New Delhi, Aug 6 (IANS) India’s IT industry is witnessing a remarkable shift as growth expands beyond traditional metro cities, driven by the government-backed Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), the Parliament was informed on Wednesday.

As of FY 2024-25, India’s software exports touched $224.4 billion, up from $136 billion in 2019, and total revenue from the IT industry stood at $282.6 billion, with the sector employing 5.8 million people, a significant rise from 4.14 million in 2019, Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw told the Lok Sabha in a written reply to a question.

According to data shared by the minister, STPI’s increasing presence in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities is powering software exports, innovation, and employment generation.

The STPI network now spans 68 centres, with 60 located in non-metro cities, including Bhagalpur, Darbhanga, Vijayawada, and Jajpur.

Over the last five years, 9 new STPI centres and 15 Centres of Entrepreneurship (CoEs) were launched to support startups in emerging tech areas like AI, blockchain, agritech, and gaming, Vaishnaw said.

These initiatives have led to the creation of 2.98 lakh jobs in non-metro locations through STPI-registered units, with an additional 9,800 jobs supported via startup incubation programmes.

A total of 1,121 startups have been assisted under government schemes, with $39.86 crore disbursed to 590 startups, according to the data.

The Next Generation Incubation Scheme (NGIS) and other digital innovation programs have strengthened India’s position in the global software product market.

Patent filings by Indian startups have surged from 4,331 in 2019 to nearly 90,000 in 2024, reflecting a growing focus on intellectual property and product development.

According to the minister, India is also seeing a rise in youth-led digital innovation under schemes like GENESIS, TIDE 2.0, and SAMRIDH, aligned with the National Policy on Software Products (NPSP) 2019.

With total software exports from STPI-registered units crossing Rs 10.64 lakh crore, the government’s push for decentralised IT growth is yielding tangible results.

By taking innovation to smaller cities, India is building a more inclusive and robust digital economy, Vaishnaw said.

–IANS

aps/vd