Ministry keen to protect IT manpower (Ratan:read the 2nd part)
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, Feb. 19. ? Is 'More H1B visas' good news for Indian software professionals? Not so, feels the Ministry of Information Technology.
While US Senators have been lobbying for an increase in the quota of H1B visas for software professionals seeking a life in that country, the IT ministry here has disassociated itself from the move for "it will only facilitate the alarming flow of IT-enabled professionals to other countries".
According to ministry sources, the number of professionals who seek life abroad is, on an average, 28,000 per year. "It is an alarming number, considering our demand". It is estimated that India needs about 2.5 million IT professionals.
The ministry has held "unofficial consultations" with the Ministry of External Affairs to voice its concerns, but have mostly remained carefully neutral. It is learnt that the ministry - which should be the nodal agency for an exercise to determine the IT manpower potential of India - is not providing any inputs. "We have not been asked for any so far", remarked officials.
The ministry has set a target of generating an IT manpower pool of 2.5 million professionals by the next five years. It has voiced fears that if the one-way traffic to the US continues, it will be an uphill task to achieve its targets, including software exports worth $ 50 billion by 2008....
thestatesman.org
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Ratan:
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Benazir admits to terrorist schools in Pak
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
ISLAMABAD, Feb. 19. - Former Pakistan Prime Minister Ms Benazir Bhutto has admitted that there are terrorist training schools in the country, and has warned that unless these were dismantled, Islamabad would find itself internationally isolated.
"We have schools training people from all over the Islamic world for terrorism, and no country can shut eyes from these camps," NNI news agency quoted her saying in an interview with the Voice of America.
She said the main issue confronting Pakistan was its strained relations with India. "Pakistan has no concept of where it has to go in future", adding that other issues were "minor".
Ms Bhutto said PPP has demanded from the government a strong stand against growing militancy, but the government hasn't met the demand.
Moreover the military government is "taking position" for a prolonged rule. "We wanted them to announce the date of the election, but it seems instead of dealing with terrorism and peace-building in the region, they are wasting their energy in power tussle," she said.
"Gen. Musharraf has recently said he wouldn't allow the leaders of the two big parties to return to power. The question does arise as to who would decide the future of these leaders, the masses or the general?"
She said the junta wanted her disqualified from politics. "If Parliament nullified the verdicts of the courts functioning under him, the process of disqualification of politicians would come to an end."
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