India needs to strengthen its professional services ecosystem through regulatory reforms, continuous upskilling and greater global mobility of professionals as it approaches its demographic peak, NITI Aayog said in a report.
The report, India’s Services Sector: Insights on Regulatory Regime in Professional Services, said professional services can provide a “high-skilled, high-value avenue for employment, entrepreneurship, and innovation” and help India expand its footprint in global services trade.
It proposed a four-pronged strategy focused on continuous professional development, adoption of best regulatory practices, elevating professional services within the services value chain and advancing emerging trends. The report said these measures could strengthen the workforce, improve regulation and secure a stronger position for Indian professionals in global markets.
A key recommendation is to develop a structured continuing professional development (CPD) framework. The report noted that India currently lacks an enforceable CPD-hour regime across professions, leading to uneven competency standards. It said a well-structured framework would “elevate service quality and build public trust” while helping professionals keep pace with technological and economic changes.
The report also called for greater professional mobility through Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs), streamlined licensing and recognition of qualifications. In healthcare, for instance, regulators could negotiate MRAs with overseas counterparts to facilitate recognition of qualifications and open the domestic market to international talent on reciprocal terms.
Sector-specific reforms include modernising legal forms of practice, revisiting advertising norms, improving regulation and skilling of bookkeepers, creating accreditation pathways for foreign professionals, streamlining architects’ registration and licensing, and strengthening the regulatory framework for engineers and allied health professionals.