Addressing more than 5,000 developers at the grounds of a historic palace here in India’s high-tech capital, Gates said the search dubbed “Code 4 Bill” recognised India’s role in nurturing technical talent.

“This is something we have never done before anywhere,” Gates said. “It is aimed at pre-final and final year students. The best amongst the participants will get an opportunity to work with my Technical Assistants Team for a year.

“I will get to know them. I am very excited about this,” he said.

Registrations for the contest will start in January 2006 and students will be tested for their technical and analytical skills. They will also be interviewed by Microsoft technical teams.

“Twenty selected students will also intern with Microsoft India before the final selection,” Gates said.

He said talent was what powers the success of the global IT economy today. Indian students are setting high standards in the industry.

“It’s very important for India to maintain this edge and continue to nurture and develop its students so they can drive the country’s progress as IT leader. The Code 4 Bill recognises India’s leadership in nurturing world class technical talent,” Gates said.

According to a company statement, registration for Code 4 Bill will begins in January 2006. The contest comprises various stages over the next eight months.

“The contest will test technical and analytical skills through different challenges, including in-depth face to face interviews with technical teams,” the statement said. On the last leg of his India tour, after visiting New Delhi and Chennai, Gates said India’s software talents “are quite amazing.”

“At the India Development Centre (Microsoft) most of the high-end applications are being developed. The country that can take the most advantage of the digital era and which is geared up is India,” Gates said.

India’s software industry clocked revenues of more than $17bn in the last fiscal year to March 2005 and is driven by a large pool of skilled professionals working for almost one-seventh the salaries of their counterparts in the United States.

Gates was visiting Bangalore for just six hours before flying out of the country in the evening.

The ‘Bill Gates Live – Ready 2005’ event was to mark the launch of Microsoft’s integrated computing platform: SQL Server, Visual Studio 2005 and BizTalk Server 2006.

Earlier in the day in Chennai, Gates inaugurated the first phase of an IT education programme to train teachers in rural Tamil Nadu through videoconferencing.

Gates also met Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayaram Jayalalitha and her cabinet members at the state secretariat during which he was presented a strong case for investment in the state’s IT industry.

Before the meeting, Gates was closeted for two hours with senior Microsoft officials.

“I am impressed by what I have seen today,” Gates said after the meeting.

In August, Microsoft Corp India and the Tamil Nadu School Education Department signed an agreement to train teachers by establishing and running an information technology academy in Chennai for a five-year period.

The state government will provide the building and Microsoft will set up free of cost a facility comprising an IT lab complete with hardware and software, and provide the curriculum and staff for education delivery and administration.

Under the “Partners in Learning Programme”, groups of 40 teachers will receive 12 days of residential training over the next five years.

On Thursday, Gates had a brief meeting with veteran politician Muthuval Karunanidhi discussing Tamil literature and the prospects of the world’s richest man investing in IT industries in Tamil Nadu.

Karunanidhi, former chief minister and president of the Dravid Munnettra Kazhagam (DMK), urged Gates to invest more in India’s IT industry and to let the investments come to Tamil Nadu, sources said.

Gates evinced interest in didactic literature and Thirukkural, the Tamil compilation of verse and wanted to learn about Thiruvalluvar, who composed it over 2,000 years ago, Karunanidhi told reporters.

“I had an opportunity to deliver a small lecture on Thiruvalluvar to him,” Karunanidhi said. He also presented Gates with an English translation of Thirukkural and his own short stories and a novel titled The Mother. – Agencies