Lalith Ahuja’s ANSR Consulting will invest ₹500 crore over six years to transform Visakhapatnam into a world-class destination for global in-house centres (GIC) at sea-facing Rushikonda.
The State Cabinet cleared the proposal to allot 10 acres of land to the leading consulting company, which has a huge facility in Bengaluru. The land was earlier earmarked for construction of Signature Tower which was subsequently dropped. The company has agreed to provide job opportunities for 5,000 people by constructing a built-up area of five lakh square feet and setting up an accelerator.
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and IT Minister N. Lokesh at the two-day Blockchain Business Conference which concluded here on Tuesday announced the establishment of another 5,000-seater software and BPO facility by Conduent, a US-based $6 billion company with an initial investment of ₹300 crore.
A special purpose vehicle will be formed soon to implement the project by ANSR Consulting. In lieu of land, the government will have equity in the project. As part of the project, an accelerator, hotel and a multiplex will come up in phases.
INSR Consulting set up in 2004 has so far established 27 GICs. It has the backing of Accel Partners and Infosys for promoting startup-driven innovation. “The commitment to establish a 5,000-seater GIC in the city is a significant achievement in transforming Visakhapatnam into an IT and innovation hub,” Tirumala Chamalla, CEO (Promotions) of AP Electronics and IT Agency (APEITA), an autonomous society formed by the government, told The Hindu on Wednesday.
He said initially it would be allotted a 100-seater space by APEITA for incubation as the construction time for the project at Rushikonda would be 18 months.
Mr. Tirumala said the project would provide jobs in technology, analytics and business.