Bangalore is old news, Hyderabad is passe. Pune is getting a little too crowded, with almost every major Indian software firm setting up a base there. So the setting seems just right for Chandigarh to be India's latest Software Capital. Think it sounds funny? Well, most of the software majors don't think so, the UT Administration doesn't think so; neither does the local industry.Here's why: Infosys Technologies has already firmed up its plans to set up a software development centre for exports in Mohali (on the outskirts of Chandigarh). Wipro, Satyam Computers and half a dozen other large and medium software companies are also seriously thinking of making the region, which currently boasts a few little-known startups, their home.``The movement has already begun,'' beams Confederation of Indian Industry Chairman (Chandigarh Chapter) I.S. Paul, adding that Infosys, Satyam and other software majors can be the seed for the entire IT fruit to grow. An analogy that will not be lost on a community passionate about gardening.The cosmopolitan culture, excellent telecom facilities, proximity to fields and hills, educational institutions, power, roads and clean environment are what the sultans of software are finding hard to resist.Infosys chairman N.R. Narayana Murthy, the brain behind one of India's most dynamic software firms, raves about Chandigarh and Mohali. They are well-planned, have low pollution levels, good supplies of power and water, smooth roads and English-medium education institutions.Admittedly, these factors alone cannot make the city a software Mecca. The software majors, which can put the city on the country's infotech map, want the UT authorities to give the city more zip. ``The city needs to do a lot. It must have investor-friendly policies, five-star hotels, better transport facilities, improved domestic airport and an international airport with traveler-friendly international flights,'' observes Murthy.And that's not all, the cyber-elites want a better quality of life (read night life) most of Chandigarh grows decidedly still after dark with few pubs, restaurants and discos. The UT authorities will definitely need some amount of innovation to be able to bask in the software glow; they know they cannot afford to lose any more time.The city administration seems to have realised the urgency. Efforts are being made to ensure that the IT industry is attracted towards the City Beautiful as Chandigarh already has all the ingredients of becoming a major IT centre, UT Administrator Lt Gen J.F.R. Jacob (retd) told The Indian Express. Not only has it inducted an infotech professional from Haryana Civil Service (HCS), as Director (Information Technology) in the newly-created IT Department, the authorities are working on an investor-friendly IT Policy for a bite in the software pie.The Administration has been scouting around for 60 acres in the city to set up the Software Development Park it has vigorously touted. Also in the plans is an IT College in the newly developed southern sectors to churn out skilled manpower. This would either be fully funded by the Administration or through a collaboration with the private sector. The Administration has also held talks with top IT bosses, offering Chandigarh as a destination for their expansion and new ventures; the feedback is, say sources, positive.Core infrastructure apart, what every IT city needs is high quality of life. In a subtle but significant manner, the Administration has been working on bringing living standards to the level required by the stereotypical IT professional. Over the past couple of weeks, rules have been relaxed for hotels to have 24-hour restaurants and with regard to consumption of liquor in hotel rooms. Also, the new liquor policy ensures that draught beer will now be available here; the parallel with Bangalore is not to be treated lightly.``The quality of life in the city needs an equal thrust to make it attractive enough for the industry,'' emphasises UT Adviser Vineeta Rai. These are brave words, indeed. But the authorities will have to prove savvy at adjusting to the rules of new businesses. And that, perhaps, will decide whether Chandigarh can successfully log on to the dynamic infotech economy.(WITH INPUTS FROM SANJEEV CHOPRA)
