The government is preparing to come up with a new IT policy that will have a revised benchmark. While the exact date of the implementation is not known, it will be finalised by year-end.
As per Business Standard, the policy will be focusing on strengthening global capability centers (GCCs) and fostering employment generation. Additionally, it will focus on improving research and development in the country. To add to it, the government will also focus on upskilling the workforce and creating IT products, according to the report.
This new policy will come almost a decade after the National Policy on Information Technology (NPIT) that was approved by the Cabinet in 2012. The policy had a wide variety of objectives that included job creation, promoting e-literacy, improving the quality of services, mandating electronic procurement, and establishing a network of access points to facilitate public access to electronic services, among others.
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Major IT hubs such as Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune and Bhubaneswar have been involved in the consultation process while framing this policy. Additionally, several IT companies and start-ups were also part of the consultation process. While the policy’s scope might be broadened to include start-ups as well, no final decision has been made about the same, adds the report.
Speaking about the new IT policy, a senior government official told Business Standard that the policy will also focus on the export of IT products. Keeping in mind the dynamic industry, the policy will have short-term, such as five-year targets to achieve the export figures. The official reportedly said, “So, for five years we will have some good numbers, like how much export we want to achieve, and we will focus on that.”
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The report indicates that Union Minister for Electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnaw will present a draft of the policy either by the end of October or November. However, the IT ministry did not give any comment to Business Standard based on the development.
