Santosh Patnaik Visakhapatnam

Visakhapatnam, which has emerged as one of the most Googled cities in India after Andhra Pradesh attracted investments worth Rs.23 lakh crore over the past 24 months, is abuzz with speculation that global consulting giant Deloitte is considering expanding its footprint in the tier-II city.

The speculation was triggered by reports of an internal outreach initiative through emails sent to employees, seeking expressions of interest from tech professionals willing to relocate to Visakhapatnam.

“The emails sent to employees seeking interest in relocating to Visakhapatnam have fuelled speculation that Deloitte may set up a satellite branch or even a permanent campus, like several other IT majors,” Rushikonda IT Parks Association (RITPA) vice-president O. Naresh Kumar told Bizz Buzz .

The city currently has a GDP of $43.5 billion, while the proposed Visakha Economic Region (VER) is projected to achieve a turnover of $125 billion to $135 billion by 2032.

Mega projects such as the proposed Google AI Data Hub in Visakhapatnam, India’s largest single-location steel plant by ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India at Nakkapalli, and India’s first Green Hydrogen Hub by NTPC Green Energy at Pudimadaka, each involving investments exceeding Rs.1 lakh crore, have strengthened efforts to position the region as a major IT and technology hub.

Recently, Reliance Industries Limited received government approval and land allotment to establish India’s largest gigawatt hyperscale data centre near Bhogapuram International Airport, with an estimated investment of Rs.1.08 lakh crore.

Under the State’s new IT policy for major anchor investors, the government has allotted prime land at Re.1 to Cognizant Technology Solutions, Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys to establish permanent campuses in the city. Accenture has also reportedly sought 10 acres under the policy. During a recent meeting with the leadership of Capgemini, Andhra Pradesh Minister Nara Lokesh urged the company to set up an IT development centre and a Global Capability Centre (GCC) in Visakhapatnam as part of efforts to transform the city into a premier technology and knowledge hub.

Mission Andhra, a social media-driven community promoting investments in Andhra Pradesh, stated in a post on X that Deloitte may soon expand to Visakhapatnam after reportedly sending relocation emails to employees for a possible move to the city.

The move, if it materialises, could significantly strengthen Visakhapatnam’s growing IT and consulting ecosystem and further enhance its reputation as an emerging business and technology hub.