Delivering the keynote address at IT World 98 Comdex India here on Wednesday, member convenor of the task force N Seshagiri said that VSNL's reserve capacity could be utilised by software exporters for cost-effective operations. At present just 3 per cent of the total length of 75,000 km system is being utilised. Earlier while opening the IT World 98 Comdex India exhibition, industry minister Sikander Bakht said that information technology would have to reach out to rural masses for being truly effective. "The task force is taking care of this and programmes to boost computer literacy and IT education were on the anvil in line with government objective ofIT for all by 2008", he said.

According to Seshagiri, when fully loaded the optic fibre cable can give the much-needed economy of scales to the software exporters as using the high speed bandwidth cable was one-third cheaper than sending data through satellite links. Software exporters will be given the facility at concessional rates and simultaneously give better revenues to the DoT too, he added.

A corridor could be created through the four cables: Sea-Me-We 1, Sea-Me-We 2, Oxygen and Flag, which could be shared by the software exporters to make their operations cheaper, faster and reliable. Between $40 million to $50 million has been spent on creating a mammoth 75,000 km of cable system in the last two to three years by DoT, but it is not being utilised fully.

Chiding the software development companies for not showing keenness to provide Y2K solutions to the domestic corporates due to the lure of the income from greenbacks, Seshagiri asked them to work in India on a priority basis. The action forceon Year 2000 problem will soon get down to work and look into all the crucial inter-connected systems and sub-systems in the country and assess the impact that could be caused by the millenium bug.

"The attitude among Indians that they were safe due to lack of computerisation posed the biggest challenge for the group, said Seshagiri.Department of electronics secretary Ravindra Gupta said that the defence ministry had agreed to release the ISM bandwidth called for last mile link by internet service providers.