Various steps taken by the government of Odisha have placed them at the forefront in the adoption of IT and experimenting with emerging technologies to drive and transform governance in the state to positively impact the lives of its citizens. Besides their focus on the IT sector infrastructure, telecom infrastructure and so on, the policy approved by the state government in 2022, has given emphasis to ‘promotion of VFX and animation.’
This policy is already in force and will remain so until 31 March 2027 or till it is substituted by another policy. The State Government may at any time amend any and/or all provision(s) of this policy.
One of their major mission is to promote the innovation ecosystem in the state along with the promotion of emerging technologies such as cyber security, data analytics, mobile tech/5G, IoT, Augmented Reality (AR) & Virtual Reality (VR), cloud computing, deep learning, blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML),etc. R&D activities, design and development of new products, services, processes and business models in Industry 4.0 etc. will be encouraged.
For the promotion of VFX, animation, gaming and comic industry, Odisha’s IT Policy 2022 has underlined following aid and assistance:
- Capital Subsidy: AVGC unit with min. investment of Rs 3 crores and min. employment of 30 people, shall get a capital subsidy of 25 per cent of FCI, subject to an upper cap of Rs 20 lakhs. For Women/SC/ST/disabled entrepreneurs additional subsidy of Rs 10 lakhs will be provided.
- Animation Film/Series/Games: Reimbursement of 20 per cent (40 per cent for Women/SC/ST/disabled entrepreneurs) of project/production cost for animation films/cartoon series/games produced in Odisha subject to 80 per cent of animation film/series/game production happening in Odisha using local people. This incentive is limited to Rs 10 lakhs per film per year. Women/SC/ST and disabled entrepreneurs will get an additional subsidy of Rs 5 lakhs per film per year.
- Lease Rental: Reimbursement of 25 per cent of lease rental charges, limited to Rs 3 lakhs per year for three years. For Women/SC/ST/disabled entrepreneurs, reimbursement will be @ 50 per cent of lease rental charges, limited to Rs 5 lakhs per year for three years.
100 per cent reimbursement of stamp duty, registration fees and transfer duty for the first transaction and 50 per cent of second transaction is also allowed.
- Recruitment Assistance: Assistance of Rs. 15 lakhs for employing minimum 80 people within two years of operation with a condition that 50 per cent recruitment is of Odisha domicile people.
- Marketing Assistance: 50 per cent reimbursement (100 per cent for Women/SC/ST/disabled entrepreneurs) of cost incurred for participating in national exhibition/trade event or promotion events capped at 1.5 lakh per year. Such incentive can be claimed maximum three times during the policy period per company for participating in events.
- Quality Certification: Reimbursement of 20 per cent expenses (40 per cent for Women/ST/SC/disabled entrepreneurs) incurred towards compulsory marketing/quality certificates. This incentive is limited to maximum Rs 4 lakhs per unit.
- Bandwidth Connectivity Charges: Reimbursement of internet bandwidth charges up to Rs 1.5 lakhs per year for a period of three years.
School level support:
Also, with a vision to foster the spirit of curiosity and innovation in school children in the state, government shall support for creating Biju Innovation Lab (BIL) at selected schools, which would spur curiosity and interest in AI, ML, VR, Internet of Things (IOT), Blockchain and other emerging technologies. Government shall provide support for creating Biju Innovation Lab (BIL) at selected schools, preferably one in each district.
Assistance of Rs. 20 lakhs for setting up of and maintenance of Biju Innovation Lab for five years will be provided. During implementation of this project i.e. creation of Biju Innovation Lab, School & Mass Education Department will be consulted.
Also, there are incentives for the Center of Excellence (CoE) in educational institutes in Odisha. They are:
- To promote CoEs in engineering colleges, educational institutes in Odisha: The CoE shall focus areas on areas like AI, cyber security, Extended Reality(XR), AR, VR, automation, blockchain, big data, cloud computing, Internet of Things (IoT), ML, clean-tech, edu-tech, agri-tech, health-tech and other areas of social or national importance.
- Stamp Duty/Registration/Conversion Charges: 100 per cent exemption of stamp duty/registration/conversion charges for first transaction and 50 per cent reimbursement of stamp duty on second transaction will be provided.
- Power: CoE shall be eligible for industrial tariff.
- Investment subsidy: Reimbursement of 50 per cent of FCI. Also, the state government can invest upto 50 per cent of the capital investment in CoE project depending on the specific of the project.
- Internet subsidy: Reimbursement of internet charges subject to a maximum limit of Rs. 10 lakhs per year for five years.
- Quality Certification: Reimbursement of 20 per cent expenses incurred towards compulsory marketing certificates, max. Rs 4 lakhs per unit.
- Marketing Assistance: 50 per cent reimbursement of cost incurred for participating in national exhibition/trade event or promotion events capped at Rs 1.5 lakh per year. This can be availed maximum five times in the policy period per company.
- Patent Registration Incentives: Reimbursement of 100 per cent of cost patent filing, subject to max up to Rs. 10 lakhs per patent. The incentives can be availed after successful filing of patent.
- Bandwidth Connectivity Charges: Reimbursement of 50 per cent of internet bandwidth charges per annum, subject to a maximum limit of Rs 2 lakhs per year for a period of two years.
- If a new product is successfully developed and accepted, then the state government can procure the same based on the recommendation of the high-level committee, without going through a tender process. This assistance is available to solutions/products developed in government partnered CoEs.
They also have emerging technologies incentive. Companies/units investing in the area of AI, cyber security, XR, AR,VR, automation, blockchain, big data, cloud computing, Internet of Things (IoT), ML, clean-tech, edu-tech, agri-tech, health-tech and other emerging technologies shall be eligible for this incentive. They are:
- Land Subsidy: Land will be allotted at subsidised rate as per IPR policy.
- Stamp Duty/Registration/Conversion Charges: 100 per cent exemption of stamp duty/registration/conversion charges for first transaction and 50 per cent reimbursement of stamp duty on second transaction will be provided.
- Power: Units shall be eligible for industrial tariff.
- Investment subsidy: Reimbursement of 25 per cent of FCI, limited to Rs 10 cr.
- Internet subsidy: Reimbursement of internet charges subject to a maximum limit of Rs. 20 lakhs per year for five years.
- Lease Rental: Reimbursement of 25 per cent of lease rental charges, limited to Rs 3 lakhs per year for three years. For women/SC/ST/disabled entrepreneurs, reimbursement will be of 50 per cent of lease rental charges, limited to Rs 5 lakhs per year for three years.
- Quality Certification: Reimbursement of 20 per cent expenses (40 per cent for women/ST/SC/disabled entrepreneurs ) incurred towards compulsory marketing/quality certificates, with a maximum limit of Rs. 4 lakhs per unit
- Marketing Assistance: 50 per cent reimbursement (100 per cent for women/SC/ST/disabled entrepreneurs) of cost incurred for participating in national exhibition/trade event or promotion events capped at Rs 1.5 lakh per year. This will be available maximum five times in the policy period per company.
Odisha’s IT Policy 2022 also states that a task force shall be set up by the E & IT Department for consultation and recommendations for quick disposal of all IT Policy related points. The state government may amend any provision of this policy at any time.
To read the whole policy report in detail, click here: Odisha’s IT Policy 2022