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India's EPC Boom: 51% Hiring Surge Amid Critical Talent Shortages

India's Engineering, Procurement, and Construction sector is experiencing a massive hiring boom. A new report reveals a 51% surge in hiring over five years, fueled by the country's infrastructure push and clean energy transition. However, this rapid growth is creating acute shortages of experienced professionals in specialized technical roles. The sector also faces the challenge of improving gender diversity, as women's participation currently lags behind other industries.

Key Points: India EPC Sector Hiring Jumps 51% in 5 Years, Report Shows

  • Tier-1 cities like Mumbai and Delhi drive 80% of the hiring demand in the EPC sector
  • Roads & Highways projects lead hiring with a 26% share, followed by power and renewables
  • A major talent shortage exists for experienced roles requiring over six years of expertise
  • Women's participation remains low at 14%, despite targeted inclusivity efforts
2 min read

India's EPC sector hiring surges 51 per cent in 5 years

India's EPC sector hiring surged 51% since 2020, adding 227,000 jobs. Demand is high in infrastructure & renewables, but talent gaps persist.

"As projects become more technology-intensive and execution cycles shorten, organisations must strengthen their focus on talent development and engagement, not just recruitment.” - Aditya Narayan Mishra, CIEL HR"

New Delhi, Dec 6

India’s Engineering, Procurement and Construction sector has seen a surge in hiring by 51 per cent since 2020, acquiring 2, 27, 000 professionals in the last four quarters, a report said on Saturday.

The report from HR solutions firm CIEL HR, showed that Tier‑1 cities accounted for 80 per cent of demand, led by Mumbai (23 per cent) and Delhi (22 per cent), while Tier‑2 and Tier‑3 centres such as Lucknow, Jaipur, Coimbatore and Visakhapatnam showed demand for execution‑focused roles.

Roads and Highways made up the largest share of hiring at 26 per cent, followed by power transmission and distribution at 15 per cent and renewables at 14 per cent.

The EPC sector is being powered simultaneously by India’s infrastructure build-out and its clean-energy transition, the report highlighted.

It also pointed out acute talent shortages across experienced roles.

Despite emerging capabilities, 60 per cent of vacancies target professionals with more than six years’ experience, creating acute gaps in specialist roles such as commissioning engineers, protection engineers, BMS specialists, road‑safety engineers, TBM tunnelling experts, UPS cooling system engineers and BESS engineers, the report noted

These shortages are most pronounced in fast-growing clusters, including roads & highways, metro systems and renewables.

"As projects become more technology-intensive and execution cycles shorten, organisations must strengthen their focus on talent development and engagement, not just recruitment,” said Aditya Narayan Mishra, Managing Director & CEO of CIEL HR.

Building robust learning ecosystems, investing in skill assessment and upskilling, and creating a culture that values continuous learning will be vital to sustaining productivity and safety on the ground, he added.

The top 10 EPC companies accounted for about 20 per cent of demand, the report said. Women’s participation stood at 14 per cent, well below the levels seen in the IT and retail sectors

While the participation rate is relatively low, there have been concerted efforts in recent years to improve gender inclusivity, such as policies promoting women’s workforce entry and targeted skill development programs, the report noted.

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- IANS

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
Great to see renewables as a top sector for hiring! This shows India is serious about its green energy goals. The talent shortage is a concern though - need more specialized courses in colleges.
R
Rohit P
The 14% women's participation figure is disappointing. EPC companies need to do much more to attract and retain female engineers. Safety and site facilities need to be women-friendly.
S
Sarah B
As someone who works in talent development, the focus on upskilling is key. You can't just hire experienced people if they don't exist. Companies must invest in training fresh graduates for these specialist roles.
V
Vikram M
Roads & Highways leading the hiring shows the pace of national highway projects. Good for job creation, but hope the quality of construction matches the speed of hiring.
K
Karthik V
The demand for niche roles like TBM tunnelling experts is interesting. Metro expansion in cities is driving this. A positive sign for urban infrastructure development.

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