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Siliguri has become one of the most prominent markets in eastern India,
thanks to its geographic location. The city is situated on one of the oldest
trade routes in India, linking the entire north-east region with the rest of
India. It is due to its positioning that the market has gained momentum
primarily in the government sector.
“In Sikkim, the government caters to most of our business. Supplies for the
Sikkim government are also purchased in Siliguri and therefore, it has become a
crucial market for the city too. Retail also comprises of a major segment in the
city. However, government and PSUs are our major customers,” said Gagan Joshi,
Director, Landmark Office Systems.
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Besides catering to the local markets in North Bengal and Sikkim, the city
also caters to international markets in South Nepal and Bhutan. In recent times,
Darjeeling entered into a phase of standstill after the recent Gorkhaland
agitation. Business was severely affected in Siliguri due to the
non-availability of supplies in the hills, because of the blockage of the road
to Assam.
There are several major national distributors in the area. While Rashi and
Compuage have warehouses based in Siliguri; Ingram, Redington and others have a
crucial supply chain management in the area.
| Gagan Joshi, Director, Landmark Office Systems |
| How has been the market since last year? Siliguri has seen a considerable growth since the inception of the IT market here. However, owing primarily to the global slowdown, there hasn't been any significant growth this FY. What are the major verticals in the market? What are the emerging market verticals? What are your market predictions for this FY? |
“Owing to the recent slowdown and a standstill in e-government projects,
there has not been a considerable growth in the market last year. However, I am
optimistic about the market picking up this year,” Joshi added.
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Reinforcing Gangtok's dependency on Siliguri, (Gangtok-based) Sandip Maiya of
Digital Equipment and Communication said, “The IT market here is mainly
dependent on Siliguri. The state government accounts for the majority of the
business and supplying goods to the government is increasingly becoming
lucrative,”
| Market Name: Siliguri Location: North Bengal Surrounding markets: Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Gangtok, Cooch Bihar, Malda, Aliporeduar Number of dealers: 112 Market Size: Rs 4.5 crore per month Prominent dealers: Logic Fusion, Universal Computers, Computer Land, Landmark, Placewell Distributors: Ingram Micro, Redington, Rashi Peripherals, SES Technologies, Compuage Associations: NITTO, ITDAS Business verticals: Retail, government, education, PSU Business trend: Due to its positioning, the market lies in the middle of a major distribution center catering to south Nepal and Bhutan, Sikkim, North Bengal and north-east India. |
Recently, the market has been plagued by a rivalry between the two warring
associations and also a partial ban on Rashi Peripherals. In a recent
development, however, signaling an end to the long-drawn conflict between IT
Dealers Association of Siliguri (ITDAS) and IT Forum, the latter has been
dissolved, paving the way for (North-Bengal IT Traders Organization) NITTO to
emerge with a vision of uniting dealers across North Bengal, the Hill Council
and Sikkim at a later stage.
“The primary aim of NITTO is to provide a larger platform for dealers across
north Bengal. In our endeavor to incorporate dealers across the region, we have
evolved NITTO with a maxim of uniting the channel space in the region,” said
Gautam Agarwal of Computer Land.