IT’S a stereotype that Apoorva Sharma does not fight. Ever so often, driving him to his office in Suntec Towers in the central business district of Singapore, the friendly cabby pops him the question: “Indian? Working in bank lah?” That is not the way it used to be. Three years ago, when Sharma, an IIM-Ahmedabad alumnus, moved here, “cab drivers asked whether I work in IT”, he says. “It’s like a sector log, tracking contributions by Indians.”

To keep its growth engines revving, the city state is rolling out the red carpet for skilled Indians. In his National Day address, prime minister Lee Hsien Loong said: “We need immigration. Welcome talent to come to Singapore.”

Indians have worked in Singapore for years, but this is perhaps the first time that they are being wooed as a matter of state policy. Not without reason. Better-than-expected growth has suddenly left Singapore short of talent. And a falling birth rate isn’t helping either.

For 2006, the Ministry of Trade has revised the economic growth forecast to 6.5-7.5 per cent from 5-7 per cent. In the first half, the rate was an impressive 9.45 per cent. During the same period, the city added 81,500 jobs, the highest in 10 years; a big part of this in the banking and finance, and the service sectors.

Meanwhile, Singapore’s fertility rate declined last year to 1.24, well below the 2.1 needed to sustain the population.

As the state wants to keep growing aggressively, it is time for talent hunting firms to make hay. James Rushworth, associate director of recruitment company Michael Page International in Singapore, says: “There are more jobs than candidates in the financial services... Singapore has a good record of attracting talent from India, especially in financial services and IT.” He adds that some of his clients have recently hired Indian chartered accountants and are very pleased with them. “Young, highly-qualified Indian professionals with 3-5 years of experience are recruited,” he says.

Indian management graduates, especially from the IIMs, are hot favourites. Says Anu Raju, president of the IIM-A Alumni Association in Singapore: “We have seen a huge rise in the number of fresh IIM-A graduates coming here. Almost 15 graduates have come to Singapore each year for the last two years.” She estimates that the IIM community in the city state is now 600-strong.

Graduates of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are in demand too. Biswajit Khan, general secretary of the local IIT alumni association, says that membership has jumped 25 per cent from the last year to over 500 now. “IITians are on every trading floor in Singapore and in decision-making roles. With their analytical skills, IITians are handling critical functions.” Among areas of work he cites credit and mortgage risk, equity analysis, and structured financial products.

Equally insatiable remains Singapore’s demand for IT and related services — digital media and converged products being the next wave. Khan, who is also the regional business head (banking and financial services) at NIIT Technologies, says that engineering and IT skills are highly sought after. “Many MNCs have their business headquarters in Singapore and are thinking of moving their IT services functions closer. We understand that Barclays and Credit Suisse are ramping up their IT operations in Singapore, which will translate into fresh demand for IT talent”.

New frontiers: “Singapore is gradually and systematically transforming into a knowledge-intensive service economy,” says Pradeep Kumar Menon, executive director, Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. While IT, banking and financial services remain growth sectors, there are new industries on the horizon.

For instance, Singapore is pitching to become the next biomedical research hub. Lee has announced that his government would “put more investments into biomedicine so that we will be able to do clinical research”. This is the sector to which a number of young IIT engineers are finding their way.

Jobs in the offshore oil and gas projects are also on offer. “Our engineers are designing and structuring the marine exploration platform and are becoming an integral part of the oil exploration and processing industry,” says Devashis Dutta, president of the local IIT Alumni Association. Shell has a multi-billion-dollar petrochemical project on Pulau Bukom and on Jurong Island. Exxon Mobil, too, is planning a major project.

Meanwhile, Singapore is taking pleasure very seriously as it readies the lavish $5-billion integrated resort (IR) at the south-central tip of the country, in the Marina South area. According to Lee, the IR and tourism are expected to create about 30,000 jobs. And this is not taking into account the plans for the second resort at the retreat island of Sentosa, for which four global investors are reported to have shown interest.

Finally, the construction boom is being sustained partly by Indian workers. Explains S. Narayan, head (research), Institute of South Asian Studies: “If Singapore says we do not want these workers, but want only highly-skilled Indians, it will be short of workers, which it will have to import from other countries. And that will be an expensive proposition. It is by choice that Singapore allows these workers.”

Stronger trade ties: In August 2005, India and Singapore signed the Comprehensive Economic Co-operation Agreement (CECA). Neerja Bhatia, head (South-east Asia region), Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), says that since then, trade between the two countries has grown 41 per cent. “[It] is [worth] nearly $7 billion now. Singapore’s investments in India have gone up by as much as 300 per cent with Temasek leading the investment decision makers.”

As the scope of CECA expands, more job opportunities are likely to be created for Indian professionals. Explains Bhatia: “Within CECA, we would be negotiating for mutual recognition agreements that will recognise Indian degrees in architecture, medicine and accountancy, following which professionals will be able to practise here.”

That apart, due to world-class infrastructure, geographical location and ease of doing business, Indian companies are increasingly setting up outposts in Singapore. “There are 1,700 Indian companies in Singapore. They are using it as a springboard to the Asean markets. As Singapore is adopting such a liberal stance, it means opportunities for Indians are limitless,” says Menon.

The flip side: But things may not be easy for all Indian professionals. Narayan says: “Indians would be a small portion of the new immigrants in Singapore. They will have to compete with global talent and only the best minds will succeed. This market wants highly educated, technically qualified, globally competitive Indians.”

But even they may not succeed unless they guard against some pitfalls, say headhunters. James Koh, Singapore director of staffing company Aquent, says that some employers are cautious about applicants from India because of their experience with some, who, in their eagerness, have come across as too pushy.

For others, civic sense of Indians is a cause for concern. “Honestly, personal habits of Indians are not world class,” says a Singaporean who doesn’t wish to be named. Singaporeans often lament that their squeaky clean country is degenerating due to the new crop of immigrants who toss plastic bottles, cigarette butts and cans on the streets.

Still others feel concern about Indians’ ‘coterie mentality’.

Says Menon: “Singapore has always been an immigrant society. We want greater assimilation and concern for Singapore’s causes. It is laudable to collect money for tsunami victims, but sometimes immigrants should collect money for the old and needy in Singapore as well. Our forefathers worked in Singapore to make her from a Third World to a First World nation. Now we want immigrants to help us take it to the next level.” Interested? Welcome to Singapore!