Tushar Patil is a young dynamic CEO of BTP InfoServe Pvt. Ltd. He did hisBachelor of Engineering in Industrial and Production Engineering from Gogte Institute of Technology and his Master of Science in Industrial Engineering from Wichita State University, Wichita, Kansas, USA.

As CEO, Tushar Patil is responsible for the vision, strategy and leadership that drive BTPI. After completing masters from Kansas University, he worked in the US for 3 years at Alpha Soft Services. During this tenure, he gained access to various service segments in the US including healthcare, insurance and finance. His experience also helped him identify the non-core business segments there and plan to outsource the same to BTPI. He has the task at BTPI to help business segments concentrate on their core strengths and to bridge the link that correlates clients’ expectations v/s BTPI deliverables.

Way back in 2002 Tushar started BTP InfoServe Pvt. Ltd. (BTPI) in Belgaum, which specializes in American medical insurance claims processing. This field is listed as one of the fastest job creators in USA. BTP InfoServe Pvt. Ltd is the only company in entire North Karnataka & Goa that specializes in this area.
BTPI from Belgaum manages the payment flow of medical claims efficiently from insurance companies to various service providers.

With an Approx 0.4 million dollars in turnover and over 50 employees BTPI aims higher turnover in the current year. Today all the sectors are reeling under recession like Automobile, banking, Industries but healthcare is one such sector which has NO Recession.

Tushar Patil speaks out to Team AAB:

1. My first question why Belgaum for your BPO?

Tushar Patil --> Belgaum is ideally located between Bangalore and Mumbai and has perfect blend of rural and urban population. The quality of education is excellent. Plus the lower costs of land/infrastructure/living/manpower and also for the abundant talent available in and around Belgaum. The weather is pretty much like Bangalore and is logistically located with 2 airports (Hubli and Kolhapur) within 90 kms distance.

2. Could we have your outlook on the IT & BPO industry in Belgaum?

Tushar Patil --> As I said the abundant manpower available in and around Belgaum is a major advantage we have. There is many Medical Transcription company’s based in Belgaum and there is enough scope to accommodate other sectors related to BPO. Bigger cities has had enough IT and BPO growth. The cost of doing business in bigger cities is horrendous compared to the cost of the same BPO job which can be done from Belgaum or Hubli. With a little push from the Government we can get things moving at a much faster pace.

3. What kind of shifts do you see coming from the recession? If any.

Tushar Patil --> Well customers are definitely guarded about the pricing and the service providers are looking for an innovative modernization strategy to achieve lower running costs. Companies whose leaders look ahead for opportunities that will follow post recession will have a competitive advantage when it’s over.

4. Is it going to be too different from what we are seeing now in terms of kind of outsourcing deals?

Tushar Patil --> Customers will be looking for more range of solutions from the same vendor. Also there is delay in signing new deals so it’s more of a WAIT and WATCH situation.

5. Are we also going to see any changes in the kind of skills you will seek in potential employees?

Tushar Patil --> Not much when it comes to ITeS industry.

6. What kind of order pipeline do you have for the coming few months?

Tushar Patil --> We have 2-3 large clients in pipeline.

7. What is your competitive edge in the industry in which you operate?

Tushar Patil --> 6 plus years experience in US healthcare industry

· One of the early entrants in this sector

· It’s an untapped industry in India

· Highly trained manpower

8. How do you see the healthcare segment growing?

Tushar Patil --> The US healthcare is a 2.5 trillion dollar industry and is expected to grow rapidly over the next decade. The Obama government might just present an exciting growth opportunity for the Indian IT service providers. The US spends 16% (one of the highest in the world) of its GDP on Healthcare and still 40 million individuals are uninsured. So the government plan aims for universal coverage for every US citizen. There will be significant influx of “the newly insured” into the health system as well as tremendous pressure on insurers and healthcare providers to reduce the costs. So the ITeS industry has something exciting coming all the way.

9. But has the healthcare vertical been fully immune to the slowdown?

Tushar Patil --> As far as our business is concerned, yes. We have been signing clients every quarter. But off course the US has been reeling under recession and has never seen this kind of unemployment. This leads to less consumption of healthcare products and hence less volume.

10. Is it easy to start up a BPO in Belgaum? Your experiences

Tushar Patil --> When we started in 2003 it was nightmare for us. The biggest problem we faced was internet. All our work is online so we need to be connected to the internet 24 hours. The downtime was almost 40% can you imagine that. We used to run to the DOT office at least 10 times a day. We lost couple of clients just for this reason. But now it is much easier to start a BPO shop in Belgaum. We have choice of multiple ISP which was not there in 2003.

11. What are your thoughts on the human resource talent in and around Belgaum?

Tushar Patil --> Frankly speaking there is still a dearth of skilled manpower in this belt. Schools and colleges must create awareness regarding BPO as a career and must introduce in its syllabus. Right now I don’t see anything happening and also computers must be mandatory in all institutions. We still get graduates who are computer illiterates. There is enough potential in Belgaum but we need to do more in raising the bar higher.

