New Delhi: Indians working in call centres have a thick accent and need to strengthen their knowledge of English to be globally competitive, says a top official of the US-based Educational Testing Service (ETS) that designs tests like TOEFL.

"It's an interesting situation here. People may read and write good English but spoken English needs improvement," said David L. Hunt, vice president of ETS, which is headquartered in Princeton.

"India is a global economy and people dealing with international clients need to speak better English. I think the BPO industry can do better in the country," Hunt told IANS in an interview.

He was in the Indian capital to sign an agreement with IT training major NIIT to provide the TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) test in India.

He said while working for an English speaking country, it was important to have at least a neutral accent.

"If Indian youngsters can improve their spoken English capability then their employability chances (in any part of the world) would be high," he added.

Similarly, people working in multinational companies, banks and software firms need to improve their English-speaking knack. However, he did not blame India for this lacuna.

"Every country has its own education system. Many youngsters in India are getting educated in their own vernacular medium and there could be many other factors behind the thick accent.

"I want to say that there is no point talking about a country. Individuals need to improve for bettering their chances in a global market place," Hunt added.

Over 6,000 institutions, including colleges and universities in 110 countries, accept TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) scores and TOEIC tests are accepted in at least 60 countries as recognition of one's English proficiency.

Elaborating on their arrangement with NIIT, Hunt said the TOEIC test via NIIT would start from April. The three-and-a-half-hour test evaluates the reading, writing and listening capabilities of applicants. It will cost applicants Rs. 1,000 each.

Hunt said this effort would open up new opportunities in both domestic and global markets.

"Our mission is to advance the English learning ability of all individuals and India is certainly a great destination," Hunt added.

ETS is one of the world's largest private educational testing and measurement organisations. It develops, administers and scores more than 50 million tests annually in more than 180 countries. IANS