Information technology industry development and future: An analysis on Kolkata & Bangalore

Abstract

India has seen a boom in the IT industry in recent times and the centre of maximum activity has been Bangalore. The government of Karnataka has been able to attract major investment in IT industry in Bangalore since the onset of software industry in India and thus Bangalore became the hub of software companies. Appropriately Bangalore has been named as the Silicon Valley of India. West Bengal has been delayed in getting on to the IT bandwagon, but now there is a thriving software industry in Kolkata. The Govt. of West Bengal also recognized the significant role that IT will play in the march towards industrial and economic development. However the development of the software industry in Kolkata has been much slower compared to Bangalore. This work deals with the following issues- • Explains the evolution of India’s software industry. • The changes in regulations and scenario which led to the uprising of Bangalore. • Challenges facing the Indian IT industry as a whole and opportunities facing Kolkata/West Bengal. • Evolution of the software industry in Kolkata/West Bengal. • Future prospects and present targets of the software industry in West Bengal. • Advantages and disadvantages posed by Kolkata to the IT industry. • Recent growth in real-estate sector and present and future pitfalls of the IT industry in West Bengal. • How has the government reacted to this immense opportunity by trying provide suitable legal and social framework. • Transcripts of interviews with major bureaucrats, software industry experts, professors, and heads. • Final comparative assessment of Kolkata vis-à-vis Bangalore. • Strategic roadmap and to-dos for the West Bengal state government to become a reckoning force in the IT industry. This work will help in assessing the comparative nature of the IT industry in Kolkata and Bangalore in the current context of recession and propose a way forward for Kolkata by leveraging the transformed scenario due to falling markets. The study aims to reflect at the latent opportunities of the IT industry in Kolkata and estimating the pool of resources that can be utilized in making it a profitable industry. Also we wish to convey the extent of willingness of Government to provide opportunities to the companies who have not yet ventured into West Bengal. Finally this report is expected to eventually attract more software companies to the east