E Commerce badly hit IT business in Nellore

Situated on the bank of Penner, Nellore is the fourth most populous city and the district headquarter of Andhra Pradesh. Blessed with fertile land and abundant natural resources, Nellore has marked a significant growth in the agriculture and aquaculture sector. With rapid industrialization, Nellore is slowly transforming from a pure agriculture and aquaculture economy to a commercial and industrial hub. IT industry is still at its nascent stage in Nellore and it has a huge scope to prosper.

Strategic location

Nellore is situated at a very strategic place and it is a key entry point for commercial and economic activities. The city is situated about 279 kilometres south of the state capital Andhra Pradesh Capital City and 168 kilometres north of Chennai on the Chennai-Kolkata highway. Nellore is well connected by road to National Highway 5 from Chennai to Kolkata, part of the Golden Quadrilateral expressway project, passing through it. Nellore is connected by state transport to major parts of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. It is also well connected by rail and air to other cities in the country.

A paddy land

Proximity to the sea and fertile land towards the east have led to agriculture and aquaculture being the backbone of the economy. Along with that salt production is also popular in Nellore. Though agriculture and aquaculture are the prime sources of revenue, Handloom, mica mines, thermal power generation and handmade jewellery are other industries that contribute to the economic development. The automobile is the emerging industry in Nellore. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu government’s intends to make Nellore an automobile hub by taking advantage of its strategic location on several counts.

Growth of IT

Despite of several favourable conditions required for growth and development, IT industry has not yet received its deserving attention in Nellore. The absence of large IT companies is seen as the prominent reason for sluggish growth. OLS is the other biggest challenge that has disturbed the traditional channel business. Local resellers say that the predatory pricing policies of OLS portals are not favourable for the local players and it is adversely hampering their business.

Scope of IT

Nellore can be considered as one of the unexplored IT markets with huge business prospects. However, it needs attention from the government as well as the IT giants. With no scarcity of resources and manpower, Nellore is a place having prospects for the fastest development in the entire State. The emerging scene is presenting a much more prospective scope for further industrial growth and with proper industrial and IT policy in place, Nellore could soon rise as the next IT destination in Andhra Pradesh.

Nellore At A Glance...

Number of Resellers: 200 (Approx)

Key Verticals: Agriculture, aquaculture, Thermal Power, Tourism, Automobile

Key Brands: HP, Lenovo, Dell, Canon, K7 Computing, Kaspersky, Digisol

IT Association: Computer Dealers Association of Nellore (CDAN)

Interview 

Deepak Bommisetty, president, CDAN

What are the major challenges faced by the IT reseller community in Nellore?

Deepak Bommisetty: OLS is a major issue and it has definitely impacted the business. Apart from OLS, absence of service centers and lack of proper service support from vendors is another challenge resellers face here. Vendors should take proactive steps to maintain MOP.

How do you analyze the growth of IT industry in Nellore?

Deepak Bommisetty: The market is growing, however, at a very slow pace. OLS has curtailed margins of resellers. There is a need to bring big industries and projects in the city to facilitate industrial growth. The government needs to develop an IT infrastructure and provide a fair chance to the local IT players.