Mysore can top tier-II cities

Mysore can follow in the footsteps of Bangalore to come tops among the tier-II cities. In fact, it is already looking towards this with the city having certain advantages over other secondary cities in Karnataka.

A comparison between Bangalore and Mysore throws up some interesting points. These points can be the factors for Mysore to be the leader among the secondary cities.

Bangalore produces 20,000 graduates in a year, and Mysore one-fourth of Bangalore's "" 5,000 graduates. While Bangalore saw 7,000 engineering students passing out from its technical colleges, Mysore's contribution was 2,000, the ratio between Mysore and Bangalore being 1:3.5.

One of the most attractive propositions for entrepreneurs looking to Mysore is the land price. It costs less than one-sixth of that in Bangalore. Mysore offers land at Rs 300 per sq foot, while in Bangalore it is around Rs 2,000 per square foot.

While 25 lakh vehicles make commuting almost impossible in Bangalore. Mysore's comparative share is only 1:8. Mysore has just around three lakh vehicles on the roads. Apparently, the commuting time in Mysore is far less than Bangalore. What one can commute in 20 minutes in Mysore takes 60 minutes in Bangalore. Pollution levels are much lower in Mysore. The 25 lakh vehicles spew the poisonous sulphur dioxide 14 times more in Bangalore than Mysore "" Bangalore 66.3 and Mysore 4.7.

Of course, Mysore has a long way to go in exports. Its exports presently stand at Rs 309 crore. Bangalore's exports are 80 times that of the city of palaces i.e. Rs 25,000 crore.

These interesting facts were brought out in the 8th edition of Bangalore IT held in Bangalore recently by Sid Mookerji, CEO, Software Paradigms (India) (SPI), Mysore.

"Beyond Bangalore", a seminar, showcased the potential of secondary cities of Karnataka like Mysore, Hubli-Dharwad, Manipal, as alternative IT hubs was one of the highlights of the event. Mookerji was a keynote speaker at the seminar.

Incidentally, SPI was the only Mysore-based company to have a presence at the mega IT event where 18 foreign countries and 18 Indian states participated.