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G R N Somashekar

Silicon Plateau: Ms Sonia Gandhi, UPA Chairperson, and Mr N. R. Narayana Murthy, Chief Mentor, Infosys, at the inauguration of Infosys Technologies’ second Global Education Centre at the Mysore Campus on Tuesday. “Infosys is synonymous with creating India’s Silicon Plateau,” Ms Gandhi said.

Our Bureau

Bangalore, Sept. 15 Infosys Technologies’ expanded training facility at Mysore was inaugurated by the UPA chairperson and Congress president, Ms Sonia Gandhi, on Tuesday.

The launch of the second unit of the Global Education Centre or GEC-II would enable Infosys train 14,000 new employees at a time.

The company calls it the largest corporate training facility in the world.

The GEC-I, with a capacity of 4,500, was set up in early 2005. Built in the Graeco-Roman style, the GEC-II is, according to the Infosys Chief Mentor, Mr N. R. Narayana Murthy, the largest monolithic classical style building in post-Independent India. Infosys has invested Rs 355 crore in GEC-II, which has a built-up area of over a million sq.ft where the company can train 9,500 employees at a given time.

Ms Gandhi said, “It is a stunning reminder of what Indian talent, Indian ingenuity and Indian hard work can accomplish.” Infosys stands today as an embodiment of the climate of opportunity that was created earlier in India and that is being strengthened in recent years, she said . Asking Infoscians not to rest on their laurels, Ms Gandhi said, “Your success must not be measured in billions, but in the difference you make in transforming society for the better.” The success of Infosys, Wipro and Tata Consultancy Services and many IT companies had changed the lives of millions of Indians and propelled the Indian economy to record-breaking growth. “Infosys is synonymous with creating India’s Silicon Plateau,” she said.

Speaking about the enabling environment created by the Government for the growth of IT companies, Ms Gandhi recalled the temples of Modern India built by Pandit Nehru and the groundwork done by Rajiv Gandhi for creating a revolution — communication and information technology.

Rajiv Gandhi faced ‘bitter political opposition’ to his vision of introducing computers but his greater challenge was with the ‘mind-shift’ of people in terms of accepting new ideas, she said.

Infosys has made a total investment of Rs 2,055 crore in its Mysore campus spread across 337 acres since 1999, of which Rs 1,750 crore has been on creating education and training-related infrastructure. The company has invested Rs 350 crore in setting up software development blocks and related services.

“The education centre is a testimony to Infosys’ commitment to building competence of our employees. In 2008-09, more than 16,000 new entrants were trained and this financial year 16,000 more are expected to be trained,” said Mr Narayana Murthy.

Designed by architect Hafiz Contractor and built by Sobha Developers, GEC-II has seven blocks with eighty four 100-seater, three 200-seater, six 60-seater classrooms, five examination halls and 301 faculty rooms. It also has an induction hall that can seat 300 trainees, a library that can accommodate 80,000 books.

“The GEC-II is the single largest classical building in post-Independent India,” said Mr T.V. Mohandas Pai, board member and head of HR, at Infosys.

The GEC, which offers hostel facility, imparts generic and stream-specific training in various technology areas to fresh engineering graduates joining the company.

The GEC is also used to train employees in continuing education in technology and management skills.

More Stories on : Human Resources | Software | Infosys Technologies Ltd

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