Asansol poised to emerge as an IT hub

With the state capital seemingly getting saturated with IT parks and projects in the vicinity, Asansol has emerged as a preferred choice for IT following Siliguri, with real estate developers fast opting to build upon the upcountry area. Taking the first opportunity in this aspect, Bengal Shristi Group is on the verge of completing its township project in New Asansol reserving at least 1 mn sq ft carpet area for IT firms and BPO/KPOs to start operations in the area. Speaking about the maiden project in Asansol, Sunil Jha, chief operations officer, Bengal Shristi said, "There is an abundance of talent pool available in the Asansol region with lower salary expectations. Asansol has lower establishment and operational cost as compared to Kolkata which is increasingly becoming saturated." Adding to it, Abhishek Bhardwaj, senior VP, marketing, Bengal Shristi, said, "We have completed a phase of the central business district (CBD) in the township and have equipped the area with all necessary amenities to cater to the employees of the potential IT clients. Also, we are going steady on the marketing and promotional activities of the township and hope to finalize some deals soon."

The project, christened Shristinagar is a joint venture between Asansol Durgapur Development Authority and Shristi Infrastructure Development Corporation. Targeting mainly the BPO/KPO and software exporting companies for the CBD, Bengal Shristi has also planned to opt for a retail segment in the area with some outlets already operational. The planned airport city, Aerotropolis, an integrated city with airport, contemporary infrastructure for industries, logistics hub, IT, hospitality, healthcare, education, retail and residential is beingdeveloped by Bengal Aerotropolis Projects Limited (BAPL) at Andal near Asansol which is expected to augment the growth of IT companies in Asansol.

Considering the sky- ocketing price of real estate in Kolkata and the saturation point fast emerging in the campuses of the software exporters, the upcountry area, namely the townships having a history of industrialization and falling in the strategic distribution line is holding the keys to the future of business. Even the channel players in Kolkata have opted to expand or focus on the upcountry for their distribution and retailing business. On several previous notes, KL Lalani of Lalani Infotech commented, "Increasingly, the channel market in Kolkata is getting soaked up; although the largest chunk of my revenue comes in from Kolkata, I would consider further expansion and focus on the upcountry markets in the East."

On a similar tone, Asif Khan of Technocrat Infotech said, "Upcountry market is huge and we (channel partners) have began exploring the possibilities. Already, my branches in Ranchi and Siliguri (upcountry markets) are fetching considerable amount of revenues, and I would prefer to focus on the upcountry business besides the regular one (Kolkata)." As a matter of fact, retailers like Saboo Computers have also opted for the upcountry retail market with divisions/showrooms in Barrackpore and Madhyamgram. With the much awaited Shristinagar and the completed WEBEL project in Durgapur on the horizon, West Bengal will soon be getting its next second largest IT hub at the Asansol-Durgapur belt, providing for another expansion spree for the IT channel space in the state well equipped with the amenities for trade.