India will need 500,000 IT professionals in 5 yrs
June 06, 2007 16:28 ISTIndia's information technology sector would require nearly 500,000 professionals in the next five years to cater to the growing needs of this booming industry, Kiran Karnik, president National Association of Software and Service Companies said on Wednesday.
Currently, the industry required 300,000 professionals, however the number was expected to nearly double with the sector being poised for huge growth, he said during the inauguration of the country's first IT finishing school. Though the institutes churned out a huge number of engineering graduates, the industry was left with less than 300,000 professionals to hire from, since many of them turned entrepreneurs, some sought jobs overseas while others opted for higher studies, Karnik said.
It was not only shortage of numbers that was a matter of concern but also the quality being churned out. "We have been expressing our concern on human resource position in terms of quality. Several graduates lacked polish and there was huge gap in the areas of soft skills like communication, articulation, and team work," he said.
Applauding the setting up of the RIIIT finishing school at Mysore, he said such a finishing school would result in the development of industry-ready professionals.
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