Bangalore is the capital city of Karnataka.

It is one of the fastest growing cities in

Asia and also one of the most sought after cities in India by companies, multinationals
and tourists. The massive growth of the city in the last decade is a clear indication of
this city being developed to be on level with the most modern cities of the world. The
Bangalore’s population is growing rapidly people from all corner of India are choosing
the city as there permanent resident and not only from India but outside of country also,
this has indeed reduced the local population to around 38% of the total population.
(DiscoverBangalore, 2005-2008) Bangalore has got many names like “garden city”
because of many garden and parks; “silicon valley of India” because of many national
and multinational IT companies are concentric in the city. Hyderabad and Chennai are
the biggest rivals of Bangalore in terms of IT. You can say Bangalore is developed if we
use only aspect IT and there is presence of all the IT companies of India and Hyderabad
and Chennai are still in the way. Now come to the business in the city. There are many
IT parks in the city and many five star hotels which all provide conference facilities.
Bangalore is known as the one of the cleanest city in India. Now days Bangalore is the
hottest destination for youngster to work in. this city is not so much congested like
Mumbai and Delhi. Easy to work climate is very work friendly also very less political
interruption. Especially regarding business like now days singur matter is the biggest
e.g. of how state government was disable to implement the huge investment of Tata.
There is more loss of state than the Tata Company. So in the Karnataka they have not
seen such situation till now where the bad politics won over the development. And also
Karnataka has offered 50 Acers of land to Tata to shift the nano project from singur and
it will be headquartered Bangalore only (Indias-Best.Com 2001). Bangalore has always
welcomed the development and investment in the city. Bangalore's Net District Income
(2002–03) Rs 260,260 crores makes it a major economic centre in India. Its economic
growth rate is 10.3%, with this economic growth it is fourth largest fast moving
“consumer goods market”. The city is the third largest hub for high net worth
individuals. Bangalore's share of Rs. 1660 crore in Foreign Direct Investments was the
fourth highest for an Indian city in the year of 2001. The headquarters of several public
sector companies such as Hindustan Aeronautics Limited , National Aerospace
Laboratories, Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited, Bharat Electronics Limited, Bharat Earth

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Movers Limited and Hindustan Machine Tools are situated in Bangalore. In 1972 the
Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) was established and headquartered in the
city under the Department of Space (Concern Infotech Pvt. Ltd, 2006). Bangalore is
quite new city in India in term of development so there are more opportunity than any
other city in India like Mumbai or Delhi, it is shaped or arranged suitable for business. In
the city IT is not the only priority, but government is also welcoming other industries like
clean energy, bioengineering, medical and space technology. It is very good for
hospitality industry they will get chance to serve and big scope to expand there
business in term of room sale, conference and exhibition. Because of many big
organizations are headed from Bangalore so there will be many launches of new
product they need to exhibit their product and always choose the place where they get
all required facilities. And Bangalore is suited with all these things. So these were the
few aspect attracted makes Bangalore a very important destination for the conferences.
Now need to light on the things or facilities which makes it an important conference
destination for India.

By unfolding two contrasting scenarios a positive scenario (strengths) and gloomier side
of it (i.e. weakness). The thing will be clear that how important Bangalore is as a
conference destination. Bangalore has all the basic facilities required, Bangalore will
soon have new building for City railway station construction is going on without
interrupting any schedule at platform, which will increase the facilities and reduce the
congestion (Indias-Best.Com 2001) now about the BIAL(Bangalore International Airport
Limited) airport coming up at Devanahalli on National Highway No 7 will be operational
by this month, because city like Bangalore need to have good connectivity with
international cities. And this airport has all the facilities required for an International
airport such as check-in facility at the railway station itself, which connects the airport to
the city saving time at the other end. Such facilities are available at many international
airports in west. Passengers may even be able to check in their luggage to be taken to
the aircraft, after being gone threw security check up. The departure of the trains from
both ends will be matching the time with the flight departures and arrivals at the airport,
which help saving the time of passengers. By this new airport passenger capacity will

