Nasscom, which has cut down the hiring forecast by half for FY19, contends that those who are leaving the IT industry are joining non-IT businesses.

The number of jobs, in fact, is growing if you include those jobs, according to Nasscom Chairman Raman Roy.

“That we have hired one lakh people doesn’t mean that the country has generated only that many jobs. The non-IT sectors have begun to hire IT professionals from the IT industry and also from the fresh talent pool,” Roy told BusinessLine on the sidelines of Nasscom India Leadership Forum (NILF-2018) on Wednesday.

In the absence of any enumeration of the IT jobs being created in non-IT businesses, Nasscom has begun to capture the hirings there. It, however, will take some time to reflect in the overall numbers.

“We have begun capturing the data but it is not at a stage that we can combine the numbers. It will take a couple of years,” he said.

While pegging the growth rate for exports at 7-9 per cent, a shade higher than the projection (6-8 per cent) for last year, the IT industry association has forecast net hiring of one lakh jobs. This is way lower than the forecast of 1.3-1.5 lakh jobs for the current financial year. The year would close at a net addition of one lakh jobs.

The outlook for FY19, released on Tuesday, pegged the hiring numbers at one lakh flat, reflecting the downward trend in the job sector in the last few years.

High-paying jobs

Roy, who is also the CMD of Quatrro Global Services, said the Centre is projecting a $1-trillion digital economy backed by several digital initiatives. “Digital is IT and there is a huge scope now. Average salaries in jobs in newer technologies such as AI, ML and Analytics are higher than those in the traditional skills,” he said.

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