TN govt launches finishing schools for rural BPO

[dwarakesh]

The Tamil Nadu government is set to establish finishing schools for training rural school dropouts to work in the BPO sector. Nasscom is also encouraging companies to look at rural BPOs as they can cut down one-third of their costs says a report published in the Times of India.

"Since they can save on infrastructure and operational costs, we want companies to explore the possibility (of outsourcing work to rural BPOs)," the paper quoted K Purushothaman, regional director, Nasscom. "For this, however, we need to enhance students' knowledge of industry, language and communication skills. We have suggested that ELCOT (Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu) set up IT finishing schools to address this need."

The finishing schools will be modeled on the same lines as Fostering Technologies in Rural Areas (Fostera), an established and successful BPO in Krishnagiri district. The schools are expected to be launched in the third week of February across 29 districts with a target of training 6,800 rural candidates in six months.

Companies such as Adventity and UDF have already given business to rural BPOs and Nasscom is showcasing the model to companies in Chennai which will generate enough interest from Indian and Multinational companies given the economic slowdown. According to estimates provided by ELCOT, companies could save up to $ 300 (Rs 14,580) per seat by shifting a portion of its operations to a rural location.

Source: Bpowatchindia