Processing .....please wait.. 
The article has been forwarded.... 
News >> Technology >>
West Bengal posts 116% IT growth
Monday, 16 September 2002, 19:30 IST
KOLKATA: West Bengal, which woke up late to the potential of IT, has notched an impressive 116 percent growth in the sector in the past five years.
International consulting firm McKinsey has predicted a 
2 billion investment in the sector in West Bengal during the next two years.
State IT Minister Manab Mukherjee said West Bengal is aiming to become one of the three top states in software exports by 2010. It hopes to capture 20 percent of the Indian software export market by 2005.
India's software exports currently stand at $5 billion, which is expected to go up to $50 billion by 2010.
Mukherjee said that between 1996 and 2001 the state attracted such names as Microsoft, Wipro, Tata Infotech, IBM, NIIT and Cisco Systems that have either invested or are in the process of doing so.
The state government is hoping that 10,000 new jobs will be created in the IT-enabled services (ITES) sector in the next two years.
IT in the state is set to receive a major boost with the setting up of a 3 billion software technology park here under a private venture that is being billed as the "biggest IT complex in town".
Land for the IT Theme Park (IT-TP), the state's first privately developed software technology park, has been earmarked. It will be built up in three phases over three years. IT-TP is the third of the city's software technology parks.
IT-TP not only promises floor area for IT entrepreneurs, but also a computer training centre, an institute and a distant learning education centre for common use by tenants.
Mukherjee said software technology parks are also coming up in the district towns of Durgapur and Kharagpur.
"We signed an agreement this month with the Software Technology Park of India (STPI) for setting up an IT park each in Kharagpur and Durgapur," he said.
The state government will provide 10 million and three acres of land to each of the proposed parks. The rest of the investment will be taken up by the federal government-owned Software Technology Parks of India.
Besides stressing e-governance, which will involve connecting all the state's 18 districts with the secretariat here through a single computer network, the government is hiring the services of technology firms to raise the infrastructure for teaching computers in schools.
Source: IANS
2 billion investment in the sector in West Bengal during the next two years.
State IT Minister Manab Mukherjee said West Bengal is aiming to become one of the three top states in software exports by 2010. It hopes to capture 20 percent of the Indian software export market by 2005.
India's software exports currently stand at $5 billion, which is expected to go up to $50 billion by 2010.
Mukherjee said that between 1996 and 2001 the state attracted such names as Microsoft, Wipro, Tata Infotech, IBM, NIIT and Cisco Systems that have either invested or are in the process of doing so.
The state government is hoping that 10,000 new jobs will be created in the IT-enabled services (ITES) sector in the next two years.
IT in the state is set to receive a major boost with the setting up of a 3 billion software technology park here under a private venture that is being billed as the "biggest IT complex in town".
Land for the IT Theme Park (IT-TP), the state's first privately developed software technology park, has been earmarked. It will be built up in three phases over three years. IT-TP is the third of the city's software technology parks.
IT-TP not only promises floor area for IT entrepreneurs, but also a computer training centre, an institute and a distant learning education centre for common use by tenants.
Mukherjee said software technology parks are also coming up in the district towns of Durgapur and Kharagpur.
"We signed an agreement this month with the Software Technology Park of India (STPI) for setting up an IT park each in Kharagpur and Durgapur," he said.
The state government will provide 10 million and three acres of land to each of the proposed parks. The rest of the investment will be taken up by the federal government-owned Software Technology Parks of India.
Besides stressing e-governance, which will involve connecting all the state's 18 districts with the secretariat here through a single computer network, the government is hiring the services of technology firms to raise the infrastructure for teaching computers in schools.
Source: IANS