Bhubaneswar, Sept. 16: In a major boost to information technology in Orissa, software major Wipro has expressed its desire to set up a software development centre in Bhubaneswar.

The centre would be set up on 35 acres of land near Infocity in the state capital. The development follows the decision of software giants Infosys Technologies and Satyam Computers to further develop their software centres in Bhubaneswar and enhance their staff strength.

Tamal Dasgupta, vice-president of Wipro Technologies ? the global IT services division of Wipro Limited ? and Hariprasad Hegde, the company?s general manager (operations), apprised chief minister Naveen Patnaik of the decision at the end of their two-day visit today.

The two-member team visited the capital after the Orissa government requested Wipro chairman Azim Premji to send a delegation to the state to explore the possibility of setting up a software development centre.

During their meeting with the chief minister, the Wipro officials suggested that the government take up the issue of a direct flight between Bhubaneswar and Bangalore with the Centre. Patnaik assured them that he would discuss the matter with the Union government during his next visit to the national capital.

Recently, information technology minister Suryo Narayan Patro urged the authorities of Sahara Airlines and Air Deccan to introduce direct daily flights between Bangalore and Bhubaneswar with the aim of facilitating the development of the IT sector.

Dasgupta and Hegde yesterday visited Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, Silicon Institute of Technology, Infocity and Fortune Tower to take take stock of the infrastructure available here. They earmarked a plot of land near Infocity for the proposed software development centre.

The IT department has sought 100 acres of land near Infocity for software companies willing to set up shop in Orissa. The government has decided to provide land to Wipro at Rs 12 lakh per acre.

Infosys has acquired 70 acres of land at Infocity, which houses its software development centre. The government has also announced incentives for small companies interested to set up IT kiosks, call centres for BPO and medical transcription.

The team, accompanied by chief secretary Subash Pani and other senior officials of the state, also paid a visit to the golf course and some educational institutions today.