Will Bengaluru lose the IT hub status?

With mounting fears that the city is in danger of losing the tag of leading IT-hub, the software industry - led by bellwether Infosys - called for development of world class infrastructure and continued government support to maintain its credentials.

On the 14th edition of the Bangalore IT biz 2011, Infosys CEO S Gopalakrishnan said Bengaluru was a leader in terms of number of IT professionals employed, IT exports from the city and presence of multinational and leading players, but it had to do a lot more to maintain this position.

For the industry to grow, it "is imperative to create physical infrastructure," he asserted, adding creating world class office space would play a key role in it.

A recent Assocham report has said Bengaluru is in danger of losing its IT capital tag due to deteriorating infrastructure, which is forcing companies to look outside for more industry-friendly cities.

Gopalakrishnan, who said incubating small business enterprises and growing them would require government support, added that in order to create a competitive playing field it was imperative for the industry to have power and water.

Speaking on the occasion, Sharad Sharma, who chairs the Nasscom Product Forum, said a lot would depend on how the ICT policy and Karnataka Electronics Hardware policy were implemented and the speed of their implementation.

"We have to look at new business models to get to the next level", he said. He also called for the need for Bengaluru to work in new wave areas like mobile phones.

Pradeep Gupta, Managing Director of CyberMedia, said hardware would play a critical role in the future.

He predicted the aspiration of Indian consumers for electronics would exceed their desire for oil.

"Lot of innovation has to happen", Gupta said, adding Bengaluru had to to take the lead in new areas of investment and in value addition, to go forward. Murugesh R Nirani, minister of industries of Karnataka, assured the industry that his department would look into the various needs of the industry.