TCS keen to enter Pakistan

Top-level team visits Lahore, Karachi to assess business opportunities

The $2.2 billion Indian software services major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has taken the first steps to set up a base in Pakistan. If it succeeds, TCS will become the first Indian IT company to enter the market.

A team of top executives from TCS including its chief executive and managing director, S Ramadorai, was in Pakistan last week and visited Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad.

The TCS delegation held meetings to assess areas for synergy where the country's largest software company can use its expertise to render value to Pakistani IT industry.

During the visit, the team also met senior government officials to explore opportunities for cooperation in the field of information technology.

TCS could be the second company within the Tata Group to make a foray into Pakistan after Tata Tea.

Tata Tea and its international brand Tetley are already present in Pakistan through a joint venture with local Lakson Group of Companies under the name Tetley Clover Pakistan Ltd.

Tata Steel is also eyeing Pakistan for doing business in the country for the purpose of making primary steel and as also finishing facilities.

When contacted for details on the visit of Ramadorai, a TCS spokesperson said, "We are exploring new geographies on a continuous basis. We would not wish to comment on a foray into any specific market presently."

During the visit, Ramadorai, who is also the chairman of Nasscom, interacted with a cross-section of the country's business and commercial leaders, leading corporate houses, government officials and the officials of the Pakistan Software Houses Association.

Global technology majors already have established presence in Pakistan.

These include Nortel, Cisco Systems, Intel, Motorola, Ericsson, Microsoft, Oracle among others. Analysts point out that many of these companies are already global customers or partners of TCS, which could be an added advantage to the company.

The TCS move comes at a time when Pakistan is taking aggressive steps to become an IT outsourcing destination.