The emerging 'Pune' of West Bengal

Just 176km from the state capital, the IT market in Durgapur is often
compared to Pune due to the development activities taking place in this area.
Durgapur has been one of the industrial hubs of West Bengal from the early 1960s
with steel plants set across an area of approximately 6.5 sq km. Since then,
with its industrial outlook, the area has attracted leading technical colleges
and PSUs.

In its early phase of growth in the IT market, the vendors as well as the
channel have been keen in tapping the education vertical in particular, followed
by the enterprise segment. "The student population account for over 80 percent
of the total retail customers. Owing to large technical colleges present in the
area, students from all across the states come to study here. Hence, they
feature high on top of the retail buying stable," said Ujjwal Das, Proprietor,
Ulex Computers.

However, Durgapur is no longer just a base for giant steel plants and
education, this region is also becoming a hub for corporate houses. In the last
three years, major telecom, IT and manufacturing giants have opened up offices
in the region. e-Governance projects and WBSWAN have also contributed
significantly to the growth of IT. Besides this, there are new projects on the
horizon, which are sanctioned by the Panchayat and BDO.

Unlike other regions, the channel players in Durgapur are able to bid in the
tenders issued at the block level and supply the stocks at the borough and
district level. However, many channel partners in the area are not happy with
the government initiatives."Although we are able to participate in the tenders,
we are hardly able to bag them as the criteria laid down in these tenders are
too stringent and tight for channel. However, in small projects, we do have our
own share," Das added

Also, a major IT Park is coming up in the area with India's leading large
scale solution providers opting to set up offices in the vicinity as a move to
diversify their operations. Around 25 acres of land has been sanctioned for the
construction of Shapoorji Paloonji IT Park. However, the channel is not reaping
any benefit directly from the project. It was the same case with the other PSU
expansions way back in early 2000.

Like most of upcountry markets in the eastern vicinity, Durgapur is plagued
with problems related to post-sales services. Since many leading vendors do not
have service stations here, there is an ongoing service-related issue. Often,
the service is routed to Kolkata or other cities, where the turn-around-time is
high.

However, that what is seriously plaguing the market is partners who partake
in over-trading. Sandeep Khedia of Matrix said, "Some partners in the area are
trading beyond their potential. This results in credit problems, fluctuation of
MoP and cheque bounces. However, the market scenario is much better compared to
other cities in the locality."

Durgapur is still one of the brightest markets in the state of West Bengal.
The city carries a legacy of industrialization and is rapidly becoming a
corporate and IT hub. The city has registered a 25 percent YoY growth over the
past four years. "The consumer here is more educated than most class-C cities.
With higher literacy level across Durgapur, the city is on a prosperous mode.
This year too, I expect the market will grow at 25 percent," Khedia concluded.

The dealers in the area are now hoping to form an association-Durgapur
Computer Dealers' Welfare Association (DCDWA). Although the association is in a
nascent stage, a leading channel partner in Durgapur said, "The association is
at an immature stage. Infighting is common and this is decreasing dealer
solidarity in the area. It will take some time for the association to prosper."