India's software industry looking beyond 2008

India's booming IT industry is already looking beyond 2008. Industry body Nasscom is currently preparing a position paper outlining the strategy for developing the country's software industry so that it can secure a higher percentage of the global IT pie as well as increase the industry's share in the country's GDP.

The paper, outlining Nasscom's vision, would be released before February, S Ramadorai, Nasscom chairman said here. It would dwell on a set of initiatives needed to scale up the export potential of IT industry and also expand the domestic market, particularly in the fields of education,training, talent-building, market-access and infrastructure,among others.

"In the strategic paper we are looking at both IT and BPO together; not one or the other," Ramadorai, also CEO and managing director of TCS, said.

The Nasscom-Mckinsey study released in December 1999 projected India's software exports at US$ 50 bn and domestic market-size of US$ 37 bn by 2008. The paper would spell out steps needed to go beyond that so that the industry plays a bigger role in global IT market and increases its share in GDP.

Asked about Nasscom's view on entry of trade unions in BPO companies, Ramadorai said, "Our view is that so long as people in BPO companies have career options, professional well-being is taken care including conditions under which they work, unions are not required."

On the recent spat between sections of the IT industry and ruling party politicians over infrastructure, Ramadorai said Nasscom views infrastructure as a critical need for the sector's well-being.

"We do not get into specific issues," he said. "Infrastructure has to be world-class if we want to service our global customers, including Indian customers."

Ramadorai said the IT industry has reached a certain stage of its evolution and the whole debate is centred on how to take it to the next, higher level and not on city-specific, company-specific or individual-specific issues.

He also added that IT companies should also look at tier-ii cities as "networking capabilities are available everywhere today.