MYSORE: The number of IT (Information Technology) and BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) companies in Bangalore looking towards Mysore for expansion has gone up considerably ever since the highway linking the two cities was widened.

Additional Director of Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), Bangalore, Parthasarathy told The Hindu that a lot of IT and BPO companies in Bangalore were actively considering Mysore for expansion after the existing highway was widened.

Nearing completion

The widened Mysore-Bangalore highway, work on which is nearing completion, has brought down travel time. Notwithstanding the tussle over the Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) project between the State Government and the project promoter Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise (NICE), Mysore figures prominently on the radar of IT companies in Bangalore.

"They are considering Mysore for operational convenience. Easy availability of land, talented manpower and infrastructure, besides relatively lower cost of living are some of the other reasons," Mr. Parthasarathy said.

Infosys centre

Mr Parthasarathy cited the example of Infosys Technologies, which has not only set up a software development centre, but also a global training centre in Mysore. Wipro too has set up a centre in Mysore.

IT experts in Mysore refer to a recent study conducted by a Chicago-based consulting firm, which suggested that Mysore along with Kolkata and Chandigarh will emerge as the new technology centres in view of the labour saturation in major IT hubs such as Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad.

The consulting firm DiamondCluster International indicated that the major IT and BPO hubs were desperately looking for human resource elsewhere.

`No labour saturation'

But, Mr. Parthasarathy said he would not subscribe to the theory of labour saturation in Bangalore. The city continues to attract talent from not only all over Karnataka, but the rest of India as well.

"IT companies are considering Mysore for expansion due to operational convenience," he reasoned.

Proposals cleared

Former IT Secretary to the Government of Karnataka M.K. Shankarlinge Gowda, during a recent visit to Mysore, claimed that the State Government had cleared the proposals of 24 IT companies to start operations from Mysore.

The new IT ventures, which will bring in an investment of Rs. 2,000 crore, are expected to generate an additional 40,000 jobs in the next two years.

With Mysore already having close to 40 IT companies, exporting software worth Rs. 400 crore annually, the future holds immense promise, IT experts said. Industry representatives in Mysore are pinning hopes on early completion of the railway track doubling work between Mysore and Bangalore and the BMIC project.

If a double track facilitates an increase in the frequency of trains and faster train journey, completion of the BMIC project promises to bring down the travel time between the two cities to a little over one hour.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail