Google would also be setting a facility in Hyderabad under an agreement
May 14, 2015
The Telangana government has requested Google Inc to send its high-profile delegation to examine the feasibility of rolling out Google Fiber, the search giant’s optical fibre-based super-fast broadband services, in the state.
“A request has been made by the state IT and panchayat raj minister K T Rama Rao during his ongoing two-week tour in the US. Google has agreed to the request and is expected to send in its team to the state pretty soon,” state government officials told Business Standard.
Meanwhile, the state government signed an agreement with Google under which the latter would set up a facility, the largest outside its US headquarters, and its first company-owned campus in Asia, at Gachibowli in Hyderabad, which is already home to global players such as Microsoft, Wipro, Infosys, CapGemini and Deloitte.
The 2-million sq ft facility, spread over 7.2 acres, will house 14,000 employees once it is fully operational in about four years from now. Google currently operates from a rented facility at Kondapur in Hyderabad with 7,000 seats. The company was originally allotted 20 acres at Kokapet in Hyderabad in 2007 for setting up its permanent campus. The project, however, did not take off due to legal issues.
“Google’s Hyderabad office has been playing a key role in the development of products like Gmail, Docs and Chrome. The new facility is expected to work on future projects targetted at the global markets,” officials said.
The state government has already briefed Google about its water grid project – recently named Telangana Drinking Water Project – and asked the global corporation to consider using the project’s duct lines to carry its optical fiber cables to every household in the state. If Google agrees, Telangana will be the first Indian state where Google Fiber will be rolled out, they said.
It may be noted that the Telangana government has announced the Rs 25,000-crore water grid project to provide drinking water to all the households in the state. The project is expected to be completed within the next four years.
Google Fiber was launched in Kansas City in 2011, and is currently being piloted in seven other cities – Atlanta; Austin; Charlotte; Nashville; Provo; Raleigh-Durham; and Salt Lake City. It is now planning to expand the services, which will offer connections with up to 1,000 mbps, to 34 more cities in the US, even as it is in talks with the ministry of IT to bring the super-fast broadband services to India.
Besides Google Fiber, Street View is yet another service that Google would be providing in the state of Telangana. Street View provides panoramic views from positions along many streets in the world through photographs taken by car, trekkers, tricycle and walking.
