Priyank Kharge, Minister for IT & BT, speaking at the Mangalroe Technovanza at TMA Pai International Convention Centre, in Mangaluru, on Wednesday

The Karnataka government has come out with a programme called LEAP (Local Economy Accelerator Programme) to build innovation and entrepreneurship across Karnataka over the next five years, according to Priyank Kharge, Karnataka Minister for Electronics and IT/BT.

Speaking at the Mangaluru Technovanza, organised by Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM) as part of its ‘Beyond Bengaluru’ initiative in Mangaluru on Wednesday, he said this ₹1,000-crore programme is aimed at building innovation and entrepreneurship across the State.

The programme aims at creating ecosystems in Tier-2 and Tier-3 towns by providing infrastructure, including plug-and-play and co-working facilities, mentorship and market access to entrepreneurs everywhere.

Under LEAP, a technology park is being planned in Mangaluru on an area of 3.5 acres. With around 3.5 lakh sq.ft. of space, this facility will meet working capacity requirements of 3,500 people. Mangaluru’s project under LEAP is expected to come before the Karnataka Cabinet either on September 25 or in the Cabinet meeting after that, he said.

Mangaluru, Udupi and Manipal clusters in coastal Karnataka have human capital, government intent and participation from academia and industry.

“Through LEAP, we will ensure that this cluster will cater to the local aspiration. There is huge potential in the region. Together we will all ensure that Mangaluru cluster is or more competitive than the Bengaluru cluster,” he said.

Stressing on the need to go beyond Bengaluru, Kharge said: “We need to ensure there are more Bengalurus throughout Karnataka. That is why we came out with LEAP.”

Stating that Mangaluru is the second most potential city in Karnataka after Bengaluru, he said Bengaluru contributes close to around 40 per cent of the State’s GDP, and the next closest is Mangaluru with 5.4 per cent.

He termed Mangaluru Technovanza as a convergence of government policies, academia, industry intent and individuals who want to make a difference for the ecosystem.

Stating that Karnataka is the only State in the country that does not position itself as an investment destination, Kharge said Karnataka is positioning itself as a skill and a knowledge destination that will cater to sustainable solutions on scale for the world.

The government has taken conscious decision to go with the 3P strategy – people, policy and participation. Mere people and policy are not enough until and unless participation is there from the government and the industry backed by academia, he said.

Circular Economy policy soon

Mentioning that Karnataka’s GCC (global capability centre) policy is ambitious, he said it aims to establish 500 new GCCs in the next four years to create over 500,000 jobs.

Karnataka was the first one to come out with an IT policy; biotechnology policy; engineering, research and development policy; and ESDM; AVGC; start-up; data centre; electric vehicles and battery storage; space tech; and cyber security policies. In the next one month, Karnataka will also have a circular economy policy, he said.

Karnataka has so many policies across sectors, as the government listens to the aspirations of people, academia and industry, he said.

Published on September 24, 2025