Hero Group to create 200 call centre jobs in Scotland

London, Oct 12 (ANI): Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond has announced that 200 jobs are to be created at Indian-owned calls centres in the country during the next year.

The Hero Group will recruit the new staff during the next 12 months to work in call centres in Larbert, near Falkirk, and in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire.

The firm already has seven call centres in Scotland, employing more than 1,600 people, and has been awarded 850,000 pounds to significantly extend its European trade operation, The Scotsman reports.

HEROtsc, which is part of the Hero Group, has expanded its operations into other areas including training, offshore call centres, IT, financial services and insurance.

Staff taking up the jobs will field calls about services and products for key clients of the Indian firm, such as Sky TV and Vodafone.

Salmond, who is in India to attend the Commonwealth Games, met chairman of Hero Group Sunil Munjal and president of Hero Management Services Rohit Chanana.

Salmond said: "The Scottish Government continues to work hard to attract jobs and investment to Scotland and I am delighted that HEROtsc is expanding operations by creating 200 new jobs."

"This announcement demonstrates the skills and expertise of the workforce in Scotland which will enable HEROtsc to significantly extend its reach across European markets," he said.

Salmond said that 11 Indian companies had made investments totalling 700 million pounds in Scotland during the past five years, employing more than 3,200 people. (ANI)