'IT holds key to boost Kashmir economy'

'IT holds key to boost Kashmir economy'
Bilal Hussain
Bangalore, July 18: The IT professional expatriates from Valley working in Bangalore – the Silicon City of India – advocate setting of IT ventures on huge scale in Kashmir on PPP model to boost the local economy.
Public private partnership (PPP) is a government service or private business venture which is funded and operated through a partnership of government. IT professional working here believe the technology could prove a key to boost Kashmir economy.
"There are many Kashmiris working here. Bangalore truly drives the IT industry not only in Asia but the whole world. Plenty of multinational companies are operating here. Proudly Kashmiri youth is every where and well settled," said a senior software professional working with Stayam Computers, Bilal Ahmad Wani.
He said that several international and national business houses can launch information technology outsourcing (ITO) and business process outsourcing (BPO) units in Kashmir, "but the poor infrastructure keeps them away.
Bangalore's technology sector employs over 6 lakh people, nearly a tenth of the city's total population, he said.
"The best thing about working here is the kind of exposure and experience we get about how an enterprise needs to be run, how to set up a business venture and how to implement the programmes. A vision is modeled here," Wani said.
Media manger 2020 media, Majid Pandit, said that the companies world over are working on green computing, use of computers and related resources in an environmentally responsible manner, and Kashmir can take lead in the trend.
"Poor connectivity is impeding the development of IT in the Valley. Bad roads, poor electricity and internet connection are some other problems that hinder the IT march towards Kashmir," said Pandit.