An Empowered Committee headed by the Chief Secretary to guide and supervise implementation of the IT and ITES Policy, 2003 and take appropriate decisions.

IT Software is defined as any representation of instruction, data, sound or image, including source code and object code, recorded in a machine readable form and capable of being manipulated or providing interactivity to a user, with the means of a computer.

IT Hardware covers approximately 150 IT products notified by Directorate of Industries (APPENDIX I).

These include various IT Services and are defined by the IT Task force of the Government of India as follows :-

To guide and supervise implementation of this Policy, an Empowered Committee is hereby constituted. This Empowered Committee shall be competent to periodically review the list of products and services falling under IT and IT Enabled Services and amend such lists from time to time as required. This Committee will also be competent for fixing norms, terms and conditions of eligibility (including amount of premium to be charged) of private IT Parks for availing additional 100% FSI.

The Empowered Committee, if necessary, will consult with or invite representatives of institutions like NASSCOM, STPI, Private IT Parks and others for its meetings.

Since faster growth of IT & ITES units can take place in urban areas, the government will provide incentives to promote setting up of public IT parks by government infrastructure agencies and private IT parks by private investors/developers in the state. These parks will have excellent infrastructural facilities for 24 x 7 x 365 working environment

All district headquarters and most of the taluka headquarters in the State have already been connected through optical fiber cable network. The Government shall endeavour to provide cost effective and reliable telecom connectivity throughout the State. IT and ITES units in the State will be able to leverage the unique advantage of low cost overseas connectivity available in the State.

For easy access and rapid movement of goods and persons in the IT parks, they will be connected to the main highways through high quality road network. To supplement investments by the State Government and Urban Local Bodies, developers of private IT parks will be permitted to invest funds in establishing such high quality road connectivity from the highways. Such roads will be transferred to the developers by the Urban Local Bodies and recovery of the investments of the developers would be adjusted against the property tax payable to the Local Bodies in future. The State Government will issue necessary directions to the Urban Local Bodies for this purpose.

For reliable and quality power supply round the clock, Private IT parks and Public IT parks will have freedom of unlimited back up power, permission for captive power generation and status as ‘Independent Power Producers'.

5 IT and ITES units shall be declared as continuous process units and shall be exempted from statutory power cuts to enable them to perform on 24x7x365 basis.

IT and ITES Units will be entitled for supply of power at industrial rates under the MERC tariff orders. These units will be categorised as a separate group of consumers through the MERC.

For ensuring ready availability of skilled and competent manpower for the IT and ITES industry, which would be employable all over the World, the Government will facilitate development of such a pool of man power. School Education and Higher & Technical Education departments will impart training in English languages skills (English speaking, appropriate accent and communication skills) to the youth in the State.

Private Training Institutions, and IT and ITES companies shall be offered infrastructural facilities in schools of the Municipal Corporations, Municipal Councils and Zilla Parishads on a lease basis, during non-working hours of schools, for conducting training in IT, ITES related skills as well as English language skills.

The State Government will endeavour to provide industry friendly and supportive working environment for the IT and ITES units in the State. To enable IT and ITES units to work efficiently on 24x7x365 basis, provisions under the Shops and Establishments Act have been relaxed for working hours, work shifts and employment of women.

All relaxations under the Industrial Disputes Act and Contract Labour Act approved for units in Special Economic Zones shall be made applicable to all IT and ITES units in the State.

Reports/Returns in electronic formats will be accepted as per provisions of IT Act 2000. To enable IT and ITES units to submit reports and returns in electronic formats, necessary amendments in the following Labour laws shall be made.

• Employees State Insurance Act
• Factories Act
• Payment of Wages Act
• Minimum Wages Act
• Contract Labour Act
• Shops and Establishments Act
• Workmen's Compensation Act

IT and ITES units shall be allowed to file self-certified reports/returns to concerned Officers of Labour Department.

ITES shall be declared as Public Utility Services under the Industrial Disputes Act and as Essential Services (for more than six months) under the provisions of Maharashtra Essential Services Maintenance Act 1999 by necessary amendments in these laws.

Since IT and ITES units do not cause any pollution, they shall be exempted from the requirement of NOC from MPCB. In case exceptional situations arise in future, a negative list of such exceptional cases shall be notified.

20th August every year will be celebrated as the Maharashtra Information Technology Day. State awards for outstanding performance to IT and ITES units will be presented on this day.

Relaxation with respect to labelling of items/products of IT and ITES units Under the Weights & Measures Act will be permitted and working procedure will be simplified in consultation with Government of India .

Since IT and ITES units work on 24 x 7 x 365 basis (round the clock throughout the year) and they employ women workers, a special group shall be appointed in the police department. Vehicles of IT and ITES units transporting women workers during night hours will be issued special passes/permission.

To prepare draft of a Data Protection and Consumer Privacy Act, a committee shall be formed under the Chairmanship of President, NASSCOM. Such an Act will be enacted thereafter.