Monday, February 16, 2009

New IT policy by March-end



The State Government of Karnataka will come out with a new information technology (IT) policy by March-end, said Katta Subramanya Naidu, Minister for IT has said. While speaking at a meet-the-press programme here on Thursday, he said: "I will discuss the pros and cons of the draft policy with a team of experts before placing it before the Cabinet for approval."

He added that the global recession has impacted the IT&BT sector, and hence there is a need to review the policies. However, the new IT policy seeks to set up innovation hubs in satellite towns, offering concessions in power supply to house small as well as medium enterprises. The policy also envisages VAT reduction on a wide range of IT products, besides halving the stamp duty on setting up IT industries in Bangalore and 100 per cent exemption in Tier II and Tier III cities. Besides this, a land bank will be created in and around Bangalore and other IT destinations in the State to offer companies land either on lease or outright sale for start-ups.

The Minister also said that the policy also proposed to bring down charges of police charges to Rs. 500 from Rs. 3,000 for the verification of antecedents of local individuals seeking blue-collared jobs in the IT sector.

source: livemint.com

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