Growth verticals
The government, education and healthcare verticals are expected to be the top-performing sectors in 2009-10. Nearly 52 percent of the respondents said that the government sector will be the biggest demand driver for IT, followed by education (48 percent), healthcare (28 percent) and BFSI (17 percent).
Partners expect the new government to increase spending on public infrastructure and education, leading to increased IT demand from these sectors. There is also optimism that the government’s top priority in the coming months will be increased public spending. This will give a fillip to the overall economy as it would mean increased spending in the social sector.
“A stable government at the center will ensure continuity of reforms and this will definitely recharge the markets. I expect to see increased government spending in the social sectors, education and infrastructure,” says A L Srinath, CEO of Shell Networks.
Agrees Ajit Mital, CEO of Acme Digitek Solutions, “So far we haven’t seen any let-up in government projects, whether led by the state or central governments. There are several new projects on the anvil in both UP and Uttaranchal, and thus government spending on IT will only increase. Education institutions, both private and public, are showing significant appetite for IT, and there are several new infrastructure projects being rolled out in the north.”
Healthcare is another sector that is showing great promise. “In Gujarat, we are seeing several healthcare projects being implemented in the tribal areas by the state government in partnership with the World Bank. Public healthcare is becoming a focus area for several states, and all these initiatives are being conceptualized and executed with the latest technologies,” points out Kamlesh Shah, Director, Care Office Solutions.
Meanwhile, the Indian banking sector has withstood the global slowdown, hence the demand from this sector is likely to be strong. “Fortunately, the Indian BFSI sector hasn’t been impacted by the global turmoil. Most private and nationalized banks are well on track with their expansion plans. For instance, ICICI Bank has started building its infrastructure for another 580 branches,” notes Manoj Bisht, CEO, M K Infosystems.
Yet, understandably, the market seems to have clearly given a thumbs-down to the ITES industry which is going through challenging times. No one was willing to bet on it.
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