NASSCOM, the premier trade body and 'voice' of the Indian IT-BPO industry, today kicked off its 5th annual NASSCOM HR Summit 2008 in Chennai. The inaugural session was attended by Mr C Chandramouli, IT Secretary, Tamil Nadu.

� More than 600 delegates have registered for the event and over 40 speakers representing over 350 IT, BPO and other companies will address the gathering. The HR Summit 2008 will provide a platform to examine various issues and challenges faced by the HR community in the IT industry.

NASSCOM also released the detailed findings of the NASSCOM-A.T Kearney study on 'Location roadmap for IT- BPO growth: Assessment of 50 leading cities' on the five locations in Tamil Nadu, namely Coimbatore, Chennai, Salem, Trichy and Madurai. According to the report, Chennai is a Leader location; Coimbatore, Trichy and Madurai are Challenger locations, and Salem is a Follower.

� Addressing the media on the sidelines of the Summit, Mr. Som Mittal, President, NASSCOM said, "We are delighted to present the fifth annual HR Summit and hope that discussions at this year's Summit will be as stimulating for the industry. The Indian IT- BPO sector has been a front runner of economic development in select cities, providing employment to a large number of people and improving the overall quality of life and amenities like education and healthcare in these cities."

Mr. Lakshmi Narayanan, past Chairman NASSCOM and Vice Chairman, Cognizant, said, "Tamil Nadu has the maximum number of potential IT and BPO locations, including three in the "Challenger" segment. Apart from the other factors, the state's growing IT and BPO potential in and beyond Chennai is also a result of the proactive support that the industry has received from the state government."

During the Summit, NASSCOM will also share updates on the various initiatives under way across the country, including the NASSCOM Assessment of Competence (NAC), NAC-Tech, National Skills Registry and other education, skill-building and talent programs.