Priyank Kharge defends Bengaluru's Silicon Valley status after Piyush Goyal proposes new township

Karnataka Information Technology (IT) Minister Priyank Kharge said, "Bye-bye Bengaluru is bye-bye Bharat," indicating that IT is an essential part of Bengaluru and that separating the two is not a possibility.

While responding to the remarks made by Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, Kharge said that India should "look beyond" to build its own Silicon Valley.

Bengaluru has been referred to as the "Silicon Valley of India" for an extended period of time, despite the informal nature of the term.

Goyal acknowledged Bangalore's status but emphasized the need for a fresh strategy when he proposed building a new township and marketing it as India's Silicon Valley.

Goyal suggested partnering with the National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC) to create a township specifically for innovators, disruptors, startups, and entrepreneurs.

As far as the IT industry is concerned, Kharge said that bidding farewell to Bengaluru was nothing short of bidding farewell to the country during the launch of India's first Global Capability Centres (GCC) policy in Bengaluru on Sep 7.

Bengaluru's ecosystem has developed over time, according to the Karnataka minister, with a convergence of research and development (R&D), IT services, aerospace, manufacturing, and startups contributing to the city's overall advancement.

Bengaluru is now recognized as a leader in developing an innovative cluster thanks to this special combination.

He claimed that even if Karnataka has built a strong talent ecosystem in the state, the state will not receive equal treatment and many semiconductor projects will be situated in Gujarat.

Earlier on Sep 17, Piyush Goyal proposed a new township dedicated to startups to create a Silicon Valley in India, covering 500 acres.

“We should aspire to go beyond. We should aspire to have our own Silicon Valley. I know Bengaluru is the Silicon Valley of India, but it's time we started thinking about tying up with

NICDC and creating a whole new township dedicated to entrepreneurs, startups, innovators, and disruptors,” he said.

According to Goyal, the National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation will be in charge of the project, which entails building a 500-acre area.

“Can we create a society, or a whole 200, 100, or 500-acre area and see if we can create such an ecosystem where incubators exist or where someone from a very distant place with an idea but no connections can land like people once used to go to Mumbai,” he added.