Oracle to increase work force in India

Oracle plans to hire an additional 2,000 engineers to boost its development work force in Bangalore and Hyderabad, India.

"India is important to Oracle because the market is vibrant," said Derek Williams, Oracle Asia-Pacific executive vice president.

"The government is going electronic...many manufacturing companies are taking to ERP (enterprise resource planning) software, and financial services firms are changing their business practices (using IT)," Williams told reporters Wednesday during the OracleWorld conference in Beijing.

He said Oracle sold more call center software in India than the rest of Asia-Pacific combined.

In an earlier Wednesday meeting with Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, reporters questioned the software maker's commitment to India vis-a-vis China, and asked which country he preferred. "I have a daughter and a son. It is like my daughter asking: 'Do you love me more?' My answer is I love both," he said.

Ellison also dismissed the notion that Oracle will pull out of India because of threats of a civil war with Pakistan. "Oracle is in India to stay," he said.

Separately on Wednesday, Oracle announced plans to accelerate investments in China. The company commenced a Chinese version of its popular online resource center targeted at developers. The database software giant also revealed plans to start its fourth Asia-Pacific development center in Beijing.

CNETAsia's Irene Tham reported from Beijing.