Technopark-Thiruvananthapuram, among India’s largest technology parks, has made a good account of itself by doing ‘remarkably well’ on the software export front during 2020-21 despite adverse market conditions created by the Covid-19 pandemic.
As per the latest figures, the export revenue grew by 7.7 per cent over the previous year (₹7,890 crore in 2019-20) and touched ₹8,501 crore during the current fiscal, an official spokesperson said.
Strong fundamentals
Annual report for 2019-20 had highlighted sustained productivity levels during the latter half of the pandemic. The impressive performance of the IT sector in a dreary global economic landscape pointed to its strong fundamentals, the annual report concluded.
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“It is therefore not surprising that in a year when industries are shutting down, the sector has been able to attract new business and investments. The easing of lockdown restrictions saw new companies invest in Technopark. Several companies already operating here have outlined expansion plans, too,” it said.
Strides in infrastructure
A year down the line, in 2020-21, Technopark has also made great strides in infrastructure development. The available IT space has crossed the milestone of 10 million square feet.
There has also been an increase in the number of companies and employees arriving at the Park. Currently, Technopark has 460 companies and 63,000 employees.
John M Thomas, CEO, Kerala IT Parks, said that the growth in software exports shows the strength and resilience of the IT companies even in adverse market conditions.
Supportive government
The State government’s support for the IT sector and beneficial policies during the current year has helped the smaller companies keep their operations going despite the pandemic.
“With the ongoing campus modernisation efforts at Technopark and completion of big ongoing infrastructure development projects, we are expecting higher export growth both by enabling organic growth of existing firms and by attracting new global corporations,” the CEO said.
Earlier this year, in recognition of its excellent financial stability, rating agency CRISIL had upgraded Technopark’s credit rating to A Plus/Stable, the highest credit rating achieved during the past 10 years.
CRISIL upgrades rating
The 2019-20 annual report had said that CRISIL believes Technopark will continue to benefit from steady cash flow because of its diversified clientele, healthy debt protection metrics and liquidity.
This was a reaffirmation of its excellent track record as a premier IT hub and an indication of its strong financial stability. During 2019- 20, revenues had increased to ₹125.43 crore (10 per cent increase).
The park’s financial health had remained robust despite the offering of transitory relief to companies for rent payment and forgoing rental escalations for the fiscal due to the Covid-19, the annual report said.