IT major Wipro will hire 7,000 people over the next five years for its SEZ facility at Visakhapatnam, besides expanding its operations to Vijayawada, Kakinada and Tirupati. The company will develop five lakh sq ft of space on a 3.1-acre plot it got from the Government in the next five years.

Wipro also sought 50 acres of land in Hindupur (Antantpur district) to set up a facility to manufacture soaps and fatty acids near the town with an investment of Rs 500 crore. Wipro has also announced that it would expand its operations in Telangana State too.

Wipro Chairman Azim Premji has received a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Andhra Pradesh government for according SEZ (special economic zone) status for the plot on Sunday. Premji met Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu to clear the air with regard to the 3.1 acres of land.

This chunk is part of the 7.1 acres it was allotted by the then Congress government in 2004. It developed two lakh sq ft of space in four acres and provided jobs to 650 people, leaving the remaining land unutilised. There was a move by the government to reclaim the unutilised land. Premji met the Chief Minister to sort out the issue.

Addressing a press conference after the meeting, IT Minister Palle Raghunatha Reddy said Premji Foundation had agreed to offer graduate and post-graduate programmes for Andhra Pradesh students and absorb them into the company after giving them necessary skills.

Telangana expansion

Premji also met Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao and discussed Wipro’s expansion plans in the State. The Chief Minister informed Premji that the State was finalising an Industrial Policy to attract investments.

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