Govt reacts to infrastructure concerns

'We will convince IT companies to participate in IT.com'

The government of Karnataka seems to have finally woken up to the infrastructure concerns of IT companies in Bangalore.

While the actual work on filling up potholes in the city and taking measures to decongest traffic in the city are far from showing any result, the state government has said that it has already got into the act.

The state's keen interest to address these concerns comes a day after well-known IT companies in Bangalore announced that they will boycott this year's Bangalore IT.Com, an annual IT expo that showcases the city's various companies and their progress in this sector. The event is scheduled to be held from November 1-5.

Speaking to reporters, M K Shankarlinge Gowda, IT secretary, government of Karnataka, said that the government had already directed civic agencies to carry out repairs of Bannerghatta Road, Marathalli and Sarjapur Roads on a priority basis.

This apart, the IT department is in consultations with the police to check the movement of trucks during peak hours to reduce the traffic on major roads in Bangalore.

Gowda once again reiterated the state government's long-term plan to make Bangalore more accessible from all highways. This is being done keeping in mind the investments the city continues to attract in various sectors.

On the decision of certain companies to boycott Banglaore IT.Com 2004, Gowda said, "We will convince them to participate in the event. I believe that they are not exactly aware that the Public Works Department has begun work on filling potholes on Bannerghatta and other roads."

On Friday, the Bangalore Forum for Information Technology (BFIT), an informal group comprising companies like Phillips, Texas Instruments, Synopsis, vMoksha, SAP, Sasken and IBM among others had announced that they would boycott this year's IT.Com.

BFIT decided not participate in the event following the state government's laid back attitude to address the infrastructure concerns of the IT sector in Bangalore.

Speaking about this year's event, Gowda said that there would be bigger participation from companies than last year. Nearly 250 companies have already confirmed their participation. So far about 15 Indian companies have confirmed their participation when compared to 11 last year.

He added that nearly 15 nations, 13 states and several trade organisations have also confirmed their participation in the IT fair.

"We are convinced that this year's event will be as big, if not bigger than last year," Gowda said. According to B V Naidu, director, STPI, there were several new offerings this year which includes VLSI. "This is timely as the semiconductor association will be announced at that time," Naidu added.