‘It will be the biggest IT hub in the country…’

‘It will be the biggest IT hub in the country…’
The planned township at Bidadi for the IT sector will be a large-scale integrated development that will have state-of-the-art civic infrastructure, commercial spaces and the required social infrastructure to make it a ‘plug, play, live, learn’ knowledge hub. With 25,000 acres of built-up space, it promises to be a major IT destination. B S Manu Rao speaks to M N Vidyashankar, the State’s IT Secretary, to learn more about this venture


What's the IT agenda for Bangalore with these new townships on the anvil?
These five townships spell a major IT agenda for Bangalore. The Bidadi Township that will be developed first will be the first knowledge hub in the country with over 10,000 acres. There is no other IT park of this size in India. In fact, all IT parks in any given State won't come to 10,000 acres. Here, the concept is more than the usual plug and play. It is plug, play, live and learn. This means all social infrastructure such as educational institutions, parks, and shopping malls, apart from quality housing options, will be available along with the commercial spaces. Any IT organisation buying commercial space here will also have to necessarily buy residential accommodation too, to house their staff. The idea is to ensure selfcontained development so that Bangalore does not get clogged with people working in the knowledge hub in Bidadi staying here and commuting daily. All the heads of the organisations interested in options here like the idea of their staff being able to reach the workplace within five minutes of commuting time, thereby avoiding the travel-related stress.
What sort of infrastructure are you planning in the Bidadi IT Township?
There will be everything under the sun here. From 24/7 water and power to all facilities needed to make living comfortable. This is what makes this IT hub distinct. We are envisaging infrastructure worth Rs 50,000 crores for this township. The land here will be allotted to a private developer who will build the township on a publicprivate partnership formula. The land will be handed over by the BMRDA for development. We have developers from India, Malaysia, Dubai, Singapore, and US in the race. The commercial built-up space available here is 25,000 acres. This should cater to the demand here till 2015 as we estimate.
On the connectivity front, the five townships will be connected to each other and the international airport through the planned Satellite Ring Road. The international airport will be 20 minutes from the Bidadi Township. Once the Metro Rail project is complete, I am sure it can be extended till this township. So in other words, this location has all the advantages of being in Bangalore city.
This will serve as a pilot project in the course of developing the other townships.
What are the prospects of the Bangalore-Mysore knowledge corridor?
Mysore is doing very well in IT. In 2006-07 the city recorded a growth of 90 percent in software exports. It will be a knowledge hub in its own right. The entire belt will be a knowledge hub with all these developments. In fact, we have asked for a non-stop air conditioned chair car train between Bangalore and Mysore. We have proposed to call it IT Express. Two trains in the morning and two in the evening to ferry people from this sector will boost the prospects even further. The railway authorities are looking into this. The travel time will be around 80 minutes only.
What role will the civic infrastructure, international airport and metro rail play in making this an IT hub in the region?
They play a significant role in the development of the city as an IT centre. If the Metro Rail is extended upto the Bidadi project, it will bring it into the city. Metro is a lifeline. The Satellite Ring Road, Peripheral Ring Road and the International Airport are selling points we use.
How does this city rate in terms of global standards as an efficient city for the IT industry?
This city is rated third in the world by global IT players. California is the first and Canada is the second. We see the third highest demand for commercial space from the IT sector in the world. The growth of private equity and venture capital funds flowing in is very high. There are around 1,900 IT sector firms in and around the city.
What will be your selling point at this year's annual Bangalore IT expo?
We will be showcasing all the major infrastructure projects including the knowledge hub at Bidadi. The ring roads, metro rail and international airport are on the list. The theme for this year's expo is innovation. We mean innovation in all spheres - be it software, telecom or networking.
IT Express on the
cards?
The State's IT Department has mooted the idea of two nonstop air conditioned chair car trains between Bangalore and Mysore. They are proposed to be called IT Express. Two trains in the morning and two in the evening to ferry people from this sector will boost the prospects of IT development further all along the Bangalore-Mysore belt apart from in Mysore. The railway authorities are looking into this. The travel time will be around 80 minutes only.
Efficient connectivity
to Mysore
The increased commercial activity between the two cities of Bangalore and Mysore has led to an increased demand for more transport services. Now 12 trains run daily between Bangalore and Mysore. A staggering two lakh people commute between Bangalore and Mysore every day. 1,000 buses from both public and private sectors ferry commuters between Bangalore and Mysore daily. Also, 500 tourist buses operate on the Bangalore-Mysore-Ootacamund route every day.