IT task force formed for Bihar

Manisha K

Patna

February 15th, 2008

An IT task force has been formed for the first time in India and consists of
two constitutions created for Bihar and Jammu & Kashmir. SC Jha who is the
Financial Advisory to PM will head Bihar division of the task force. The
constitutions have been formed on the lines of SEZ (Special Economic Zones).

Speaking about the same Prabhat Kumar Sinha, Treasurer, Bihar IT Association
(BITA) said, "This is the first time that something like this is being
formed and the reasons are very obvious. These two states are still lacking
behind in IT as compared to other states like Hyderabad and Orissa which are
doing exceptionally well in IT."

Indicating that a meeting was held to chalk out the formation and agenda of
the constitution, Sinha, "There were several issues that we discussed
during the meeting and they included issues like how to make Bihar an IT
prominent state, how to draw the attention of IT giants to invest in Bihar and
the present e-governance scene in Bihar."

He also informed that a draft has been made and sent to IT Secretary for
approval.

Talking about the current IT scenario Sinha said that e-government projects
were doing exceptionally well in Bihar. "In the last two years lots has
been done, and if the same momentum is maintained, Bihar will become equivalent
to other states in terms of IT in a period of about one year," he added.
Elaborating further, he said that several companies like Wiper, TCS, and ILFS
have come to Bihar but have not yet set-up full-fledged offices there. "We
are working with the help of the government to create a strong IT base so that
IT companies invest in Bihar and help in increasing the employment in the
state," Sinha noted.