Indian IT industry left behind, should panic; says Rajat Gupta

The Indian IT industry should "rightly panic" as it is lagging in the fast-changing innovation, says India-born former McKinsey head Rajat Gupta.

Industries today have to constantly move with innovation because of automation, cloud technology, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence taking place of the IT work, he added.

Gupta, who served two years in prison for charges of insider trading,, is now gradually re-entering the social and philanthropic world.

Also read: Indian IT firms may face layoffs due to H-1B visa curbs

With digitisation and automation, Indian IT industry has been warned of prolonged layoffs, and with major markets like the US, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand following protectionism and closing doors for Indian IT engineers, now is the actual time for the industry to go into panic mode.

Gupta reminded of the urgent need for "revolution in education" so that knowledge is imparted not via lectures but by being more interactive, digital and participatory.

On huge youth unemployment issue that India and other major countries in the world are facing, he said, "India needs to create 20 million jobs a year and it is no way near that. Most of our skilling efforts in India are failures because certain elements are not built into it. It becomes a government scheme. Are (the youth) really skilled when they come out. No."

When asked about his take on the recent increase in hate crimes targeting Indian- Americans, he said that the community needs to be increasingly aware about their rights, which can be done by educational programs.

(Image source NRI Pulse)