Maharashtra is in active conversation with industry stakeholders to formulate a dedicated global capability centre (GCC) policy to stay competitive in the race to attract investments from the fast-growing sector.
This comes close in the heels of Karnataka, which unveiled the country’s first dedicated state GCC policy with the intention to attract as many as 500 new centres, and create 350, 000 jobs by 2029.
Sources said that senior officials have met with and discussed the issues and expectations of GCCs already present, or looking to set up centres in the state, along with other industry stakeholders like staffing firms.
“We were asked to give suggestions for a policy to attract GCCs to the state, and discussed the issues and expectations with the representatives (from the state). We also told them our experience in other states,” said the country head of a GCC with presence in multiple states, including Maharashtra.
States like Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh have some incentives in place to attract GCCs.
The other states, including Maharashtra have an active IT/ITES policy which so far covered GCCs, but now, Maharashtra intends to have a separate policy for the emerging sector.
Currently, India has close to 1600 unique GCCs with as many as 2600 centres and an employed workforce of 1.7 million. According to data compiled by staffing firm Quess Corp, 39% of India’s GCCs are hosted in Bengaluru, accounting for 46% of the total workforce. Pune and Mumbai each host between 12%-14% of the country’s GCCs.
“Maharashtra has the advantage of data connectivity, good quality power, and a high density of data centres, which makes it an ideal GCC destination. However, Pune and Mumbai are ranked third in terms of GCC presence in the country, behind cities like Bengaluru and the NCR area,” a person in the know observed.
This has spurred the state towards the formulation of a dedicated policy to attract GCCs. The headroom for GCC growth in the country is significant, industry executives said, as it is estimated that every 3rd GCC in the country, is looking at a multi-city strategy.
Maharashtra government officials could not be reached till press time for comments.
Recommendations and suggestions collected from industry stakeholders range from initiatives around the establishment of special economic zones, tax incentives, cost competitiveness in real estate, leveraging foreign direct investment confidence, and building a talent strategy.
The state is also looking to expand the scope of GCC establishments beyond Mumbai and Pune where the centres are currently concentrated. It has identified cities like Nashik and Nagpur as potential GCC destinations.
“Maharashtra has established multiple SEZs in the past aimed at boosting investment in technology and services. Notable examples include the Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) in Mumbai and the Rajiv Gandhi Infotech Park in Hinjewadi, Pune. Currently, GCCs are centered in Mumbai and Pune. There’s a need for a wider base,” an industry executive said.
One of the biggest concerns for industry stakeholders is the acquisition of land to set up said centres, and so they have asked for competitive real estate pricing which will in turn reduce overheads for the GCCs, in addition to tax incentives.
From: financialexpress
Financial News