12. Your future plans?

Tushar Patil --> Right now our primary focus will continue to be Healthcare because that is our forte. We want to ramp up our capacity to at least 300 people from the present 70 in the next 4-5 years.

13. Your thoughts on the ITBelgaum initiative?

Tushar Patil --> It’s an excellent vehicle for the local entrepreneurs to build a platform which can be used to strengthen the image of Belgaum and to get Belgaum on the Global IT map. There are lots of interesting things coming up through this group which will help the future budding entrepreneurs. All the members are whole heartedly working towards a common goal.

14. How do you foresee Belgaum’s future for the IT and BPO?

Tushar Patil --> Infrastructure wise we are still lacking basic facilities and also air connectivity is a BIG issue which most of the clients look for. If these things are taken care then we can definitely see a bright future for Belgaum. Hopefully the ITBELGAUM group can make some difference!!!!!

15. Your thoughts on this website and its usability?

Tushar Patil --> It’s an excellent databank to get news about Belgaum. Hats off to you who single handedly took this initiative and also promoted the ITBelgaum group through this site. I wish you all the best for all your future endeavors.

Thanks to Aziz for these pictures.

This particular photo of the St.Mary’s church is again distinct, as all earlier images were taken from the side whereas this one is from the front.

All the old pics like these are treasures.

The Belgaum Dasara also has some magnificent history behind it. It may not be grand as the Mysore Dasara but in its own style its different and one of its kind.

The Simollanghan (crossing the border) is done at the Vidya Niketan grounds near St.Xaviers school. People from all lifestyles from young to old gather there for a yearly fair where the leaves of Aapti tree are looted on the pretext of it symbolizing Gold.

The Patil does the Puja and then the various Palkhi’s of the Gods come there like the Venkatramna temple, Maruti Temple, Jotiba temple and the Aapte tree leaves are looted and then exchanged with each other as gold.

The Camp Dasara has a different look. K T Pujari and sons started this utsav in 1901. There are 5 Devi chariots that are taken out in a procession which also end at the same grounds above. Marriama Devi of K T Pujari & sons, Muthu Mariamma from Madras BHT area, Kunti devi from fish market, Mariama from old Telugu colony. These 5 are supposed to be sisters.

See Photo album

Story behind exchanging Aapti Tree leaves as “sone” (Gold)

Kautsa, the young son of Devdatt, a Brahmin, was living in the city of Paithan. After completing education from Rishi Varatantu, he insisted on his guru accepting Guru Dakshina (present).

However, Guru said, “Kautsa, to give ‘dakshina’ in return for learning wisdom is not proper Graduation of the disciple makes the guru happy, and this is the real Guru Dakshina."

Kautsa was not satisfied. He still felt it was his duty to give his guru something. Finally, the guru said, "Alright, if you insist on giving me dakshina, so give me 140 million gold coins, 10 million for each of the 14 sciences I have taught you."

Kautsa went to king Raghu. Raghuraja was an ancestor of Lord Rama, famous for his generosity. However, just at that time he had emptied all his coffers on the Brahmins, after performing the Vishvajit sacrifice. He asked Kautsa to give him three days' time. Raghuraja immediately left to get the gold coins from Indra. Indra summoned Kuber, the god of wealth. Indra told Kuber, "Make a rain of gold coins fall on the "Shanu" and "Aapati" trees round Raghuraja's city of Ayodhya."

The rain of gold coins began to fall. King Raghu gave all the coins to Kautsa, and Kautsa hastened to offer the coins to Varatantu Rishi. Guru had asked only 140 millions, so he gave the rest back to Kautsa. Kautsa was not interested in money. In those days honor was considered more valuable than wealth. He asked the king to take the remaining gold coins back but the king refused to take them back as kings do not take back the daan (gift).

Finally, Kautsa distributed the gold coins to the people of Ayodhya on the day of Ashwin shukla dashami. In remembrance of this event, the custom is kept of looting the leaves of the "Aapati" trees, and people present each other these leaves as "sone" (gold).

Simollanghan – crossing the border - War Season

In ancient times kings used the feast of Dasara to cross the frontier and fight against their neighboring kingdoms. This border crossing is known as "simollanghan". Thus, Dasara also marks the beginning of the war season.

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police force is in the advance stage for procuring land in Belgaum.

In August this year at the chief ministers’ conference on internal security in New Delhi, BSY had pressed for an ITBP centre in Belgaum.

The premier force guarding the Sino-Indian border -ITBP- is on a land buying spree to accommodate its personnel in the plains after they spend about three years in the grueling heights of the Himalayas.

Source: Zeenews

Traffic police of city suddenly realized that there is law which prohibits others from seating in the seats reserved for ladies and senior citizen in a city bus. Normally the front seats are reserved for ladies and senior citizens.

Till now this law was never enforced but today once of a sudden this law was

enforced and the people seating in those reserved seats were fined Rs.100 on the spot at Bogarves. Most of the fined were college students.

No doubt the police are doing a good job after a long time, but fining at once seems to be too harsh one student said. The best part is how many more days this drive will be enforced needs to be seen.

