The ITIRs approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) would aim at accelerating the growth of IT, electronic hardware manufacturing (EHM) units, and IT enabled services (ITES).

Each ITIR will be a notified investment region with a minimum area of 40 sq. km. planned for IT/ITES and EHM units. An ITIR can be developed through the public-private partnership (PPP) by the state governments.

'ITIRs will be endowed with excellent infrastructure,' said an official press communique issued after the CCEA meeting.

It added that the new industrial zones would be guided through investor-friendly policies.

'The state government will ensure that all physical infrastructure and facilities like power, water, roads, transportation, sewage and effluent treatment plants are provided in each ITIR, while the central government will develop national highways, airport and rail links to the ITIRs,' it said.

The government hopes that ITIRs will become 'major magnets for investment, employment opportunities and economic growth in the area, and will also reduce pressure on the existing urban centres by developing new townships'.

Officials said there would be a clear delineation between IT/ITES and EHM areas, and the minimum processing area would be 40 percent of the total area of an ITIR.