AUSIB, Exhibitions India Group partner for the 19th Convergence India 2011

March 30, 2011, Washington DC: The 19th Convergence India 2011 Expo – referred as South Asia’s largest ICT event – took place at Hall 7-11, Pragati Maindan, New Delhi. The event was held between March 24 and March 26, 2011. The Alliance for US India Business (AUSIB) and the Exhibitions India Group partnered for organizing the event.

Convergence India endeavored to provide a common platform for stakeholders to connect and develop opportunities for e-Governance, e-Health, e-Learning, e-Industry, e-Innovation, e-Education and e-Security.

Over 430 participants from a cross-section of industries - such as, Telecom, IT, Broadcast, Media & Entertainment, Green IT, Security & Surveillance, Cable, Satellite, IP Surveillance and Information Security sectors of 25 countries – joined and showcased advanced products, services and technologies. The inaugural panel conference on “ NextGen applications…Empowering a Billion Lives” recorded the presence of industry heavyweights, such as, J S Sarma, Chairman (TRAI); Akhil Gupta, Deputy Group CEO& MD (Bharti Enterprises); Rajiv Bawa, EVP & Head Corporate Affairs (Uninor); Declan Byrne, Director Marketing (Wimax Forum). Mr. Kapil Sibal, Minister of Communications & Information Technology, Govt. of India, attended the event on the second day.

The inaugural meeting was also significant because of the release of the industry white paper - 3G Gets Underway in India - prepared by Shiv Putcha, Principal Analyst, Ovum. The opening ceremony focused on the emerging role of Broadband Wireless Access (BWA). Mr. Robin Mersh, the CEO of Broadband Forum, highlighting the importance of Broadband in India, stated that India has already annexed over 2.5 million new lines of broadband last year and is now positioned 13th worldwide.

The Expo prepared ground for reducing carbon footprints – the operators from telecommunication industry said that 25%-30% energy saving is achievable and thus a whopping amount to the tune of Rs. 1 billion per quarter could be saved. Though, for around 300,000 telecom towers pan-India, implementing environmentally-friendly option is an uphill task but with investment, proper roadmap and customized green solutions, it could be materialized. Mr. Rajat K. Mukarji, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Idea Cellular opined that the idea of ‘Green Fuel Hub’ should also be explored for better results.