BBC: Hyderabad narrowing gap with Bengaluru, could be India’s next Silicon Valley

One of the largest and oldest news broadcasters in the world, BBC News in a video story titled ‘A tale of two Indian tech cities’, said that Hyderabad could be India’s next Silicon Valley.

Produced by Pamela Parker and Medhavi Arora, the video indicates Hyderabad is giving Bengaluru ‘a run for its money’ as a startup destination in India.

BBC says that the startups in Hyderabad are being chosen over Bengaluru, which has enjoyed a reputation as the darling of India’s tech industry for years.

The video story begins with, “Growing problems with congestion and infrastructure have pushed startups to look for new alternatives. Hyderabad is increasingly being named as the new city of choice, so how well does it rate against Bengaluru?” 

Citing the instance of a startup managing ambulances in Hyderabad, StanPlus, the video has StanPlus co-founder Antoine Poirson mentioning that transportation is a big issue in Bengaluru, which removes some of the ‘agile benefits of being a small competitor’.

Thus, indicating that StanPlus chose Hyderabad over Bengaluru like many others. 

BBC quotes Poirson saying that the ecosystem in Hyderabad is ‘very vibrant and dynamic’ while claiming that the massive traffic and inadequate infrastructure are affecting quality of life.

Poirson is quoted saying, “There is lots of government support. Ease of doing business is a fact, and bureaucracy has been reduced. There is a lot of support for startups.”

Also, BBC mentions a global study according to which Hyderabad ranks three spots above Bengaluru in the world’s most influential cities in the future.

Besides, Hyderabad topped the list of best Indian cities three years in a row on the Quality of Living index, while Bengaluru ranked third.

The video in conclusion states that even though Bengaluru still has future for more deals and tech entrepreneurs, Hyderabad is narrowing that gap.

The video published by BBC on Friday was shared on Twitter by IT and Industries Minister KT Rama Rao who called it a story by BBC ‘on Hyderabad was emerging as an innovation hub’.