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increase from four millions to 11.4 millions and by the recent survey of Lufthansa
passenger traffic is 6.7 m by 2008. And old HAL airport will be continuing its service for
civil aviation with the investment of 100 crores. City has also seen great improvements
to its roads, highways and other infrastructure. Several flyovers have come into
existence in the last 5 years easing the traffic and making travel easier. The metro rail
project is also in way with investment of Rs 6,395 crore. The Metro is expected to carry
40,000 passengers an hour in each direction. And there will be a service once in four
minutes in each direction. With stations located almost every five minutes and with
distance of 3 km between each will increase the accessibility so more people can use
the facility without wasting time. And monorail project would come up at four corridors of
the metro rail project and serve as second feeder and it will start serving by the end of
2008. If these project will go in right way getting from place to place will be easier than
past. Government also working to bring Bangalore on level of great cities of the world. If
things go in right way, by 2010 Bangalore will be truly a city of the future. Crime in
Bangalore is also reduced by 10% as compare to last year, which is a high point for city
police, and still police in the way of improvement and also planning to install secret
cameras in high crime areas of the City. Now day medical tourism is new on going trend
in the world. And medical gives the most no. of conferences as compared to other
industries. And in India Bangalore is no. one destination for such activities. And city is
also working to attract tourist by making reality such project like Theme Park, film city
etc, a new theme park is constructed in Bidadi near to city, which is full of religion,
culture and tradition as well as furnished with technology. And when see the other
facilities of conference required such as Event Management Companies, so there are
many companies in Bangalore serving to there clients and also always in search of new
companies, few of them are (DBS Corporate Club, Golden Square Executive Centre,
Corporate World Services (P) Ltd, Pan Asia Business Services, ABC Services -
Executive Centre), (Virtualbangalore,1997-2002)there is huge list of such companies,
and some of them have there own convention centres other books in hotel. Few
companies have contract with hotels for a long time. There are many hotels in the city,
many brands such as: Hotel Ashok, Le Meridian, Taj Residency, Taj West End, The
Capitol, The Oberoi, and Windsor Manor Sheraton & Towers (Virtualbangalore, 1997-

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2002). Most of them have there convention centre, because majority of conferences are
held in hotels The Leela Palaces and Resorts is also planning a convention centre
which would be built close to the company's hotel on the airport road in Bangalore. So
Bangalore is full of opportunities and world class facilities. (DiscoverBangalore, 2005-
2008)

Now the gloomier side of city, it is very expansive, it is one of the most expansive city in
term of ARR in India, so there is no space for less budgeted events, infrastructure of city
is very congested not at all planned specially the roads, there are few projects to
improve all this, most of them are running late and already late, so for this moment
problem will be continued, because of these reasons many companies are turning to
other cities like Hyderabad and Chennai. Bangalore is doing so well in all other
department, but main require infrastructure is pulling it behind, roads in the city are
narrow and cause to traffic jam, now new BIAL airport has start its operation, but
connectivity is again problem for passengers it take hours to reach airport from city.
Airport is quit far from city and most of five star hotels are centre concentric, so it takes
hours to reach to the hotel from new international airport.
Cost of living is big problem for city, 40% of city resident are poor and about 18% live in
slums thus housing for these poor people is big problem and not only these poor
people, but many good positioned employees also finding the cost of living in the city
prohibitive (Concern Infotech Pvt. Ltd, 2006), petrol price in the city is highest in the
country. Real estate price have increased 50 to 60% between 2002 & 2007, now infra
structure or buying a house is not affordable in the city, thus demand for houses is
falling down. One other problem is IT concentrated city, every thing in city is planned or
any future project is IT friendly no matter some time people also faces problem, there is
less scope for other industries than Information Technology and Bioengineering. And
Bangalore is a newer city than any other in India and most of five star hotels are
situated in the centre or near to it, so it can be a problem for few industries, which are
little outside situated. One surprising thing about Bangalore is it doesn’t have the proper
Wi- Fi network, which is strange in such high tech city. (Business today, 2008 p80 to
84)

