'Government is determined to provide conducive atmosphere for IT investments'
                                             -Raj Kumar, secretary, Department of Science & Technology, Government of Gujarat

What has been done by the state so far to attract technology investment in Gujarat? 
Our job is to provide world-class infrastructure, which we have already provided. All major companies have shown interest and India's biggest IT company TCS has already set up its development center in Gandhinagar's IT park. It has taken 20 acres of land. Others are also following the bandwagon. Apart from the IT park in Gandhinagar, we have built two IT towers in Ahmedabad-GNFC and Astron-which are fully occupied by IT and ITeS companies.

Apart from infrastructure, what value add do you provide to companies?
Government is determined to provide a favorable atmosphere for IT investments in Gujarat. And all major IT companies that have already set up shops in other states are now looking to spread their risk by investing in other geographies. And Gujarat has become the preferred destination to do so.

What are the other initiatives that you are planning to boost investment in the state?
There is a demand to provide a special economic zone (SEZ) status to some infrastructure projects. At present, there is one SEZ under GIDC in electronic city in Gandhinagar. So we are contemplating giving SEZ status to infrastructure projects that are coming up. This is going to be one of our major initiatives in the next fiscal, and would definitely attract lot of companies.

When are you planning to come out with a new IT policy?
We have an IT policy of 1999 in place, and  that would expire this year on June 30. We are planning a new policy soon. Already a draft in this regard has been prepared and soon we will have new IT guidelines in place. 

What is the government doing to propel IT growth in Gujarat?
I think technology has not reached to masses properly. So it's important for us to create awareness about technology and make sure that people get used to it. We have been doing this for so many years but there should be a joint effort from all the stakeholders involved.

Is government taking any concrete steps to fuel telephony growth in rural areas?
We have almost all the major service providers present in the state but apart from BSNL, none  has taken rural initiative in a big way. Though private operators have installed towers on the highways but that's not enough to provide mobile connectivity in rural areas. Private operators should look at providing affordable telephony in rural areas. And if required, government should come out to support them.

What e-governance initiatives have been deployed?
We have put Gujarat on statewide area network (GSWAN), which is the state's e-governance vehicle with a converged network. GSWAN is and IP network and it provides voice, video and data. We have all 25 districts and all 225 talukas connected and functional and about 560 offices in the network, capable of handling high volume, high-speed data and video conference. One of the robust campus area network at Secretariat (SCAN) connected with GSWAN enabling even Taluka level access for all officers at secretariat and vice versa. Satellite interconnect with GSWAN hub has made all services of the network omnipresent in the country through portable VSAT terminal which was put into services in June 2002.

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