Is IT sector losing its gimmick: Facts and Myths
Introduction:
There have been speculations that whether the glory the Indian IT sector gained in the 1990’s and early 2000’s is being withered away slowly and continuously. I am not saying this just because this is my belief but because this is a well known fact and it has become a topic of hot discussion among the various sections of the society.
The trend in 1990’s : The boom in IT sector
It was a very common trend in the 1990’s that the people were starting to shift from Government/Public sector jobs to Private sector jobs due to high opportunities in the IT sector and good Salary packages in comparison to public sector companies. Even I would prefer a private sector IT Company over a Public sector company if I would have been given an option of working in the 1990’s. The people who made into the blue chip companies in that era made a good fortune as there were not many skilled people in IT in those years. The compensation the Engineers got in those years was really exceptional in comparison to the Government jobs. The average salary of computer/IT engineer in those years was twenty to twenty-five thousands per month which was very good in comparison to the public sector jobs also considering the low inflation rates in those years, this was considered a very nice salary stack. I was not a surprise that very soon maximum of the population had started to dream about getting a job in a blue-chip company as a software/computer engineer. This was a golden opportunity for the people looking to find business opportunities in providing education to people. Very soon thousands of engineering colleges mushroomed all over the country providing engineering in various cadres at very high fees. Most of the parents did not mind spending few lacs to secure the future of their children as IT sector was seen as a great prospect for good future. But this time the people who thought of “Selling” education made a fortune with thousands of students enrolling with them to secure their future. Presently 15 Lacs engineers graduate each year aiming to secure a job in a good company.
Private sector jobs Vs Public sector
The scenario now is that the number of IT graduates has outnumbered the IT job vacancies in the country. Now the IT companies are having several options to employ someone for a post in the company. This is the reason that even till now the average salary of a software engineer in India is almost the same as it was in the 1990’s during the IT boom. This has resulted in wide discontent among the people working in the IT sector for their employers. The outer gimmick and glory of IT sector now seems to have withered away. With several pay revisions / pay commissions being undertaken by the government of India, now even a person employed as a C or D grade government employee can earn more than a IT/software engineer while working less than an engineer. This is causing a number of IT engineers to shift towards a government sector jobs hence reversing the trend of the 1990’s. The engineers have to work day and night 24x7 in the leading IT companies.
Conclusion
Even though there are good employment opportunities in the government sector but if we are to look for removing un-employment from the country we need to get the private sector involved. But in order to re-gain the trust of the people the private sector companies should drop the capitalist ideology and think of sharing the profits earned generously with its employees. Only then can we remove un-employment from the country and have a healthy work culture where no individual thinks that their employer is exploiting them.
I am yearning to see that India very soon. Jai Hind !
Like it on Facebook, Tweet it or share this article on other bookmarking websites.