BPOs create a ray of hope during global recession

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Earlier considered as bane, the BPOs proved to be an important fuel in the economic growth. If we take a closer look we will find that the country had already educated middle class before the economic reform thus proving a great advantage.

CJ: Rohit Srivastava

Mon, Nov 30, 2009 10:29:22 IST

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IN THE past, a lot has been written about it, sometimes criticised and sometimes praised. But this industry has made its presence felt in the country over decade and has been a silent crusader in creating maximum number of jobs for the masses.

According to the 2001 census, the population of the country was 102.9crore. If one views it in the global scenario India’s population is 16.9 per cent of world population and 2.4 per cent of global land area. Currently the population is estimated to around 111.2 crore.

The growing population was considered as a bane rather than a boon. However, things changed in the early 1990, when the then Finance Minister and the present Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh took a revolutionary decision to open up the once closed economy for the global players, thus facing sharp criticism from the opposition and few sections of the media but was firm in his decision.

A decision which gave a boost to the already staggering Indian economy and today, one can witness the result, there is a whole new world in front of the youth -- be it in the aviation industry, retail sector, journalism or IT and not to forget the BPO (business process outsourcing) industry.

Outsourcing is delegation of tasks or jobs to an external entity. Offshore outsourcing is increasingly taking the shape of BPO where whole business processes (such as support and development) are outsourced. The client is usually free to choose the service provider and the outsourced business process.

Earlier considered as bane, the same resource proved to be an important fuel in the economic growth. If we take a closer look, we will find that the country had already educated middle class before the economic reform thus, proving a great advantage. Hence, the service sector dominates the Indian economy at 55 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).

Repeatedly, this industry has faced a lot of character assassination from the media, like the working environment disturbs ones body clock. It spoils youngsters by promoting Western culture and turning them into more materialistic human beings. Unfortunately it still has a hazy picture among the masses.

“I think it is almost impossible for any government to generate employment for the masses; they are only bothered about their own vote banks and their positions dividing the masses between caste and religion. Moreover, how can one trust them when most of them are tainted,” says annoyed Atul Rawat, an associate from international BPO.

Says Gautam Chatterjee, another BPO employee, ”In the past it was projected in a negative picture by the media due to its late working environment and young crowd who constitute a major work force but every industry has its flip side, same here. One cannot forget maximum number of jobs created every year and I think that at least one individual from every house in national capita region (NCR) works in some or the other BPO and making out livelihood and above all they are contributing to the public exchequer by paying income tax.”

“In the past, there were certain job profile which had night shifts like the railways, the armed forces and the police force, in fact, the government has heaved a sigh of relief because this industry has lowered the magnitude of unemployment,” further adds Chatterjee.

“Call centers are not just about calling. There are other profiles within the industry where an individual can work according to their academic qualifications. You have the human resource, quality, finance, the technological support and probably you can become a trainer as well,” says Rohit Sharma, team leader in a BPO at Noida.

Echoing the same sentiment, Jasbir Singh senior manager in a leading international BPO says, “Perhaps this is the only industry which gives at least on chance to work and earn unlike others where you have lot of filtrations. Not only this, there are lot of people who want different career options or want to seek higher education but are facing financial constraints can be a part of this industry. They can earn and can shape up their dreams.”

Not only this, there are a lot of other jobs that the BPO industry has created. Call centers, which provide transport facility, require vehicles for their staff. Thus, drivers are needed and appointed. Same is the case with caterers who have a fixed source of income every month unlike yesteryears when they generated income during the wedding season only.

In addition to this, each and every call centre (national and international) employs people for house-keeping and security purposes, providing them livelihood. Whatever may be the case even when there is global recession in the markets it is still creating jobs and thus is creating a ray of hope to the millions of unemployed in the country.

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