No IT company in Bihar?

 Is there any scope of IT industry in Bihar?

Obviously! There is plenty of scope. But first let's investigate how Bangalore become what it is now. How did Bangalore become the biggest IT hub in India and why was no other Indian city able to compete with it ? 

They say Texas Instrument was the first company which wanted to set up their office in India due to the high percentage of Indians (South Indians were dominant) working in TI, US office. They visited Mumbai and Chennai, but bureaucratic hurdles stopped them from doing so. When they visited Karnataka, R. Gundu Rao, then Chief Minister came personally to receive them as well as provided them all kind of support they needed to establish themselves. Furthermore, He sanctioned many engineering colleges which helped in creating an environment for development. Jamshed Ji Tata founded IISc in 1899 which is the top center for research and development with its well equipped labs and well qualified teachers. Furthermore, many government companies which had technological root like ISRO, BEL, HMT, HAL were already setlled in  Bangalore.

Under the leadership of Shri Nitish Kumar, Bihar Government was very keen to develop IT in Bihar. Okay! Government made 20 km free wifi zone near IIT Patna and on the day of inaugration of free wifi service, he stated,"It will be a 20 KM wide free Wi-Fi zone, which would run through  IIT,Patna in Bihta to Saguna More in Patna. I have been informed that it  will be the biggest free Wi-Fi zone in the world. It also shows how  serious we are for promoting IT and ITeS industry in the state. We have a big digital divide to fill and we are leaving no stone  unturned to do so. Delhi-NCR, Mumbai or Bangalore may have taken a lead  in this sector, but as they are getting dearer by day, you should come  to Bihar."

Nice thing that they are providing free wifi. But I think more concrete steps are needed in the direction to make things more feasible. First thing is infrastructure. Roads in Patna or any other town of Bihar is so narrow that government can hardly run intra-city buses. Companies would not set up their offices until they are very sure that their employees can reach on time. Most of the roads are in dark except for the few in Patna. How do you convince companies which are already apprehensive after so many bad news reports all these years that their employees are going to be safe after doing night shifts? Currently Bihar is not self sufficient for its electricity requirement and is dependent on central pool. Though many mega thermal projects are coming up and  we may see handsome production in coming years. If IIT-Patna lives upto the expectation, I see no reason that a creative and professional environment that promotes start-up culture can not establish in Bihar. There is also need of better law and order condition which acts as catalyst in creating an investor friendly relation.




I can sum up the answer with a yes. Yes that there can be an IT hub in Bihar provided government shows determination that is needed to compensate all the years of indifference and negligence.