Agartala, Oct 26 (IANS): A second Software Technology Park would be set up in Tripura to boost information technology in the country's northeast region and to reach out to people of rural and remote areas with e-governance, a minister said here Saturday.
The proposed Software Technology Park (STP) would be the second such technological complex in Tripura and sixth in the northeast region of India.
Jitendra Chowdhury, Tripura's industries, commerce and information technology minister, held a meeting with Omkar Rai, director general, Software Technology Park of India (STPI), in Bengaluru earlier this week.
"The STPI director general positively assured me that a STP would soon come up in Agartala. Tripura government would extend all kind of support in setting up of the STP," Chowdhury told IANS.
During Chowdhury's visit at STPI complex in Bengaluru, senior director of STPI J. Parthasarathi apprised the minister about the role of STPs in India.
There are 54 STPs functioning in India.
The minister said the state government would soon declare Information Technology and Electronics Policy.
The Tripura government, with the financial assistance from the central government, has been setting up a STP at Indranagar in the outskirts of the city at a cost of Rs.43 crore to further boost the information technology industries in the industry-starved northeastern region.
There are four other STPs that are either functioning or ready to function in Guwahati, Imphal, Gangtok and Aizawl.
Chowdhury said the technology park would provide all sorts of facilities for the growth of information technology industries in the region for the purpose of socio-economic development.
"The STP would help the authorities to reach out to citizens with more efficient and productive government services," the minister said.
He added that it would serve as an important tool to create maximum job opportunities as well as absorbing a large portion of the educated unemployed.
STPs are being set up in India by the STPI authority since 1991 to encourage, promote and boost software exports from the country besides expansion of the information technology infrastructure and software industry.