Education-based SEZs to be set up in smaller cities

Bangalore, Oct 30: The Centre will set up separate education based SEZs in smaller cities in the country to reduce the growth pressure being witnessed in metros, Union Additional Secretary of Information Technology (IT) Madhavan Nambiar said today.

Delivering the keynote address at the Human Resources conference on 'Evolution of HR in India', organised as part of IT exposition 'Bangalore IT.in', he said that though the country produced a large number of engineering graduates, only 30 per cent of them proved fit for jobs.

''We are the youngest work force in the world, with an average age of 24 years, compared to China's 30 years. However, only 30 per cent of the youth, who take up jobs undergo vocational training as against the 68 per cent in developed countries. The Union Government is planning to set up finishing schools to improve the employability of the Indian youth,'' Mr Nambiar said.

A special session on 'What CEOs expect from Human Resources', attended by a large number of HR fraternity, provided interesting insights into the sea change witnessed in the HR department.

Job hopping among the IT professionals was becoming a passion, resulting in the attrition rate climbing up steadily in the IT industry. This was proving to be a threat to the growth of the industry in the country, CEOs of major IT players felt while speaking at the conference.

Speaking on the occasion, Datacore Technology COO and Founder of HRinIndia Raghav said ''with the advent of IT revolution in the country, the genesis of HR has seen a sea change. From a small office in the factory, it had now entered the board room. From carrying out the main task of preparation of pay rolls, the HR department has assumed a strategic role.''

Tata Consultancy Services Director N G Subramanium said CEO and HR fraternity were like hand and glove that helped shape revolutionary performance from the employees. HR was no more an organ that distributed pay slips, dealt with the labour or industrial disputes. HR fraternity had become experts in man management that was vital for an organisation to grow in the globalised scenario.

''The job of the HR Director is to create agents of change. The culture in an organisation is developed because of this person. He will have to squeeze more out of the clock. Growth in IT industry has brought tremendous challenges in management scale. The new HR fraternity needs courage. It should not see people as commodities.

There is a need to touch the hearts and minds of the people,'' he said.

Dell Computers Country Manager Vivek Mansingh said the new challenge IT companies faced was not that of technology or market, but ''how to create people who can be leaders''. Globalisation in HR would be a strategic move India should make in the present scenario.

''HR fraternity has to understand the global rule to improve the standard of HR, employee performance and the overall administration of the company. We have to globalise HR, otherwise we will not be able to produce globally competitive companies. Our youth should understand that excellence comes only with experience and not by mere job hopping. They should understand the difference between a job and a career,'' he said.

Dr Mansingh said India should invite foreign universities to set up campuses in the country to improve the standard of education. The country failed to produce mind power on par with global standards mainly because of sub-standard teaching staff in most of the private institutions.

''When we can invite multinational cola companies, why can't we invite foreign universities. Afterall, it is the Indian student who stand to benefit from this,'' he added.

UNI

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