Mumbai, Feb 15: In the face of a US backlash against moving IT projects to offshore locations in India, there is another challenge in store for the Indian IT industry.
By the end of this year, the number of H1B visas issued by the US may be brought down to 65,000 from the existing annual limit of 1.95 lakh visas.
Nasscom is gearing up to lobby against this reduction as the move would dramatically impact several Indian IT companies.
Unless a legislation is passed in the US by September this year, the total number of H1B visas will be brought down to 65,000. During the IT boom, the US government had increased this limit to 1.95 lakh in the face of a tremendous shortage of skilled personnel.
"Beginning this March, Nasscom will lobby against the cutback with Congress and Senate members," says ex-Nasscom chairman Phiroze Vandrevala, who plans to personally take up the issue with the US authorities.
Nasscom V-P Sunil Mehta adds, "Of the total limit of 1.95 lakh, the US government had issued 1.60 lakh visas, of which about 64,000, or 40 per cent, were issued to Indians."
It is, thus, clear that if the total number of visas is brought down to 65,000, Indian job seekers in the US would be the most impacted.
Says iFlex CEO Deepak Ghaisas, "It is a cause for concern, especially for smaller Indian software companies. When we commence work on a new client, we cannot always move all the work offshore, as new implementations require initial onsite support.
"Large IT companies can always utilise L1 visas, which allow intra-company transfers. However, companies that do not have a US presence will find the going very tough," he adds.
Industry analysts believe that with the continuing economic downturn in the US and the resistance to moving projects offshore, it would be a tough political decision for the US government to maintain the current limit on issue of H1B visas.
But Nasscom is not unduly worried. "We have tremendous support from US-based companies who need Indian skill sets that are critical for their businesses. We had even raised this issue with Bill Gates during his recent visit to India, and people like him are committed to extending their support to us," says Vandrevala.
Moreover, many multinational companies are now moving work to offshore locations in India. Mehta says, "This will ensure that onsite support need not be as intensive as in the past."
Bureau Report
