IT sector grows inspite of disastrous governance

IT sector has grown in spite of ‘unresponsive’ govt
The Times of India

Bangalore: The IT sector is unhappy with the coalition government’s lacklustre approach towards infrastructure. While bad roads and incomplete flyovers continue to be the biggest woes, there is a feeling that the state government has not given the sector its due credit.

Most officials who spoke to The Times of India, chose to comment off-record for fear of straining their relationship with the government. However, their verdict was unanimous: The IT sector in the state has not grown “because” of the government. It has grown “in spite of ’’ it.

According to an official from a well-known IT company: “In the last one year, we have not seen much action on the ground. Enough promises have been made. Hi-tech City and the flyovers continue to be stuck. We are not sure if the state government is aware of the importance of the IT sector. This sector accounts for 22 per cent of the state’s GDP. ”

In any city, roads form the first impression of the state’s attitude to infrastructure. In Bangalore’s case, it leaves much to be desired. Even though some efforts have been made to set right roads, there has not been a united effort by this coalition government to highlight its good intentions for the sector.

According to another CEO, the message that this government sent out earlier was that they did not quite like the fact that the previous government had strongly supported IT. “Even to this day, the focus is not as strong as it should have been. The power situation and the flyovers are very bad,” he added.

“The government is in a Catch-22 situation. The only solution is the faster implementation of mass transit system,” said Aravind Melligeri, president, Quest, a Bangalore-based $20 million design and prototyping company.

SOUND BYTE

“The term in office started rather promisingly with the chief minister inviting corporates for breakfast and listening to our woes and concerns. Much was promised on that day. Some promises were kept and some others not. If only those relating to getting Bangalore’s flyovers done and dusted were fulfilled, life in the Garden City would have been far easier.”
— Ravi Ramu,CFO,MphasiS BFL Group