Forum offers to sponsor session at IT meet

The Bangalore Forum for Information Technology (BFIT) has announced that its participation in Bangalore IT.IN 2005 will be in the nature of anchoring or sponsoring a session, if held by the government, on improving Bangalore's infrastructure.

BFIT looks at it as a purposeful mechanism where all stakeholders including the government can have their say on solutions to help Bangalore and Karnataka grow.

The forum had initially pledged to stay out of the forthcoming IT event but relented on Thursday after the government promised steps to improve infrastructure in the city. A BFIT spokesperson said that the measure shows that the IT companies were willing to support the government initiatives.

According to Bob Hoekstra, CEO, Philips Innovation Campus, "Our boycott was a means of drawing the government's attention to the infrastructure woes of Bangalore that affect all sections in the city. We are happy the government has now communicated it's intent to address the issues and has sent some positive signals by announcing time bound plans."

He asserted: "We will support the IT.IN by sponsoring the session on infrastructure. We will encourage our members to participate in next year's event if the plans are implemented".

Investor confidence in Bangalore will no doubt perk up if the government proactively provides a platform to discuss issues and comes up with solutions for improving the enabling physical infrastructure, the spokesperson added.