Indian techies snubbing west in favour of home

Indian tech graduates are increasingly turning their back on western countries in favour of finding work at home.

Graduates from the Indian Institutes of Technology — so-called "IITians" — told Evalueserve that India was fast catching up with the US for the range and quality of career prospects.

Between 1964 and 2001 the number of IITians staying in India was 65 percent but this jumped to 84 percent between 2002 and 2008.

The survey of 667 IITians found this was being fuelled by shifting attitudes: between 1964 and 2001, 60 percent believed developed countries offered the best employment prospects, but this fell to 51 percent between 2002 and 2008, with 49 percent believing India now offered better opportunities.

Most tellingly, 72 percent of IITians predicted that in 10 years India would be the country holding the most promise of success, with only 17 percent choosing the US and five percent Europe.