Karnataka Biotechnology and Information Technology Services (KBITS), under the Department of Information Technology and Biotechnology, will organise a programme to attract IT companies to Mangaluru either in the last week of August or September first week.
This was decided at a meeting attended by representatives of industry, district administration and department officials here on Thursday.
K.N. Praveen, General Manager, KBITS, told the meeting, presided over by A.B. Ibrahim, Deputy Commissioner, that now the department was focusing on tier-II cities to promote IT.
The programme proposed was to showcase the strength of Mangaluru as it had talented human resource and infrastructure facilities.
The strength of Mangaluru would be highlighted in the programme to prompt companies to establish their units.
A representative of the IT industry told the meeting that the city should get more major IT companies.
“Many IT engineers who joined start-ups, business process outsourcing companies or other existing IT companies look to jump to higher positions, especially middle-level career positions. But now there is limited opportunity here due to the absence of many companies. As a result they shift to other cities looking for jump in career.
“In addition, IT engineers would also look for job for their spouses in other companies. The limited employment opportunities in the city have forced local talents and others to shift to other cities,” he said.
A member of the Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) suggested that instead of showing land in Bengaluru and its surrounding areas to such companies which approached it, the department should bring them to Mangaluru to show the facilities and land.
Mr. Ibrahim asked the visiting team of IT and BT officials to visit three malls and a building near A.B. Shetty Circle in the city to see whether some start-ups or companies could open their units in the space available there.
Industry representatives said that the location of the office of Software Technology Park of India, Kuntikana, which had some start-ups now was not suitable to house IT companies as it is away from the city facilities. It is not suitable to women working during night, they added.
