Kodagu IT Forum chalks out 7th event

Called the Scotland of India, Kodagu, also called Coorg, is chalking out plans for the seventh edition of its IT fair.

'IT and Beyond Coorg' has been getting a good response over the last seven years. It is steadily becoming a leading event of the district nestling the Western Ghats. The eighth edition of the four-day annual event is scheduled from February 22, 2008.

Attracting over 20,000 visitors, the 2007 edition of the IT fair saw IT major Infosys BPO recruiting students. Experts spoke on the career opportunities for Kodagu students in the BPO sector.

"Market leaders from high growth sectors have been participating regularly. Participation of Organisations from the IT, ITeS, telecom, tourism, coffee, consumer electronics, education, insurance, automobile, builders, health and government agencies have grown," says C C Thimaiah, Director, "IT and Beyond Coorg".

"Last year, we had put up 75 stalls and all were taken. The event evoked response from major IT companies from Bangalore like HP, Compaq, Aptech, Tally Solutions and a few CAD companies for the first time. Infosys intend to return this year also," he told Business Standard on Monday.

Some of the top IT and ITeS companies which have participated in the earlier events are Bangalore IT.COM, Compaq, HCL, Intel, NIIT, Aptech Computer Education, Keonics, Canon, Ricoh Copiers, Skylux Telelink Pvt Ltd, Tescher, Diamond Vision Technologies, Bharatmatrimony.com., BSNL, Airtel, Tamco Telecom, Pentatech Technologies, Animaster, Plus Business Machines Ltd., Vitage Systems and Cicada Computers.

"Kodagu has a good potential for recruiting agencies and, IT and IT-related companies as there are no major industries in this land of coffee and oranges despite having an excellent climate and environment. This is one reason why the event is gaining increasing support and footfalls," Thimaiah says.

"Seminars through the day keep the visitor headcount high. Cultural functions in the evenings and unique Kodagu cuisine are additional attractions to draw in large numbers of families and put them in the mood for shopping as well," he says.

He adds, "Our focus has been to showcase Coorg as an IT destination. The start of this initiative is to set up a software technology park in Madikeri. With its air-conditioned climate, beauty and connectivity, Madikeri does hold tremendous potential for the future."

The IT and Beyond Forum trains over 20,000 students across the district annually.