Ravi Shankar Prasad, India’s communications minister, has announced that the government plans to set up new BPO firms in small towns, bringing 48,000 new jobs to those living outside of India’s cities.

“My idea is to have BPOs in Bhagalpur, Muzaffarnagar, Gorakhpur, Deoria, Saharanpur, Idukki, Aurangabad and places like Dhenkanal… The BPO centres will be allocated according to the population of each state as per the last census,” Prasad told the Hindustan Times.

Asides from bringing much-needed jobs to those living in remote locations, this new initiative is expected to improve the country’s literacy rate and slow down rates of urban migration, which are currently prompted by the lack of job opportunities.

The government’s plans have been welcomed by the majority of India’s BPOs. Praveen Kumar, global CEO and director of ISON Group, commented: “We are happy such a policy is being planned, we would like to explore such opportunities.”

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