Software exports from Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) units in Tamil Nadu have increased by 8 per cent in 2019-20 to ₹44,000 crore as against ₹41,000 crore in the previous year. The growth has been attributed mainly to increased focus in non-US markets such as the UK and Japan, and quick scaling up by start-ups, said Sanjay Tyagi, Director, STPI-Chennai. However, the US continues to be their key market, he told BusinessLine .
Starting with just eight STPI units and exports of ₹12 crores in 1995, the number of STPI units in the State has crossed 700. Over 100 new units were registered last year, he added.
On STPI’s Foundation Day today, Tyagi said that the India BPO promotion scheme (IBPS) was launched by the Government in 2016 and STPI was entrusted with the responsibility of implementing the scheme across the country.
STPI Chennai has been one of the forerunners in implementing the scheme by filling up 7,705 BPO seats across Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry. BPO units have been set up at various locations including Mayiladuthurai, Tiruchi, Villupuram, the Nilgiris and Yelagiri, and employment generated for the local residents.
The IBPS scheme in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry has created over 8,000 jobs in these small towns and cities, he said.
Apart from rendering statutory support to the IT-ITeS industry by implementing the STP/Electronic Hardware Technology Park schemes, STPI has been supporting the industry by providing necessary infrastructure in the form of data communication facilities. STPI Chennai has also set-up sub-centres at Coimbatore, Tiruchi, Madurai, Tirunelveli and Puducherry to support the IT units operating from these districts, he said.
To help the start-up ecosystem, STPI Chennai offers TechNest - the 201 seat plug-and-play incubation facility to aid scale up. Over 68 start-ups have graduated out of this programme.
They focussed on emerging technologies such as Network Management and IT Security Solutions, Mobile Application developments, Applications in Cloud Computing, E-Commerce & Health Care, Machine Learning Technology, Financial Technology, Software Testing services for Datacom & Telecom products, Educational tablets & interactive whiteboards, he said.