Aegis launches BPO operations in Valley

SRINAGAR: Aegis, a business process outsourcing (BPO) company under the Essar Group umbrella, commenced its operations in Kashmir recently.

Post-militancy, this is the first time that a venture of such magnitude has been undertaken in the Valley.

Set up at the Rangrate IT Park near Srinagar, the BPO centre boasts of the latest technology and offers world-class facilities in line with other Aegis centres across the globe, company president Sudhir Agarwal told PTI.

He said that the company has recruited 200 employees from the Valley to fulfill its commitment of providing employment to the local youth.

Agarwal said that Aegis Srinagar has already tied up with Vodafone. "The Srinagar office will serve domestic clients, including telecom service providers and financial institutions," said the Aegis president, who provides strategic advice and guidance to teams across centres in India, Philippines, South Africa, Australia and Sri Lanka.

He said that Aegis Srinagar will offer direct and indirect employment opportunities to over 2,000 youths from the Valley once it becomes fully operational.

Lauding Aegis state president Zahoor Malik, Agarwal said that he had ensured the "seamless introduction" of Essar Group's ventures in Jammu and Kashmir.

Malik, in turn, praised the State Government for helping Essar establish the centre. "The government provided Aegis Limited with the space it required. From the foundation stone-laying by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to helping us commence operations, the State Government has always been by our side," he said.

Noting that the state-of-the-art Aegis BPO centre was spread over an area of 22,000 sq ft, he said that local youths were recruited not only for the BPO centre but also departments pertaining to housekeeping, transport, centre development and maintenance.
Elaborating on the technical aspects of the BPO, Aegis senior vice-president Faisal Durani said that the capacity of the Srinagar centre is being enhanced from 250 to 500 seats. Customer service executives and call centre agents are inducted into the BPO centre only after being trained extensively for a month, he added.