Despite the Satyam scandal and the impact of the economic recession, India’s software and services industry is still predicted to grow 16% to 17% according to the country’s outsourcing trade organisation, Nasscom.

The organisation is also optimistic about an economic recovery, estimating that the high-tech sector’s export revenue will reach $60 billion to $62 billion by 2010, an average increase of 30% over two years.

Nasscom chairman Dr Ganesh Natarajan said the next two years would see a strong focus on productivity, benchmarking and operational efficiency across the Indian IT sector.

“From a customers’ point of view, the focus will remain on consolidation, integration and regulation – all of which will drive newer business opportunities for the industry,” he said.

The organisation’s president, Som Mittal, acknowledged that while the Indian software and services industry would continue to grow despite global slowdown, “this is a time of learning and optimisation for the industry, [and] we would urge our member companies to see this as a silver lining”.

According to Nasscom’s report, the industry directly employs 2.23 million and indirectly contributes another eight million jobs to the Indian economy.