AP registers 41 pc growth in IT exports

Hyderabad, May 30: Notwithstanding the economic slowdown in the US and depreciation of Dollar, Andhra Pradesh has achieved software exports worth Rs 26,122 crore during 2007-08, registering a growth of 41 per cent over the previous year and standing fourth in the country, Software Technology Park of India Hyderabad Director E Manoj Kumar said today.

Dependence on the US had come down from 68 per cent during 2006-07 to 61 per cent during 2007-08 and the growth in tier-II cities, including Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada, was catching up, he told a press conference here.

''We have set a target of over 40 per cent growth during 2008-09 to reduce the gap in exports between the third ranked Chennai from the present about Rs 3,000 crore to Rs 2,000 crore during the fiscal,'' he said.

As many as 176 new IT units with an investment of Rs 2,100 crore, including 40 foreign companies with an investment of Rs 654 crore, were added as STPI units in the State this year and an additional 51,550 jobs were generated during the period, he added.

With IT majors like Satyam and HSBC starting their operations in Visakhapatnam, the port was all set to become a major IT destination in the State. With the success of the incubation model in Kakinada, the STPI was in the process of adding similar initiatives in other tier-II locations with the support of the State Government.

UNI