Outlook for Indian IT sector is optimistic

Despite the threat of automation, the industry will continue to be an important driver of growth

There has recently been a lot of angst about the Indian information technology (IT) industry.  The anxiety has centred around two themes:

•  Is the $150-billion industry, which is about seven per cent of Indian gross domestic product (GDP), now heading for a period of stagnation?

•  The impact of the above and other global developments such as visa restrictions on the job market for IT professionals, considering that the industry employs four million professionals and indirectly generates many more jobs.

The anxiety tends to breed cynicism as witnessed by the response to a question in The Economic Times on May 15: “Are laid-off