By Vijay Itagi

Belgaum is surrounded by nature’s beauty and one can find beautiful places to relax and one such place is Tillari.

It’s a paradise; spot the beauty in the ghats and the water falls at Swapnavel point. There 3 waterfalls which will dampen your eyes with the beauty of heaven. Fog, the lush green trees and in this season the fresh scent of green grass is worth it. But as this area is not developed as a tourist destination be prepared for hardships. No sign boards or mile stones, no food and even for that matter petrol pumps so be prepared for all this before you leave. It is advisable to take food & water along.

Tillari is about 65 kms from Belgaum.

How to go there and what to see:

To see Tilari dam and waterfalls one has to take Belgaum-Ganeshpur-Belgaundi-Tilari Road. Since bridge after Rakaskop is under construction one has to take diversion from Yalebail and take alternate route to join Belgaum-Tilari route which connects to Tilari dam. It is very hard to tell exactly locations of waterfalls as there are no information boards or milestones. Sound of waterfall #1 can be heard from the road itself as it is very near. A small pass takes you there. From there waterfall #2 and 3 and Swapnavel point can be reached. [Points marked on images]

Entrance to Tilari dam without permission is prohibited, so one has to take permission from official personnel.

Entire red circled area is so picturesque that it looks extremely beautiful. If the view is covered with dense misty fog one can wait till it disperses.

Ghat section after Kadoli is awesome, but extremely dangerous because of deadly serpentine curves.

If you are planning to go there on bikes you must keep waterproof rain wears ready. As it can rain anytime even before you realize it’s raining you will be drenched.

Do not expect any shops, restaurants, petrol pumps. You may not find a single person throughout the route till you reach Tilari nagar.

To return to Belgaum it is advisable to take Tilari Nagar-Patane Phata road which connects to Amboli-Belgaum road.

So go and enjoy the heavenly paradise, many holidays ahead.

By Bramhanand Chipre (AAB’s History Editor)

Belgaum is one of the oldest, strong, prominent and well cultured historical place, nestling high in the Western Ghats. The old town area with cotton and silk weavers stands gloriously besides the modern, bustling, tree-lined British Cantonment. Step out of the forts and you have a wide choice of temples and churches to visit. Belgaum has an enviable heritage and offers much to be discovered. It lies in the zone of cultural transition between Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa with a known antiquity clearly traceable up to 2nd Century A.D. Due to its proximity with the states of Maharashtra and Goa, Belgaum has acquired the cultural flavor of these states and blended it with the local Kannada culture to create a rich heritage, which is unique in its manifestation. It is also known as Malenadu or Rain Country and the vegetation here is verdant green throughout the year. Well, centuries have passed and today it is an entirely different story. Belgaum has now become one of the important and considered districts in the state of Karnataka. Belgaum is now marching with a tag of fast growing, redeveloping district with a population of approximately over 5.5 lakhs.

The name Belgaum is originated from "Velugrama" or "Ikhsugrama". The earliest mention of this is made in the Nesari Plates of 805 AD. The archaeological inscriptions under A Sunder in the Vadgaon - Madhavapura area reveal a prosperous town of the Satavanhana times. Chalukyas and Rastrakutas administrated the territory. Later on Kadambas of Goa and Rattas ruled Belgaum. It was made the capital city under the Rattas. Afterwards Yadavas of Devagiri and Vijayanagar rulers governed the city.

In 1472 AD Bahamani's conquered Belgaum. The Adilshahis of Bijapur captured it in 1489.

Asad Khan a noble of Bijapur, ruled Belgaum from 1511 to 1540. His tomb is in the camp area.

In about 1550, Sherkhan a Bijapur coommander built the present town Shahapur, originally called shahpet. Shivaji, the Maratha ruler in 1673 invaded Belgaum.

The Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb defeated the kingdom of Bijapur and then he transferred Belgaum to the Nawab of Savanur. In 1756, Belgaum was conquered by the Marathas. It was under the Maratha until it was occupied by the British in March-April 1818. The British made it the headquarters of a Sarkar (District) with 15 paraganas (Talukas) in 1838. The British experienced the heat and chill of the 1875 Revolt in Belgaum also. A leader of the Revolt was sentenced to death at the Military Dairy. He was Nargund Baskar Rao alias Babasaheb. His ' Samadhi' is located at the Military Dairy. Foreigners have left behind their indelible impressions of Belgaum. Ralf Fitch (1583) calls the place “The first town between Bijapur and Goa ".
Geographer Ogliby (1680): remarks as one of the four eminent castles in Konkan.

Italian traveler (1695) calls it a populous city and a place of much trade with a large market.

Belgaum was one of the five military stations that were established in the Old Bombay Presidency. In 1878, it was made the headquarters of the Southern Division under the Bombay Presidency.

Belgaum hosted the 1924 annual Congress session which was presided over by Mahatma Gandhi as the president. It assumes greater importance as it was the one and only congress session held in Karnataka as well as presided by Mahatma Gandhi as the president.

Part of this was already published on this site earlier as well.

Asad Khan Darga Photo courtesy Aziz.