India now hosts half of world's GCCs: CEA Nageswaran
What's the story
India is now home to nearly half of the world's Global Capability Centers (GCCs), Chief Economic Adviser (CEA) V Anantha Nageswaran said on Thursday. He made the remark while addressing the CII GCC Business Summit. The GCC ecosystem in India has evolved from its initial role as a back-office hub to a major player in various sectors, including finance and technology.
Employment growth
Over 2,000 back offices in India
Nageswaran highlighted that two decades ago, India had only a handful of back offices. Now, there are more than 2,000 such centers in the country employing over two million professionals. The employment figure is now heading toward 2.3 million while revenue has crossed $60 billion and is on its way to touch $100 billion.
Economic impact
GCCs contribute nearly 2% to India's GDP
The Chief Economic Adviser also noted that GCCs now contribute nearly 2% to India's GDP. They also account for a growing share of new office space in Indian cities every year. "On the latest count, India now hosts around half of the world's GCCs. No other country comes close," Nageswaran said at the summit.
Sectoral expansion
Role of Indian GCCs expanded across sectors
The role of Indian GCCs has expanded across sectors, Nageswaran said. Global banks run risk systems and trading platforms from Mumbai and Bengaluru, while carmakers design vehicles and embedded systems from Chennai and Pune, he added. Semiconductor firms do chip design in India while pharma companies do clinical analytics here whereas consumer firms build digital products from the country through these centers, noted the CEA.
Corporate development
Merck's India operations an example of sectoral expansion
Nageswaran also cited Merck's India operations as an example of this sectoral expansion. The German science and technology company recently opened an integrated campus in Bengaluru, housing some 3,300 people across data, artificial intelligence (AI), and enterprise technology. This facility is now Merck's single-largest concentration of digital capability globally.
AI hub
Second-largest base of enterprise AI talent
Nageswaran also revealed that over 1,200 GCCs in India are actively working on artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. "India has become the second-largest base of enterprise AI talent in the world," he said. He added that intellectual property created at these centers is real with patents filed here and products shipped from here.