The Department of Information Technology and e-Governance, Government of Jharkhand today appointed Ernst & Young (EY) as the advisor for assisting the department in IT/ITeS/ESDM sector policy formulation, developing guidelines for setting up of IT Parks, investment promotion in the IT sector in the state, feasibility assessment and bid process management for development of IT Parks in the State.
The agreement was signed by Sarvesh Singhal, Special Secretary (IT) in presence of Umesh Sah, Director (IT) on behalf of the Department of Information and technology, Government of Jharkhand and Adil Zaidi, Partner(EY) in the presence of Satish Kaushal, Executive Director(EY).
Under the agreement, EY will undertake investment promotion activities in IT/ITeS and ESDM sector and provide implementation support for the same in the state. The project comprises of two phases -- Investment Promotion and Implementation support. Under phase one, EY will draft the IT policy, ESDM policy and DTP guidelines for the state and assist the state in roll out of the policies and promote start-ups. Under phase 2, EY will organize Roadshows, IT summits and global IT summits to promote IT investments in the state from entrepreneurs and established IT firms.
Secretary of the department Sunil Kumar Barnwal said that the vision of the State Government for the IT sector is “to ensure large scale socio–economic development, sustained growth, transparency in Government policies and decisions and enhanced service delivery by effective use of Information Technology”.
The state is proposing to develop an IT policy and implementation guidelines keeping in mind the enhanced opportunities that IT will unleash over the next decade; these opportunities will allow companies to create value, provide significant opportunities in providing employment and enhance efficiencies in governance.
Jharkhand has been continuously growing since it was carved out as an independent state. The state is highly rich in minerals, and mining and manufacturing are the main economic activities. However, the new government is trying to explore avenues for diversifying the development of the state and has identified information technology sector as one of the focus areas.
Information Technology and Electronics has been identified as one of the focus areas for development. Jharkhand recognizes the strategic importance of Information, Communication & Technology (ICT) as key components of its agenda for development.