Software technology park, Ranchi

Ranchi, Nov. 2: Buoyed by the success of the software technology park (STPI) in the state capital, the government is planning to set up two more STPIs — one in Jamshedpur and the other in Bokaro.

The department of information technology has already set the ball rolling. It has asked the Adityapur Industrial Area Development Authority (Aiada) and the Bokaro Industrial Area Development Authority (Biada) to make land available for the projects.

“We have received a positive response from Biada. It has suggested availability of land in the Balidih industrial area, where the ancillary units of Bokaro steel plant are housed. Though the area is on the outskirts of the city, we may consider it to make room for the software park,” said Siddharth Rai, the assistant director of STPI, Ranchi.

In Jamshedpur, the area development authorities are scouting for land. If they manage to find vast swathes, an IT park may be established. In case the plot is small, an STPI will be set up.

Both Jamshedpur and Bokaro have good railway links. While Jamshedpur boasts air connectivity, too, the industrial Bokaro-Dhanbad area is conducive to IT development, Rai said. “Due to global recession, we are looking for better opportunities at home,” he added.

The incubation facility at the STPI in the Namkum Industrial Area, Ranchi, is full following the entry of companies such as US-based Nath Corp., Pune-based Vidushi Infotech Private Limited, Calcutta-based Concom Private Limited and Mica Software.

While Nath Corp. is a cent per cent export-oriented company, Mica Software’s expertise lies in school-related programmes and library management systems. Set up in November 2006, the STPI, Ranchi, is spread over 12,500sqft with a workable area of 6,500sqft. It has the capacity to house 400 BPO employees.

Talks of establishing an IT park in the state has been hanging in balance for the past couple of years.

An IT park requires hundreds of acres and, initially, the state government had zeroed in on vacant plots of the Heavy Engineering Corporation (HEC), but nothing could be finalised.

Rai pointed out that Bhubaneswar hosts 47 multinational companies and several more India-based units. The Orissa capital already has two IT parks, each spread over hundreds of acres. Political will and good governance can pave way for such a park in Jharkhand, too, he said.