"Hi-tech cities will ease pressure in B'lore"

BANGALORE: Facing a barrage of brickbats from the IT industry over the lack of action on the poor infrastructure in Bangalore city, State secretary for IT and Biotechnology, Shankarlinge Gowda, finds himself in the hot seat. In an interview with Priya Padmanabhan of CyberMedia News, he reiterates that the state government is indeed committed to IT and is attuned to industry needs.






What are you doing to promote Karnataka as the IT destination of choice?


The existing IT ecosystem and the investor-friendly atmosphere is attracting IT companies to Karnataka. The interaction between the government of Karnataka and academia is very good. We understand the requirements of the companies and respond by focusing on important areas like education and have also developed curriculum that is attuned to the industry needs.





What are benefits being offered by the state as part of the IT policy?



The fiscal concessions have been withdrawn. We provide land, infrastructure, water, bandwidth and electricity. Depending on the type of requirement, companies can go in for campus facility, built to suit facilities or any other. Right now, around 15 million sq feet area of commercial space is being built in Bangalore. We have tie-ups with service providers who can provide good broadband connectivity in terabytes.

What is the scope of IT implementation in the state? Is it a promising market?



The growth of the IT industry has had an impact on state administration and e-governance. Our administration including treasury, land registration, motor vehicles department and department for rural development, are computerized. Right now, we have initiated computer tracking and monitoring at various police departments in Bangalore. They collect information and analyze the beats in crime prone areas.



We are also taking IT to rural areas. We started the rural digitization service in Mandya where there are 200 kiosks that give information in the form of voice and data. This model will be replicated in other districts shortly.

Does the state have requisite infrastructure-from roads to power and bandwidth to hotels and related facilities-to support the needs of international companies and expats who are expected to work here?



The state government is planning to develop integrated cities or hi-tech cities in Bangalore. These mini townships will provide housing, office space, schools, multiplexes and malls- all in one area. We are also promoting secondary cities around Bangalore especially Mysore. The Bangalore-Mysore highway, which will be ready by 2005, will make it possible for people to commute between the cities in just two hours.



Providing bandwidth is not at all an issue now. We now provide even in terabytes. Hotels are something that requires attention. Three new hotel projects including one by the ITC group, a Taj hotel in Whitefield and JW Mariott Hotel will come up in a year's time.

Does the state have adequate quality manpower to support the companies?



Karnataka has one of the largest talent pools of engineers in the country. In the last four years we have sanctioned 50 new engineering colleges taking the total number to 130. Every year around 30,000-35,000 engineers graduate in Karnataka. We are also focused on quality by setting up a board for IT education standards or BITES, headed by KRS Murthy who was formerly with IIM Bangalore. The board decides the curriculum and sets it to industry standards.



All said and done, Bangalore is a strong brand, which will always be encouraged. However, we are also encouraging secondary cities like Mysore, Mangalore, Hubli and Belgaum. We chose these cities since universities are based out of these cities. Each university has 10-15 engineering colleges under its wing, and so we feel that the academic infrastructure can promote future IT growth.

What is the status of the proposed hardware park in Bangalore?



We are close to finalizing the hardware park. We are in the process of identifying 1,000 acres of land near the new international airport in Devanahalli. We will acquire land through the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB). The park is expected to be ready in a year's time and will be declared as a Special Economic Zone so that companies can get benefits. Till the park is ready, we are encouraging hardware companies to set up operations in Peenya, Jigni and Whitefield.

CyberMedia News