The DQ Week Tech Caravan touches Guwahati

The Kamakhya Temple situated on the Nilachal Hills on the western parts of Guwahati symbolizes the fusion of faith and practices of Aryan and non-Aryan elements in Assam. True to this Assamese tradition of 'unity in diversity', even the IT channel community in the city too is a perfect blend of Assamese, Bengalis, Marwaris and other North-Eastern communities and presents a unique picture of unity and secularism. This laudable character of the Guwahati IT channel fraternity came out very nicely when The DQWeek Tech Caravan juggernaut reached the city on March 28.

The ensemble of IT traders attending the Tech Caravan conference were vociferous against particular national distributors unfairly operating in the market under the guise of local partners. Demanding a level playing field for all, Trideep Talukdar, president of North Eastern Computer Traders Association (NECTA), and the partner association for Tech Caravan, informed that a guideline for NDs is currently being drafted and will come out on behalf of CIITA, the confederation of IT associations of the East.

Other piquant issues plaguing the local partners included complaints on payment defaults as well as service woes and replacement warranty problems of some vendors. Distances in locations between vendor branch offices and godowns across the city often causes harassments for partners, who end up spending a lot more on logistics.

Notwithstanding insurgency problems throughout the region, the partners were happy that they are prospering not just in Guwahati but also in neighboring states like Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram and Nagaland. That was evident from the plans of expansion for NECTA including other north-eastern partners.

Vendors like Delta, ESET, Uniline and Tech-Com who associated with Tech Caravan showcased their portfolios to the assembled delegates. While Delta harped on the USPs of their UPS-es, ESET talked about the various channel schemes they have on offer for partners.