The past five years have been a mixed bag for the IT industry in the State. With another Assembly election on the horizon, the front forming the next government is expected to focus on attracting more investment, address space availability and take steps, including control on rent increases, to make the situation more viable for existing companies.
Speaking to The Hindu, Sunil Jose, Chairman of the Group of Technology Companies (G-Tech), says that the IT industry currently comes under the Shops and Commercial Establishments Act, which is restrictive. He said the government has been largely supportive to the sector, but the issue of rents needs to be addressed as the 5% annual increase makes it unviable for many smaller companies.
"We propose that IT should have a separate minister, rather than be handled as one of the departments of the Chief Minister, to enable the industry to grow faster. We need to have an ecosystem of various types of companies, which will attract more business as well as people. The government should invite bigger companies to set shop here. Space availability is still an issue. Even for the new Technocity, connectivity can be an issue as people will take time to get used to travelling all the way there. Air connectivity is also another question, as clients are reluctant to come here due to the lack of direct flights from many key regions," says Mr. Jose.
Futuristic vision
V. Sreekumar, Centre Head of Tata Elxsi, says that in the past five years, the government has shown a futuristic vision by bringing in firms focussed on Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and setting up a digital university with focus on these areas. The setting up of the space park is another achievement.
"One of the negatives is that the single window clearance system for the IT industry does not work as well as it used to. Such a system could be a lot of help for newer companies, the founders of which might not be aware of all the compliances required. The government should also constantly communicate with the industry as well as bodies like G-Tech," says Mr. Sreekumar.
Vineeth Chandran, Secretary of Prathidhwani, a socio-cultural organisation of IT employees, says that the formation of a welfare board for IT employees is a welcome step from the government. The board should also implement a job insurance scheme for IT employees.
"The government should look at opening smaller IT parks in all districts. It should also focus on adding allied infrastructure, including women's hostels and transportation facilities for IT parks. The explosion in the number of start-ups is one of the positives of the past five years. Also, the fact that we could attract companies like Nissan, Tech Mahindra and Teranet to Kerala," says Mr. Chandran.
Work from home
Shaju Raveendran, Chief Operating Officer of Reflections Info Systems, says that the setting up of the K-Fon network could aid the expansion of the industry into the rural areas too and promote more work-from-home options.
"One gap that should be addressed is that of the employability of fresh graduates. The government should take steps to raise the academic level of students and improve industry-academic partnerships," says Mr. Raveendran.