Indian IT industry to grow by 2.3% in FY21 despite contraction in tech spends: Nasscom

The Indian IT industry revenues are set to grow by 2.3 per cent to $194 billion in FY2020-21 and the exports will go up by 1.9 per cent to $150 billion, industry lobby Nasscom said on Monday.

The industry remained a net hirer in the fiscal year, which saw a major hit across the world because of the COVID-19 pandemic, with 1.38 lakh new jobs added to take overall employment to 44.7 lakh, it said.

"We have emerged more resilient and more relevant from the crisis. We have been the bellwether to lead the fight against COVID," the body's president Debjani Ghosh said.

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She said the industry has become the first sector to recover from the pandemic-induced crisis and hit growth despite headwinds like a 3.2 per cent dip in technology spends across the world on a 3.5 per cent contraction in the world GDP.

The overall deal pipeline is over $15 billion if one were to go by the numbers disclosed by listed companies, the body said.

On the outlook, 71 per cent of the 100 industry chief executives said global tech spends will be better in 2021. 

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Earlier this month, the Central Government had also proposed a possible amendment to the apprenticeship law with a view to enhancing opportunities for the youth. 

The government is also working out the best possible avenues available to set up a national-level research foundation. The government has earmarked a total of ₹50,000 crore over a five year period, the Finance Minister had said during her budget speech.

• With inputs from HT Correspondent