Big opportunity for India, grab it: KTR

Hyderabad: Industry and IT Minister KT Rama Rao on Tuesday requested the Union government to promote India as a major alternative country to China in attracting investments in IT and electronics industry in the post-corona era. The minister told the Union Minister of IT to take necessary steps to invite the investors who are planning to shift their base from China after the coronavirus outbreak.

During a video conference of IT Ministers across the country held by Union Minister Ravishankar Prasad, KTR suggested to him that a group be constituted to evolve strategies to put the IT sector on fast-track growth trajectory in the post-corona period. He said some western countries had already set up the strategy groups to recommend measures to be taken to address the challenges.

He brought to the notice of the Union minister that the investors from Japan and other countries hinted at shifting their manufacturing units from China and it is an opportunity to try and attract them to India.

The minister is of the strong view that the adverse conditions prevailed in the country should be converted in to a big opportunity and create huge employment potential by attracting big investments.

He also requested the Union minister to sanction two more Electronic Clusters to Telangana, extend incentives to medium and small enterprises engaged in the IT and electronics sector and creation of more employment opportunities in cyber security. The minister pitched in for convergence of IT with medical, pharma, bio-technology and medical devises. He was also of the opinion that since the impact of Covid-19 was heavy on medium and small industries, they should be exempted from the GST and income tax filings in the current year.

The Union minister, it is said, responded positively to the suggestions made by KTR and instructed all state governments to follow the Special Portal designed to exchange the best practices adopted by the states in the containment of the deadly virus.