The Hindu Business Line : IT-ITES revenues seen to grow 28%

Mr S. Ramadorai (left), Chairman, Nasscom and CEO & MD, TCS, with Mr Kiran Karnik, President, Nasscom, at a press conference in Mumbai on Thursday. - - Paul Noronha

Mumbai , Feb. 9

ANNUAL revenues of the Indian IT-ITES sector are expected to exceed $36 billion this fiscal, up from $28.4 billion in last fiscal, showing a growth of 28 per cent.

Of this, software and services is expected to bring revenues of $29.5 billion, of which exports are estimated to grow by 32 per cent to reach $23.4 billion in fiscal 2006, according to Nasscom's Strategic Review for 2006.

The hardware is estimated to account for $6.9 billion in revenues for the year. And the domestic market will account for $6.1 billion in revenues in 2006. The domestic market is expected to grow by nearly 22 per cent during the year.

The Indian IT-ITES sector was on track to achieve the targeted $60 billion in exports by fiscal 2010, said the review which was released here in the run-up to the 15th edition of Nasscom's summit `India Leadership Forum' this year.

The industry had registered steady growth in 2005, said Mr Kiran Karnik, President, Nasscom, at a news conference here today. Along with an increased presence of Indian IT companies across the globe, new service lines have emerged as the industry reached the next level in the services offered, he said.

"Mergers and acquisitions by Indian players is also a key trend. In spite of the growth seen so far, it is estimated that less than 10 per cent of the addressable market for globally sourced IT-ITES has been captured till date, indicating significant headroom for growth."

According to the Review, the IT-ITES sector would contribute to 4.8 per cent of the GDP in fiscal 2006. The total IT software and services employment is set to reach 1,287,000 this fiscal. The industry had launched skill assessment and certification programmes for entry-level talent and executives to enhance the availability of and access to talent for IT-ITES in the country. Nasscom is also working with academia across the country to encourage greater industry interaction.

The Review points out that the transition from outsourcing to global sourcing would drive the next phase of evolution in process quality frameworks and practices.

Nasscom 2006, to be organised between February 15 and 17, will discuss new horizons the industry needs to explore to move forward and expectations it will need to meet in its evolutionary cycle. Attendees are likely to discuss and debate the question — `Why still India?'

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