The Chandigarh region, which includes the city and the states of Punjab and Haryana, has enjoyed a significant growth in software exports, thanks to the encouragement the sector is receiving from the regional governments.

Omkar Rai, director general of Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), on Wednesday said that software exports from the Chandigarh region grew 20 per cent over the past year, as the region's governments provided various incentives to support the sector.

He also expressed hope that the Tricity would possibly become the No. 1 software exporter from India by the end of current decade. Mr. Rai was speaking at the two-day Destination IT@North meeting, which started on Wednesday.

Speaking on the topic, he added, "The governments of the region are encouraging young entrepreneurs in the IT sector and coming out with policy incentives to support them. If the Tricity keeps growing at this rate, it is bound to top the table in IT exports from India by 2020."

The Government of Punjab has recently allotted a three-acre plot of land for free in Amritsar to the STPI for establishing its second branch in the state.

Punjab government is expected to announce a number of more incentives for the information technology (IT) sector in the state. The upcoming IT promotion policy will reportedly offer incentives like VAT (value added tax) retention, property tax rebate, and VAT refund on equipment machinery installed by IT firms.