Bangalore: The Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) is setting up an IT incubation centre on the city outskirts to promote start-ups in both the services and product software domain.

The "Bangalore Incubation Centre" to be operational by this August will provide linkages to venture capitalists, academic institutions and The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) to help people with ideas turn into entrepreneurs.

The 40,000 sq ft centre is housed at the Cyber Park being built by Larson and Toubro on an eight-acre plot in electronics city.

"The incubation centre would be operational by August. There is lot of interest from the TiE community and the academic world," STPI Bangalore Director B V Naidu said today (Apr 4, 2004).

He said that an advisory board is being set up with "lot of intelligent component" for the incubator and STPI would play the role of a facilitator.

About Rs 10 crore is being invested for the centre for which Karnataka Government is contributing Rs two crore.

"A person with an idea can walk into our centre and with the approval of the advisory board can begin work in less than a week," Naidu said.

STPI has set up incubators in its Mangalore and Hubli centres, he said, adding, a firm incubated in Mangalore with one person has grown into a 120 people team in less than eight months.