Infosys HR head Pai says salaries will not decline

Salary hikes in the information technology and BPO sectors are not likely to see any moderation from next year, but would continue to grow at the current rate of 12-15% annually, T V Mohandas Pai, head (HRD, education and research), Infosys Technologies, said.

"We feel it will still remain at 12-15%. The reason is nothing has changed so far," Pai added.

He said the Indian economy continues to grow at 9%, which means that many people have more options than before. "The external environment for IT remains the same. We have not seen the impact of subprime (mortgage crisis in the US). Nothing has changed," Pai said.

He also brushed aside suggestions that talent supply is improving. "In two years, you can't turn the tap on and say more people will come to the market."

Nasscom chairman Lakshmi Narayanan and Tata Consultancy Services chief operating officer N Chandrasekaran said last week that they expect salary hikes in the IT and BPO industries to moderate beginning next year.