Unlike the ‘aam admi’, who was hit by the nationwide strike called by Opposition parties to protest against the recent hike in fuel prices, the country’s information technology-business process outsourcing (IT-BPO) companies breathed a sigh of relief as today was a public holiday in the US. The US celebrates its independence day on July 4. But since yesterday was Sunday, the American government had declared Monday as a holiday.

The country’s third-largest software company, Wipro, on Saturday decided to close its offices in Bangalore. Most other companies, including Infosys Technologies, MindTree and MphasiS, on Sunday decided to shut their offices in Karnataka, where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the main opposition party at the Centre, is in power.
 
At Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the country’s largest IT services exporter, it was business as usual as transport arrangements were made at some centres and associates were at work by 6 am. Some of them chose to work from home or at a closest location. “The marginal dip in attendance had no impact on our schedules,” said the company in a statement. (more…)