Rs 618 cr software project from Infosys at Bangalore

Rs 618 cr software project from Infosys at Bangalore
ENS ECONOMIC BUREAU

Bangalore, Jan 18: Software giant Infosys Technologies is setting up what is being billed as the world's largest software development centre in Bangalore.

Infosys is chipping in Rs 618 crore to develop the project on a plot of 100 acres on the Hosur-Sarjapur road. This centre alone is expected to employ 7,200 technical personnel, while Infosys' existing units all put together employ over 9,000 personnel.

This is one of the six mega projects that the State Government's high-level committee on investments cleared on Wednesday when it met here under the chairmanship of industries minister R V Deshpande, who later spelt out the details at a media conference on Thursday.

The 50 acre capacity at Infosys's present state-of-the-art facility at Electronic City is expected to be fully utilised by December 2001. The new campus, when ready, is expected to have a built-up area of over 17 lakh square feet. As of now, Infosys has 17 development centres in India and six global development centres across the globe.

The State Government, the minister said, has asked Infosys to identify the land it requires for the project, and the land will be transferred by March. "Infosys is also setting up a software development centre at Mangalore and we have agreed to give 25 acres of land. In Mysore, we have already granted 100 acres, and the company has asked for another 100 acres. We have conceded this demand also," Deshpande said. When all these projects are through, Infosys will be in a position to employ over 25,000 technical personnel.

In all, the high-level committee cleared investments totalling Rs 4,501 crore for six mega projects. The projects hold the potential for creating 20,326 jobs, the Minister said.

The multinational, Motorola, has also approached the State Government with a proposal to set up a software development centre at an investment of Rs 76.61 crore in the first phase, and Rs 126 crore in the second phase.

The public sector, Bharat Electronics, has proposed to invest Rs 130.47 crore to manufacture motherboards for personal computers, electronic voting machines, integrated circuit designs and line circuit cards.

The Khodays have diversification plans, and have proposed to set up an LNG terminal, gas pipeline and a 1,000 MW power plant at Gokarna in Uttara Kannada district, all with an investment of Rs 3,140 crore.

Two proposals of Sunlife Technologies have also been cleared, one of which is a Rs 300.92 crore bio-tech project. The technology for the biotech project would be imported from Switzerland and the plant will come up either at Mandya or Mysore district.

Its second project, pegged at a Rs 235 crore investment, is at Nagawara on the outskirts of Bangalore. The project includes 11 cinema halls, and a theatre, besides a five star hotel, a three star hotel and a shopping mall.

Kudremukh Iron Ore Company has plans to set up a coke oven plant in Uttara Kannada district at a cost of Rs 190 crore to produce 225,000 tonnes of coke a year besides having a cogeneration plant for 168 MW.

The Industries department, Deshpande said, would place before the Cabinet a scheme to write off interest and penal interest to over 400 industries that had borrowed a development loan of Rs 82 crore 20 years ago. Of them, only Rs 20 crore had been realised, and the total principal amount due was Rs 62.38 crore and interest was Rs 67.65 crore. The scheme,if approved, would let off such industries that paid up the principal in one go.