More cities join IT bandwagon
Deccan Herald
By R Krishnakumar DH News Service Bangalore:
After pegging its Information Technology sector to Bangalore for long, Karnataka is opening up to the potential of other cities in a big way. If plans lined up for Mysore and Mangalore are anything to go by, the State looks well on course to spread the Bangalore feel-good elsewhere. And accordingly, the software export target has been revised — to $US 20 billion, by the year 2010.
According to M K Shankaralinge Gowda, Secretary to the Department of Information Technology, Biotechnology and Science and Technology, Government of Karnataka, while Mysore and Mangalore continue to attract more investors, fledgling IT spaces in Hubli and Belgaum are also slowly gaining in prominence.
Mr Gowda says Mysore has already registered Rs 1,200 crore as investment in the IT sector. With a new airport, expressway and doubled railway track on the cards, he sees Mysore as a key in driving the State’s IT growth for the future.
“It is going to be a major training hub for MNCs. Companies like IBM and I-Flex are going to take space in Mysore. Work on Wipro’s 100-acre development centre is also on,” Mr Gowda says.
The 500-acre SEZ in Mangalore — created exclusively for IT — will further tap on the town’s IT potential. “We are working towards raising the exports from Mangalore to Rs 1,000 crore next year, from the present Rs 587 crore,” he says.
Hubli and Gulbarga are also key parts in the State’s scheme of things. “Adding to the 3,00,000-sq ft technology park at Hubli, we are looking at using the presence of engineering colleges in the region to lure more BPO companies,” says Mr Gowda. Gulbarga’s first earth station will also be set up this year, to be used primarily as a relay station for export of software.
“By the end of this financial year, we’ll be touching the $US 8 billion mark in exports. Even with a 25 per cent growth from here, we will touch the earlier target — of $US 10 billion by 2007. The revised target is $US 20 billion by 2010. The challenge is to ensure that Karnataka’s share of export continues to be 1/3rd of the national output,” he says.
Mr Gowda says manpower requirement is going to play a major role in the State’s future as an IT leader. “The onus is on the State to provide the necessary manpower. The universities have to look at the finishing school concept. For every graduate who passes out, the key question should be ‘Is he IT-enabled’? The focus should be on taking as many candidates for IT training and making them equipped to meet the demands of the industry,” he says.
