Strategic Newspapers, December 2000

The show that ‘networked’ the world.
Conspicuous by their absence in large number were the dotcoms. It was companies like zeenext.com, salahakar.com, megawrite.com and gurgaon.net that stood to as a saving grace defying the dot-gone winds, in spite of others failing to make a mark in the exhibition
Rajkumar Leishemba/New Delhi

If winter is around can IT World Comdex India can be far behind? This year's edition of the four-day national IT show got off to a rousing start with Union minister of information technology Pramod Mahajan formally inaugurating the four-day exhibition on December 6, 2000. The exhibition, which has grown bigger with each passing year since its inception in 1992, successfully managed to draw attention of the crowd of the e-era. Official statistics revealed that the opening day drew a crowd of 8,500 and much more in the next three days. According to unofficial estimates, the overall visitors numbered more than 70,000 during the exhibition. This year over 150 companies participated in the exhibition. International exhibitors included companies from Taiwan, USA, Australia and Bangladesh. The theme of this year's event being 'the networked millennium', the myriad stalls showcased products ranging from chips, circuits to new software. Keeping very much in line with the theme of the exhibition, Internet service providers like VSNL and MTNL highlighted their strengths in ISDN enabled Net service, leased line Net and video conferencing facilities. The shadow of India's ongoing privatisation process could also be seen in the IT fair as a new private ISP company Prime Net made its debut, with its stall opposite to that of VSNL. From WAP technology demonstrators to the latest varieties of laptop, from IT park sponsors to personalised Websites hosts, the exhibition lived up to its motif. However, conspicuous by their absence in large number were the dotcoms. It was companies like zeenext.com, salahakar. com, megawrite.com and gurgaon.net that stood to as a saving grace defying the dot-gone winds, in spite of others failing to make a mark in the exhibition.