India's White-Collar Hiring Up 3% in January; BPO/ITES Leads with 21% Growth

• India's white-collar job market saw a 3% year-on-year increase in January 2026, reaching 2,637 points on the Naukri JobSpeak Index.
• Non-IT sectors, particularly BPO/ITES (+21%), Hospitality and Travel (+15%), Insurance (+7%), and Healthcare (+5%), drove the overall growth.
• Fresher hiring (0–3 years experience) expanded by 8%, with significant growth in BPO/ITES (+39%), Hospitality (+33%), Insurance (+35%), and Real Estate (+42%).
• BPO/ITES sector's growth was fueled by foreign MNCs (over 80%) and non-metro cities like Jaipur (+66%) and Ahmedabad (+43%).
• While overall IT hiring declined slightly, Indian IT MNCs showed a 32% increase, and high-value roles (over ₹20 lakh per annum) grew by 10%.

Why It Matters: India's white-collar job market started 2026 positively, driven by non-IT sectors and strong fresher hiring.