Karnataka's proposed GCC Policy: Five Things You Should Know
By Bricksnwall | 2024-09-28
Real estate specialists have applauded the draft
document, claiming that it is likely to help towns beyond Bengaluru.
The Karnataka government issued a draft Global
Capacity Centres (GCC) policy on September 27 with the goal of attracting 500
new GCCs by 2029, making the southern state the first in the country to
establish a specialised framework for this segment.
GCCs are offshore captive centres of multinational
corporations that perform support activities such as back-office functions, IT
support, and customer relationship management, among other things. Some
multinational firms also employ GCCs as centres of excellence.
According to a research by property firm CBRE,
Bengaluru led GCC office leasing from 2022 to H1 2024, accounting for 40% of
the segment's 53 million square feet of office space taken up across India's
top six cities over the 30-month period.
Real estate specialists have praised the Karnataka
government's action, claiming that the draft policy statement is in line with
the sector's current growing momentum. "The new (draft) policy,
coupled with strategic interventions, is poised to strengthen the GCC ecosystem
further, attracting both occupiers and investors to the state," noted Ram
Chandnani, Managing Director., Advisory and Transaction Services, CBRE India.
Five key takeaways.
Here are five significant announcements from the proposed policy, which is currently available for public comment.
1) The draft policy for 2024-2029 intends to create
3.5 lakh new jobs and generate an economic output of $50 billion.
2) According to the state administration, a key
goal of the draft strategy is to promote balanced growth across the state by
pushing the 'Beyond Bengaluru' initiative.
The government will pay GCCs for property tax and
rental expenditures incurred when establishing facilities in Beyond Bengaluru
clusters such as Mangaluru, Mysuru, Hubballi-Dharwad - Belagavi, Kalaburagi,
Tumakuru, and Shivamogga.
"Setting up co-working spaces in (a) Beyond
Bengaluru area will be promoted by reimbursing operational expenses,"
according to the draft policy document.
3) According to the draft policy, the government
would build three new technology parks—Global Innovation Districts—one in
Bengaluru and two in the Beyond Bengaluru clusters. Companies who establish
GCCs as anchor investors in Beyond Bengaluru's Global Innovation Districts will
receive unique incentives.
The government will consider creating a tailored
package of incentives for megaprojects.
4) The draft policy also recommends the
establishment of a dedicated GCC support unit to serve as a single point of
contact for streamlining approvals, improving coordination, promoting
integration with local ecosystems, and so on.
The unit will create and administer a live digital
portal in partnership with real estate partners, providing GCCs with a one-stop
shop for exploring listings of available commercial spaces throughout
Karnataka.
5) As part of the proposed policy, the state government plans to create an artificial intelligence Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru.
Source: Hindustan Times
