Techies told to keep off Mumbai-Hyderabad-Cities-The Times of India
Techies told to keep off Mumbai
28 Nov 2008, 0354 hrs IST, TNN
HYDERABAD: "Avoid Mumbai" was the blanket instruction issued to software professionals on Thursday morning with
security arrangements beefed up at their campuses and mails reaching their mail boxes before they logged on to their terminals.
Even as the hostage drama continued to unfold in three locations in Mumbai, headquarters of IT firms sent out mails asking their employees to stay away from public places, adhere to security instructions within the campus and, most importantly, avoid travelling to Mumbai.
While Dell has reportedly banned its employees from travelling to India, both Indian and multinational IT firms too have sent out advisory against Mumbai travel. While Satyam has issued a travel advisory asking its associates not to travel to Mumbai and asking those in Mumbai to leave the city, Oracle employees have received a mail from the firm's US headquarter asking its employees to avoid travelling to Mumbai. They have even been asked to stay tuned to television news channels for latest updates.
An updated travel advisory reached Microsoft employees on late Wednesday night itself wherein employees were given dos and dont's in case they were travelling to Mumbai. Microsoft employees in the commercial capital, meanwhile, were asked to stay indoors like most of the organisations' employees in Mumbai.
While Infosys hasn't issued a specific travel advisory it has touched base with its employees who could be travelling to inquire if they are safe and whether they have changed their travel plans.
However, as of now there have been no cancellations of conferences and conventions scheduled in the city. However, local offices of foreign organisations holding these conventions called up the venues on Thursday morning to find out the security arrangements made for the visiting delegates. "Such inquiries are being made. But there are no cancellations of any event,'' said a HICC official, adding that security had been beefed up and organisers' concerns were being put to rest.
Most IT firms too said that the security arrangements on campuses had been strengthened. "While no one is allowed inside our campus without identity cards, we are now even restricting areas frequented by guests,'' said a senior official of an IT firm. While some IT firms are now introducing police patrol on the campus, others are not allowing any vehicle parking near the office entrances.
Meanwhile, foreign nationals working for various firms in the city said they weren't perturbed by the Mumbai terror attacks. "I don't feel scared because it wasn't only foreigners but even Indians who were killed in this tragic incident,'' says Patrick Dempsey, a US national working in Hyderabad for the last three years. He says he is all set to attend a conference on Friday in a five-star hotel.
