Deloitte is planning a major hiring push in India and is considering Mangaluru as a possible location for future expansion, according to Romal Shetty, CEO of Deloitte South Asia. Speaking at TiEcon Mangaluru 2026 on January 17, Shetty said the global professional services firm plans to add around 50,000 new employees in the country. This comes amid plans to show how Tier II cities are becoming more important in India’s growing Global Capability Centre (GCC) ecosystem.
Deloitte plans to hire 50,000 more in India
Deloitte currently employs about 140,000 people in India, which makes up nearly one-fourth of its global workforce. “We will hire about 50,000 more people,” Shetty said. Shetty was speaking in conversation with Rohit Bhat, president of TiEcon Mangaluru and founder of 99Games and Robosoft, during the event.
Addressing a session titled ‘India@2047 – The Trillion Dollar Opportunity’, Shetty made it clear that Mangaluru is on Deloitte’s radar. “We came very close to Mangaluru. Mangaluru has talent. We will come to Mangaluru, no doubt — it is only a question of time.” He added that the Mangaluru region has strong engineering and medical talent, which makes it attractive for future growth.
Deloitte’s growing Indian workforce
Shetty said India already plays a key role in Deloitte’s global operations. “One in every four Deloitte employees in the world is in India and an Indian. There are more Indians outside also. My intention is that every third employee in the Deloitte world should be an Indian in the next three years,” he said.
Shetty said Deloitte is looking at opportunities in several Tier II cities, including Bhubaneswar, Coimbatore, Lucknow, Indore and Jaipur. “We do have opportunities in Bhubaneswar, Coimbatore, Lucknow, Indore, and Jaipur. We are constantly looking for any acquisition or startup that we think is interesting. Because we also acquire start-ups,” he said.
Shetty said India continues to dominate the global GCC space, both in terms of scale and future potential. “India is a powerhouse of GCCs,” he said, pointing out that around 50 percent of all global GCCs are based in India. According to Shetty, attracting global firms, GCCs and investments to Mangaluru will depend on building the right ecosystem.
Drawing comparisons with the United States, Shetty said universities, companies and governments must work more closely to build strong and lasting innovation ecosystems in India. “You have to innovate for Bharat,” he said, adding that India’s growth journey would remain incomplete unless “200 or more cities prosper.”