Concern over India's IT future

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Joe Leahy
FT Syndication Service
MUMBAI: India's shortage of computer science PhDs is so dire that it threatens the country's role as the world's information technology services outsourcing hub, according to the chairman of Microsoft India.
Although many Indians pursue post-graduate studies overseas, India's universities now produce only about 35 computer science PhDs a year compared with about 1,000 in the US.
"It's an incredibly urgent and important issue," Ravi Venkatesan told the Financial Times. "It affects the pipeline of future talent because the teaching institutions aren't getting enough qualified faculty and, of course, if you really want to do cutting edge innovation in computer science, you're restricted by the pool of talent out there."
The rise of India's $47bn (€33bn, £23bn) computer services outsourcing industry has been an important factor in the country's economic revival over the past decade as companies around the world move to take advantage of its abundant pool of English-speaking talent.
India's universities turn out about half a million engineering graduates a year but few stay on for post-graduate studies.
The World Bank estimates that the country produces a total of 7,000 PhDs a year across the entire spectrum of science, engineering and technology. "India's higher education system needs to produce more scientists, engineers and other masters and PhD graduates with skills matched to the needs of the innovation economy," the bank said in a recent report.