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Government should work on such point like they should improve on Wi-Fi networking or
implement some new and better technology, because Bangalore is most advanced and
Hi-Tech city of India so city should come up with these basic problems. To reduce the
cost of resident they should increase the area of city, like mixing near by towns in it or
give the space little far to new companies to set there industries, so would be little less,
traffic is big problem, it is also sign of development like many big cities New York, Hong
Kong are facing these problems, there should be something done to lesser it, road lane
should increase, there should be different express ways for going out side the city. As
per the BT survey Bangalore have problem of connectivity to international cities, which
will be solved after the airport start working, and about connectivity to Indian cities by
increasing the route of trains and starting some new transportation system. City is only
concentrating on IT or software, 33% of total software export is hold by the Bangalore,
and some other sectors are lacking behind, medical have huge scope in city, but
because of basic infrastructure it is not improving, so need of some good facilitate
hospitals and increase the no. of beds etc. so city need to work on not be IT oriented
but should be space for every one. Government should try to attract the other industries,
like government offered 50 acres of land to Tata, which is a good move. In future no. of
tourist will also increase, because after Rajasthan, Kerala and Goa, Incredible India has
signed a joint venture of marketing, and incredible India will help advertising Karnataka
at international level, and Bangalore will be main attraction of state. Bangalore is
chosen the second best city of India for business after Mumbai and leaving behind the
capital Delhi by “Business today” magazine of 2008.

Bangalore is city of dreams, strengths are getting heavy on weaknesses, that’s the
reason it is accelerating its development, every business is welcomed here every
businessman find profit investing in Bangalore, few problems like connectivity to the
other cities is solved by new hi-tech airport, there are many five star deluxe and five star
hotels in the city with all the international facilities, there is huge scope for business and
for conferences, because conferences and exhibition will be there, where business
scope is more than its competitors, and Bangalore has presence of all big technical

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companies, Bangalore is first city after U.S. Cisco is headquartered, so we can come to
know how important Bangalore is for the world in term of Information Technology And
software industries. And if there is big foreign investment so it also has to provide the
world class facilities, it is also hosting many international conferences and many
national so need to level the criteria and work on weak point and on that way only soon
city will be facilitate with new airport, new railway station building and metro will start
carrying passengers by the end of this year. This is huge investment on infrastructure.
Bangalore is also main attraction for medical tourism, which a new trend in India. But
being accompanied with so many attraction there is gloomier side of city is lacking in
basic infrastructure, roads are miserable very narrow, quite expansive, city recognise at
international level does not suite with such silly problems. But government is working on
all aspect and very soon will be city of dream not only for India but many International
firms would also dream to have presence in Bangalore. So business development and
conferences and exhibitions go side by side, if business will be development
alternatively more conference will held.

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REFERENCE:

Saran, R. (2008) ‘Best cities for business,’ Business Today

Vol 17(issue 18), pp80-84

Concern Infotech Pvt. Ltd, (2006). Bangalore economy. Retrieved October 12th 2008
from http://www.thisismyindia.com/about_bangalore/bangalore-economy.html

Concern Infotech Pvt. Ltd, (2006). Real Estate Bangalore. Retrieved October 12th 2008
from http://www.thisismyindia.com/free_ads/real-estate/bangalore.html

DiscoverBangalore (2005-2008). Bangalore Infrastructure. Retrieved October 9th 2008

from http://www.discoverbangalore.com/Infrastructure.htm

Indias-Best (2001) development. Retrieved October 9th 2008 from

http://www.bangalorebest.com/Archives/Tata_nano.asp

Virtualbangalore (1997-2002).business. Retrieved October 7th 2008 from

http://www.virtualbangalore.com/BF/index.php

Virtualbangalore (1997-2002).hotels. Retrieved October 7th 2008 from

http://www.virtualbangalore.com/Ent/EntHotels.php

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