The Origins of Training and Education in the Indian Information Technology Sector

The Indian information technology (IT) industry owes its success to the availability of well-trained professionals. This article traces the origins of training and education in Indian IT during the decades of the 1950s to 1970s in a difficult political and economic context that did not nurture new technologies. The Indian Statistical Institute’s faculty were among the first Indians who received training on computers. The Tata Institute of Fundamental Research built India’s first indigenous computer, set up the first national computational center, and started software engineering training for working professionals. The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur offered a 10-day course on the fundamentals of computing. A computing course was integrated into its undergraduate B.Tech. program. IIT Kanpur started the first graduate M.Tech. program and the first B.Tech. program in computer science. IIT Madras helped Indian firms build their internal IT capabilities and introduced an M.Tech. program focused on software.