The Hindu : US curbs violate WTO spirit, says Satyam chief

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Feb 02, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

US curbs violate WTO spirit, says Satyam chief

By Our Staff Reporter

VISAKHAPATNAM, FEB. 1. The Chairman of Satyam Computers, B. Ramalinga Raju, on Sunday said that the move to restrict outsourcing in Federal works in the United States was a "new trend violative of the spirit of free flow of trade and services envisaged by the World Trade Organisation (WTO).''

Mr. Raju was here to inaugurate the Rajah Vasireddy Venkatadri Naidu Computer Centre set up by the Anil Neerukonda Institute of Technology and Sciences at Sangivalsa in Bheemunipatnam mandal. He said that the recent law might not have much of an impact on India's software exports as Indian companies were not taking up such projects on a big scale. "But it is a disturbing trend and we must make all attempts to nip it in the bud,'' he said and asked the Central Government to safeguard the interests of the software industry by exerting pressure on the US administration to abandon the move aimed at defeating the spirit behind introduction of the WTO regime.

Forecasting a bright future for the Indian IT industry, he said that Andhra Pradesh would continue to occupy a significant place in the global software business. He said Visakhapatnam would also become a major IT hub. "We will come here sooner or later. But right now, we have no plans. Depending on our growth in the next two years, we will think of setting up a project in Visakhapatnam,'' Mr. Raju said. Replying to a question on the relevance of the Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) movement launched by Richard Stallman, he told reporters that it was a moot point and there were divergent views on it. "The contention of Microsoft is that the overall costs will be less. However, there is no denying the fact that, of late, Linux systems have also made great strides,'' he pointed out.

Commenting on the neglect of the hardware segment of the IT industry, Mr. Raju said that the country was lagging behind in the segment and there should be balanced growth. "If hardware is not developed, it is likely to have some impact on the software segment too as both are dependent on each other,'' he observed.

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