The group has ostensibly been constituted to recommend to the government a global strategy to promote the country as an `IT destination' in sync with the worldwide scenario.

The 8-member group will he headed by Union infotech minister Pramod Mahajan and comprise besides IT secretary PV Jayakrishnan, The Indus Group (TiE) president Kanwal Rekhi, Kleiner Perkins general partner and Sun Microsystems co-founder Vinod Khosla, Cirus Logic chairman emritus Suhas Patil, Exodus chairman and CEO KB Chandrasekhar, Arzoo.com CEO Sabeer Bhatia and director in IT ministry Devendra Chaudhry who would also be convener of the group.

According to Pramod Mahajan, the group would meet once in six months and it will take note of the emerging trends in the IT industry worldwide and fine-tune IT policy prescriptions in India. The group would particularly advise the IT ministry with regard to new trends for the facilitation of angel investment, venture creation and incubation.

Its portfolio will also include promotion of research and development activities in IT and it will identify thrust areas in this regard to enable chalking out a blueprint for action by the ministry.

The group has also been given the responsibility of facilitating the growth of human resource development in the IT sector with the objective of creating quality-based education.

Recently, a memorandum of understanding was signed with Stanford University to broaden linkages and facilitate flow of information in the IT sector with foreign universities. The promotion of knowledge-based enterprises would ensure building of a pool of resources and expertise in the IT sector in future, said an official press note.

The government had also constituted an advisory council of IT professionals last week comprising top industry representatives to suggest ways to boost the sector.