Software exports from the Chandigarh capital region, comprising Chandigarh, Panchkula and Mohali, have registered a marginal increase in the first six months (April-September) of the current financial year (2008-09) over the corresponding period last year.
According to data, software exports were to the tune of Rs 322.35 crore in the first six months of 2008-09, compared with Rs 321.47 crore during the corresponding period a year ago.
Entrepreneurs are of the view that exact picture will emerge in the fourth quarter (January-March) of the current fiscal and ruled out any possibility of the impact due to the current economic crisis in the US.
It is worth noting that the Software Technology Park of India (STPI), Mohali, has estimated further growth of 32 per cent in the total value of software and services exports in 2008-09 from the Chandigarh capital region.
In 2008-09, the combined software exports have been projected at Rs 1,100 crore, with Rs 900 crore from STPI units and Rs 200 crore from SEZs.
Speaking to Business Standard, joint director and centre head of STPI Mohali, Ajay P Srivastava, said: “At the moment, we can’t say that the software exports from the Chandigarh capital region is impacted due to ongoing recession. The exact picture will be clear in the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year as most of the companies do invoicing in that period.”
Adds Puneet Vatsayan, co founder, Mobera Systems Pvt Ltd, “ The ongoing recession has not affected our business at present, but we can’t say what will happen in the near future.”
While in 2007-08, the software and services industry in the region had seen robust growth and the total value reached to Rs 822.27 as compared with Rs 560.76 crore during 2006-07, according to Srivastava. Apart from earning precious foreign exchange, the software industry in the region has also given direct employment to about 10,000 professionals.
Further, the region has attracted many new start-up companies and a number of IT/ITeS units had increased from 145 in 2002-03 to 253 in 2007-08. The figure is expected to cross 300 by the end of 2008-09. The STPI estimates 25 new units coming up in the market taking total exports to over Rs 1,500 crore by 2009-10.
Srivastava added that the growth in this region has been fuelled largely by the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
This financial year, 13 new small and medium IT enterprises registered with STPI, Mohali, namely Vienna IT Solutions (P) Ltd, Optimization Software Technologies, OPK e Services Pvt. Ltd, Inteq Infocom Solutions Pvt. Ltd., Startup Farms (I) Pvt. Ltd, Agilyst Consulting Pvt. Ltd, Netsmartze Infotech Pvt. Ltd etc."
