India is the seventh largest country in the world but most importantly it is the second largest by population with over 1.2 billion inhabitants. At the latest estimate, around 42% of the population live below the World Banks definition of the poverty line. But this has reduced from 60% in 1981 and India`s economy is set to quadruple over the coming decade. It is already the 11th largest economy in the world and has generated growth rate of 5.8% per annum for the past decade. This makes it one of the fastest growing economies in the world.

There are over 516 million people in the labor force and whilst 28% of GDP is generated through agriculture it is the growing industrial and technology sectors that will form most of the growth in coming years.

Although hourly wage rates have almost doubled in the past 10 years but the Global Competitiveness Report has rated India 16th in terms of financial market sophistication, 24th in banking, 27th in business and 30th in innovation.

One of the principal reasons for the growth in the technology market is the availability of well educated English speaking workforce. With relatively low labor costs (a skilled programmer can cost 50% of a western wage), India has become one of the most important outsourcing destinations for high tech and call centre businesses looking to reduce costs.

One of the main areas has been in the provision of on line customer support. The cost of hiring a trained customer helpline person in India is as low as $200 per month compared to that cost fro a few days in the US.

E-commerce has grown significantly in the past decade meaning that the actual base of an operation can be anywhere provided the infrastructure and resources are available. India has these in abundance. Major cities such as Bangalore, India`s third largest, have begun to be recognized as centres of excellence for research into telecommunications, aerospace and defence. As the countries largest IT exporter, it has the nickname of the Silicon Valley of India.

Other cities have fares well too in recent years. Delhi, the capital, has seen a rapid growth in technology and retail businesses whilst Kolkata has an IT sector that is growing at 70% per annum.

One of the fastest growing areas in recent years has been in medical records transcription into electronic databases. With audio records sent to India at the close of office hours in the US a written transcription can be available at the start of the next working day.

But it is not only in the lower skilled segments that the opportunities exist. Thanks to the excellent education system the country is producing high calibre graduates that are feeding the IT segment. Programmer costs can be 25% to 50% those of a developed western nation and with the ability to outsource and manage complex work schedules becoming better developed the quality control risks are reducing.

Whilst this all means a steady flow of business executives to India there is also a growing trend for successful Indian business people in exporting their business ideas to the UK. All this means brisk trade for the many car hire Heathrow businesses!

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About Alok Vats

Hi friends, my name is Alok Vats, and I am the owner of this website I News India. From last four years I am trying to build this website, I started this website from scratch and then with the help of my friends like Pooja, Prachi, and Divya I published many articles over here. Recently Harshita too joined my website, and am really glad to share some articles written by her over here. I am sure many of you would love the same.

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