Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Cabinet on Friday approved the outright purchase of both towers A & B of O-Hub by the MSME department from IDCO at a cost of Rs 350 crore.
Briefing media after the cabinet meeting, Chief Secretary P K Jena said, “O-Hub building, constructed by IDCO, comprises of twin towers (Tower A and Tower B), each of G+12 floors, with a total built-up space of about 4 lakh square feet, spreading over 3.57 Acres of land in Chandaka IT/ITeS SEZ. This land has been leased to IDCO by the State Government for 99 years w.e.f. 25.03.2006.”
Since the launch of Odisha Startup Policy 2016 by the Government of Odisha, there has been a steady growth in number of Startups in the State. More than 1600 startups have been recognized and the number of incubators has increased to 26. The State Government has envisaged getting 5000 startups and 50 incubators recognized/registered by the year 2025. Providing startups with modern and equipped infrastructure in the form of co-working space is of paramount importance to achieve such an ambitious target.
O-Hub at Chandaka IT/ITES SEZ, built by IDCO, will work as the main fulcrum of the startup ecosystem of Odisha. It currently houses the Startup Odisha office and a small number of startups. The target is to house 500 startups in O-Hub by 2025.
MSME Department, being the administrative Department of Startup Odisha, will purchase the land and building of O-Hub from IDCO at a cost of Rs.350 Cr. which includes the cost towards interior furnishing work. The O-Hub building will remain under the operational control of STARTUP ODISHA.
