Indian IT-BPO to achieve 60 billion USD by 2010: Report

Kolkata, May 20 (UNI) The Indian IT-BPO sector is likely to achieve a target of USD 60 billion in export revenues by 2010, according to the Union Communications and Information Technology Ministry.

According to a special report of information technology department the software and ITES exports from the country grew from USD 12.9 billion in 2003-04 to USD 23.6 billion in 2005-06 and exceeded by 32 per cent last fiscal.

In 2006-07 the IT-BPO sector witnessed a revenue growth of about ten times over the last decade, the report stated adding that the total IT-ITES exports from the country exceeded USD 31.3 billion during the year.

The US and the UK remained the dominant markets for software and ITES exports by contributing 67 per cent and 15 per cent of total exports respectively, the report added.

However, MNCs were also keen to explore new geographies for business development and strengthen their global delivery footprint.

In the past six years India's share in global sourcing is estimated to have grown from 62 to 65 per cent for IT and 39 to 45 per cent for BPO.

However, the Central IT department assured that the Indian IT-BPO sector was ensuring that requisite remedial actions were undertaken in time to avoid any talent crisis.

Several firms had also established dedicated facilities and terms, for employee skill enhancement initiatives.

The total number of IT and ITES-BPO professionals employed in India was estimated to have grown from 2,84,000 in 1999-2000 to 16,30,000 in 2005-06 and 3,40,000 the last year.

Besides, Indian IT-ITES was estimated to have helped create an additional 3 million job opportunities through indirect and direct induced employment.

Indirect employment included expenditure on vendors including telecom, power, construction, facility management, IT transportation, catering and other services.

The domestic software market was also picking up, showing definite signs of breaking out of the trend of hardware linked growth with the contribution of software and services exceeding that of hardware for the first time in 2005-06.

The total size of the domestic market was expected to cross Rs 37,800 crores in 2006-07.

Indian firms were gradually gaining ground to compete with the MNCs.

The Indian IT and ITES sector contribution to the national GDP was estimated to rise from 1.2 per cent during 1999-2000 to 5.4 per cent during 2006-07.

UNI