Lost opportunity

Font Size

Print

Feedback

Email

Discuss

• Discount UK Shopping

Related Articles

Five out of eight cities see upward trend in hirin...US jobless rate soars to 26-year highGetting an Indian work visa will be tougher nowEco-friendly biz practices to create millions of j...

: Durgapur

It has cost advantage, the English language skills in the city are also decent, attrition is lower compared to other states, but then what has kept BPO companies away from West Bengal? The state has its share of big BPO companies such as IBM Daksh, GE Capital, Wipro, Genpact, Bnke Solutions, Accenture Technology and CapGemini, and medium and small BPOs like Silver Systems, IS Solutions, Xplore Tech, Eswar Tech, etc. But this is nothing compared to the scenario at a Gurgaon or Noida, where BPOs have made these small towns visible on the world map.

West Bengal Tier-I and II cities like Durgapur, Kalyani, Bardhaman and Shiliguri have the potential owing to the bandwidth and skill sets but lack social infrastructure, according to CII Vision 2015 paper on the IT and ITeS sector. Saugat Mukherjee, Regional Director, CII, says, “A certain social infrastructure like malls, good hangout places, and good residential areas is a must.”

Sanjeeb Mukherjee, Professor, Calcutta University, feels that the state’s image could have kept the MNCs at bay. “The fear of unionism and indiscipline at work may have been deterrents for some companies,” says Mukherjee. Also, he says that considering the taxing work schedule one has to be highly motivated to work in the sector. The fire of standing on one’s own is lacking among the youth here. He cites the example of North India where there is so much pressure to learn English for better career opportunities.

However, Anish Sarkar, Vice-President, Head Sales, CapGemini, is positive about the future prospects of the industry here. “Slow growth is due to small market size, external factors and the market situation in the last 18 months. But in 3-5 years Rajarhat, Newtown will be comparable to Gurgaon. In fact, the growth rate from 2006-09 has been good,” says Sarkar.

Wipro set up its centre in 2004 and talks have now begun with the state government for another facility. This could be the much required trigger for other companies to explore the potential here.

Mangalore

Reema Jose