Calcutta, Sept. 17: The core committee set up by the government to frame Bengal’s information technology policy today decided to conduct a study to assess where the state stands.

At its first meeting, the committee also decided to set up eight working groups covering areas such as education and infrastructure to facilitate the growth of technology.

“We have worked out a programme to get inputs on what to do, for which a baseline study for both software and hardware is needed to find out where we stand,” committee chairman Sam Pitroda said after the meeting at the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation’s office in Camac Street.

“Everyone here is complaining about infrastructure — roads, policies, power, logistics. Why would any company come here as opposed to Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune or Hyderabad? If we want business to grow, we need people and we need to understand what we can offer them,” said Pitroda, who is also the adviser to the Prime Minister on public information infrastructure and innovations.

The working groups, to be set up in areas of e-governance, e-health, e-education, infrastructure and human resources, will hand in their reports in four to six weeks, he added. “I am not comfortable with an ad hoc approach. We will first need to have a baseline. This will serve as a benchmark and help incorporate the present state of IT in Bengal,” Pitroda said.

“One working group will do a baseline for software and another for hardware. We have worked out a programme. To give inputs, we will need to do a lot more. The inputs shall be incorporated in the state’s new IT policy.”

The core committee, formed by Mamata Banerjee to help Bengal emerge as a top IT destination, has Infosys chairman emeritus N.R. Narayana Murthy as its chief mentor. Its members include former Nasscom president Kiran Karnik, Nasscom eastern region head Suparno Moitra and The Chatterjee Group president Aniruddha Lahiri, among others.

Pitroda said that since land was an “issue” in Bengal, the software industry should opt for vertical expansion by building high-rises and adding floors to existing offices. He said the state “was truly a gateway to the Asia-Pacific region”.

IT minister Partha Chatterjee, Karnik and IT secretary Basudeb Banerjee attended the meeting. Murthy participated through video-conferencing. He stressed the need for infrastructure and a conducive atmosphere.

Chatterjee alleged that the Left government had “done nothing” to develop IT infrastructure. “They provided land without setting up necessary infrastructure,” he said. “A vision document for IT in the districts is being prepared.”

Later, Pitroda met law minister Malay Ghatak, finance minister Amit Mitra, chief secretary Samar Ghosh, health secretary Sanjay Mitra and officials of the chief minister’s office at Writers’.

“I also met (Calcutta High Court) Chief Justice J. N. Patel and spoke on the modernisation of courts. I met the chief minister last evening,” Pitroda said. “We are also focusing on health, education, building a knowledge city, job creation and skill development.” Asked if he was consulted by the government on the ways to improve the fiscal situation, Pitroda said: “It isn’t my job, but I’d be happy to help.”