BANGALORE: Software major Infosys Technologies has taken the initiative with an affirmative action programme to forestall reservation becoming an albatross round its neck.

As a first step, about 60 youngsters belonging to the scheduled caste (SC), scheduled tribes (ST) and other backward castes (OBC) youth from North Karnataka were trained at its BPO subsidiary Progeon and 50 of them have already received job offers. Infosys has begun a programme with an educational institution to train young engineers from the disadvantaged sections on a bigger scale.

“In the first phase, about 100 people would be trained,” Infosys director and human resources head T V Mohandas Pai (pictured) told DNA Money.  The tech major has also started programmes in engineering and degree colleges called “Campus connect” and “Genesis” to enhance quality of students, so that majority of them are employable.