BHUBANESWAR: Leading global professional services firm Deloitte set its foot in Odisha by opening its capability enhancement centre (CEC) at BMC-ICOMC tower here on Friday. The state-of-the-art facility, inaugurated by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, is spread over 55,000 sq feet. The chief minister reiterated the government’s commitment to facilitate Deloitte’s expansion in Odisha. The centre will provide further provide impetus to the state’s economy and create significant high-end employment opportunities for the youth, he said.
Bhubaneswar became the fourth Indian city after Thane-Mumbai, Gurugram, and Coimbatore to have Deloitte’s CEC, the company’s flagship office which delivers outstanding value through the adoption of best practices, usage of latest technologies, and deployment of a diverse and skilled workforce. The CEC in the state capital will expand to 1,500 professionals over 18 months and focus on areas like analytics, artificial intelligence, digitalisation, machine learning, cloud, and cyber security.
Speaking on the occasion, Union Education minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the centre will help foster an ecosystem of innovation in the region and pave the way for other global multi-national companies to explore Odisha, a land blessed with vast natural resources and talented human capital. “Development of eastern India is the pre-requisite for a developed India. This first-of-its-kind centre of Deloitte in this region will open up new possibilities for youth, position Odisha to lead industrial revolution 4.0 and accelerate its transformation as a knowledge economy,” he hoped.
CEO designate of Deloitte, Romal Shetty lauded the speed and responsiveness of the state government in facilitating the establishment of the centre. “Odisha is central to our plans and Deloitte will considerably expand the scope of its operations in the state,” he said. The firm reported a record aggregate global revenue of US$59.3 billion in the last fiscal and Indian professionals alone constituted close to one lakh of its multi-disciplinary global workforce of 4.3 lakh spread across 150 countries. Deloitte has also committed to impact the lives of 50 million individuals in the country, especially women and girls, through investments in education and skill building. Among others, minister for Electronics, IT and Sports Tusharkanti Behera, 5T secretary VK Pandian and IT secretary Manoj Mishra were present.