KTR urges IT firms to look beyond Hyderabad, expand to Tier-II cities
HYDERABAD: As the country's top recruiter of IT professionals, Hyderabad is the largest metro for those seeking technology jobs and has displaced Bengaluru to second place, IT minister K.T. Rama Rao said, as he encouraged tech industry captains to create jobs for the local youths by expanding their operations beyond Hyderabad to Tier II cities in Telangana.
A quarter of the new jobs in the IT sector were created in Hyderabad, the minister said, citing last year's data. Of the 4,50,000 new jobs created in the IT sector, 1.57 lakh were in Hyderabad, while 1.46 lakh were in Bengaluru, pushing the once IT citadel to second place, he stated.
At an interactive session with the IT industry hosted by the Hyderabad Software Enterprises Association (HYSEA) on Monday, Rama Rao attributed the outcomes achieved over the last eight years to the collective efforts of the IT department and the IT industry.
Representatives from tech firms applauded heartily when the minister stated that the number of IT employees in Telangana had climbed from 3.23 lakh at the time of the state's formation in 2014 to 8.7 lakh currently, and that IT exports had increased from Rs 57,000 crore in 2014 to Rs 1.83 lakh crore now.
"We all can take pride in these outcomes. The number of employees, employers who are looking at Hyderabad is growing. I believe that this is just the beginning," he remarked.
Speaking of the 20 lakh IT jobs expected to be created in India over the next three years, the IT minister stated that the state government would continue to work closely with the industry to capitalise on the opportunity.
In an effort to persuade IT businesses, Rama Rao remarked that Tier-II cities have emerged as new growth hubs due to robust infrastructure and plug-and-play facilities, making them sought-after destinations for IT/ITes investments. He appealed to the industry leaders to look beyond Hyderabad and expand their operations in Tier-II towns to balance economic growth, and urged them to point the state government to new opportunities, prospective investors.
The minister mentioned Telangana's robust innovation ecosystem, which included T-Hub, WE HUB, Telangana State Innovation Cell (TSIC), WASH Hub, T-Works, and others. He informed them that the B-Hub for Biotech and Life Sciences Industries was being planned and that T-Works would open this year.
The IT minister urged the industry leaders to guide the state government in such a way that local youth acquire the bulk of job opportunities, while asserting that the Telangana government has been trying to explore how partnership between the industry and academia can be developed.
Principal secretary of IT department Jayesh Ranjan, police commissioners of Cyberabad, Hyderabad, and Rachakonda Stephen Raveendra, C.V.Anand, and D.S. Chauhan, respectively, as well as N.V.S. Reddy, MD of Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL), HYSEA president Manisha Saboo, chief relations officers Amarnath Reddy Atmakuri, and others participated in the event.
