Andhra, Karnataka to share IT platform

Monday, 28 October 2002, 20:30 IST
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BANGALORE: Inter-city rivalries appear to be getting sidestepped for the sake of the India brand, with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu taking part in Asia's largest IT show here. Bangalore, India's tech capital which is recognized as the fourth technology hub globally by a U.N. agency, and Hyderabad, capital of Andhra Pradesh, have for long competed for leadership and global recognition in the IT sector. But now Naidu has accepted his Karnataka counterpart S.M. Krishna's invitation to participate in the inauguration of the fifth edition of BangaloreIT.com 2002. The five-day exhibition and trade show will be opened by President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Monday. BangaloreIT.com has attracted 250 companies from India and abroad with 17 countries, including Russia for the first time, participating in what has come to be accepted as the best location for networking. So far Andhra Pradesh had participated just once in the IT.Com 2000 so far due to rivalry between the two states. Worse still, Andhra Pradesh had initially timed its trade show, GITEX, a month before the BangaloreIT.Com. But that has changed and GITEX is nowadays held in January and the BangaloreIT.com in November, though with the exception of this year when it has been advanced because of Diwali which falls on November 4. "It's certainly a positive follow up of the efforts that Indian industry bodies have been trying to do, particularly in the post-India-Pakistan war tension situation. There is a lot more focus on the India brand," Krishna Kumar, president, MindTree consulting, said. Industry bodies like the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and National Association for Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) have been pitching to place India in perspective for global customers of technology companies. The bottom-line has been to make India attractive as a risk-free destination, with inter-state competition taking a backseat. "Naidu's participation is certainly being viewed on those lines," adds Krishna Kumar. Others differ. Naidu's participation is an indication of his accepting that "Bangalore cannot be displaced as the prime destination for investments in the IT and biotechnology sectors," says the official of a big IT company on condition of anonymity. Bangalore and other centers like Mangalore, Mysore and Hubli contribute over 30 percent of India's software exports. And Hyderabad has just taken a slot above this city in the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector in Nasscom's rating of Indian cities in the IT-enabled services sector. Naidu will also be participating, along with Krishna, in a session on e-governance, a subject dear to both India's IT-savvy rival chief ministers. Andhra Pradesh has taken a stall in the pavilion for states along with 11 other Indian states.
Source: IANS
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