CITY The much-awaited ‘Mysore Electronics City’ on the lines of Electronics City in Bangalore is coming up on a 500-acre land in Mysore. Keonics is establishing the project and the KIADB has been asked to identify the land. The IT department has short-listed land for the Electronics City here which would be made known after some time. “What Electronic City did for Bangalore’s growth, it will do the same for Mysore too,” IT Secretary M K Shankaralinge Gowda said.

Infosys Technologies is establishing the first ever Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Mysore for promoting IT exports. Around Rs 400 crore is being invested on SEZ which will come up on a 70-acre land in the existing campus of Infosys at Hootagalli, 16 kms from Mysore city. The SEZ would employ 10,000 persons by next year.

The government has approved the ‘product-specific’ SEZ project of Infosys with an aim to boost IT exports from Mysore.

The SEZ will be in a position to export Rs 1,900 crore worth of software within a year of its commissioning. The SEZ would be operational by March, 2006. Mr M K Shankaralinge Gowda, secretary, Department of IT, BT and Science and Technology disclosed that the government has given approval to 24 companies for setting up their operations in Mysore city.

The companies will be investing Rs 1,000 crore in the next one year, Mr Gowda said. Velankanni Info Systems is investing Rs 581 crore on its Software Tech Park on a 50-acre plot here. RGS Software and Purvankara Builders, both from Bangalore, are setting up base here. Concepta Cables is setting up fibre optic company, while L and T is spending Rs 92 crore on its hardware and software parks. G M Data Tech, Global Business Solution are investing Rs 68 crore and Rs 38 crore respectively here.

Mr Gowda told reporters on the sidelines of the International Conference on Cognition and Recognition that the KIADB is undertaking land acquisition for these companies. “KIADB has already acquired 200 acres for Wipro and is acquiring spare land around 200 acres acquired for Wipro for the above companies that are investing here,” he informed.

“If all 24 companies become operational in the next six months, the IT exports from Mysore will touch Rs 1,000 crore by March 2007, besides creating 20,000 jobs in one year,” Mr Gowda said, adding that IT exports from Mysore are set to cross Rs 500 crore this year.

“The reason for the rise in exports was the establishment of new companies and expansion of existing companies.”

BPOs rush in

Several BPO companies are making beeline to the city to start their operations. BPOs VSJ Infrastructure, Specialised Process Innovation have secured the government’s approval in Mysore.

Even R&D in bio-technology is getting a boost here with Jubilant Biosys starting a research wing in BT in Mysore, Mr Shankarlinge Gowda said.