The Hindu Business Line : IT Dept seeks action plan to address talent crunch

Faced with an impending shortfall of skilled manpower in the hi-tech sector, the IT Department has set in motion a process to draw up an action plan jointly with the Planning Commission, the Human Resources Development Ministry and the software industry, to address the issue as part of the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-2012).

"The issue is not so much about the absolute numbers, as about the shortage of right skill-sets and quality in the coming years. With the 11th Five Year Plan in the process of being formulated, we have requested the Planning Commission that the Department of IT should work in close co-ordination with the HRD Ministry on the issue. The Planning Commission is likely to set up a working group that will go into various aspects of manpower crunch in the IT sector and propose ways of ensuring adequate trained manpower supply," the IT Secretary, Mr D.S. Mathur told Business Line.

Various studies have indicated a massive shortfall of skilled manpower in IT services and BPO sectors. Against a requirement of 2.3 million-strong IT and BPO workforce by 2010, the Nasscom-McKinsey Report 2005 indicates a shortfall of nearly 0.5 million qualified employees, about 70 per cent of it in the BPO-ITES space and 30 per cent in IT Services.

The Nasscom report states that currently only 25 per cent technical graduates and 10-15 per cent of the general college graduates are suitable for employment in offshore IT and BPO industry and points out that India lacks workers who are fluent in French, German, Japanese and Spanish, making China and Eastern Europe more attractive offshore destinations for Japanese and Western European companies.

"There are various issues to consider including whether the curriculum is being revised to take note of the frequent obsolescence of technology. Further, Indian companies are setting up centres in the US, Europe and China and would need quality manpower for expansion going forward. The domestic market too is growing at a fast pace, throwing up the need for an adequate supply of professionals," Mr Mathur said, adding that the issue had come up for discussion at a recent meeting with the Planning Commission officials.

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