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Strategies & Market Trends : India Coffee House -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mohan Marette who wrote (3140)	11/1/1998 9:01:00 PM
From: JPR	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 12475

Mohan: Your village is so beautiful that I started wondering what you are doing here? <GGG> JPR

To: Mohan Marette who wrote (3140)	11/2/1998 12:27:00 AM
From: Nandu	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 12475

Mohan, Puramattom looks beutiful. Reminds me of my corner of Trivandrum when I was a kid. Things have changed now, of course. Does Puramattom still look like that or has the paddy fields become coconut plantations or housing colonies? How far is the nearest city?

To: Mohan Marette who wrote (3140)	11/2/1998 10:01:00 AM
From: ratan lal	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 12475

Mohan Your pix made my heart yearn for the simpler things and simple beauty of life !!!! ratan

To: Mohan Marette who wrote (3140)	11/4/1998 1:22:00 PM
From: Mohan Marette	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 12475

Hyderabad-Hi-Tec city near completion. Get, Set And Go... The much-touted Hi-Tec City in Hyderabad is nearing completion. And it has the potential to become the fog-horn of Hyderabad's arrival into the global IT scenario. The scene-around 1,000 workers working round the clock. Under construction is a massive modern-day technological monument. This could have been just another engineering feat. But it is more than that. And not just for Hyderabad or Andhra Pradesh, the Hi-Tec City might probably become India's IT landmark in the global scenario. At the time of writing this article, work is moving at a feverish pace with finishing touches being given. The stage is being set for the scheduled inauguration on November 1, coinciding with the Andhra Pradesh formation day. Engineering feat it is, having been completed in 12 months flat. Not only that, while the work is going on, the marketing aspect is going on at the same pace. At the site Arshad Pasha, Marketing Engineer, L&T Infocity, which has undertaken the project, is a busy man. Says he, "These days I am meeting around 20-25 prospective clients everyday." Confirming the participation of companies at the center, Hariharan, General Manager, L&T Infocity, elucidated, "Sixty percent of the space is already booked, while another 10% is blocked by interested companies." Thus most of the work is done. Only the grand finale is being eagerly awaited by everybody in Hyderabad. And skeptics from Bangalore and Chennai are waiting and watching. Will the Hi-Tec City establish Hyderabad on the national and international map? Yes. For one, the project is the baby of Chandrababu Naidu, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. In fact, the government holds 11% stake in the project while L&T owns the majority 89%. Supplementing this is L&T's professionalism, which ensured completion of the project in 12 months to economize on operating costs. "Majority of the construction comprised readymade blocks which made possible completion in a record time," says Pasha. All conceivable infrastructure is being made available to the occupants. India's largest convention center is also being set up here. All service providers, right from the municipal corporation to VSNL, have come forward to offer their best services here. The residents And who are the occupants? Big names like Microsoft, Oracle, Sun, IBM...are all there. Oracle's office is already operational from the administration point of view. IBM and Microsoft have booked huge spaces. "Selling space was not a problem at all but we are cautious as we want quality participants at the Hi-Tec City," says Hariharan, who receives at least a couple of enquiries every half-an-hour. Obviously, with the salesmanship of Naidu under work, one shouldn't be surprised at these positive results. The government's firm backing and personal involvement of the CM makes it pretty attractive for a company to have an outfit at the Hi-Tec City. The Oracle executive at the company's makeshift module at Hi-Tec City informed that it would be two months before the actual activities begin. Microsoft, apart from its bookings in the first phase, has also acquired 16 acres of land in the second phase, with plans to develop 4 acres every year. It is not just the enthusiasm of the vendors alone; service providers are equally eager to commission operations. Nearly nine banks, including SBI, IndusInd and ICICI, have confirmed their services in this STP. In fact, Bank of India plans to network its 500 branches across the country and outside and centralize operations from here. Thomas Cook is to introduce exclusive value-added foreign exchange and travel services within the Hi-Tec City. Activity is not restricted to just the Hi-Tec City site. Wipro is also setting up a massive software development facility just adjoining the STP. This project, too, is nearing completion. Not to lag behind is Baan, which is developing an extensive development facility spread over 20 acres, also in the vicinity. These projects, too, are being undertaken by L&T. Setting standards The pace and the fervor have been set. And as far as infrastructural set-up is concerned, Hi-Tec City has set new standards in the country for technology parks. The future success of the project will depend largely on the activities of the IT companies who will be carrying out their product research and development from here. It will take another two-to-three months for companies to commission their operations. The fruition of the project will be a big push for Hyderabad which has already taken off as the IT nerve center of India. Watch out Bangalore and Chennai! N SAILAJA and SIVAKUMAR V, in Hyderabad. dqindia.com