New Delhi, Jan 16 (IANS): Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Piyush Goyal has assured leaders of India's top IT companies that the Central government will give full support to the sector to accelerate growth and help India's Services exports soar to $1 trillion in a decade.

Goyal has welcomed the IT industry's proposal to start IT hubs in Tier-2 and Tier-3 towns, which would create numerous jobs and help develop the regions. He said the IT industry should identify the towns, and the Centre would assist them in providing all the necessary infrastructure and facilities.

He said the IT industry can make a big contribution to Services exports by focusing on new technology and products that can make India a bigger global player in the sector.

Goyal said India was on track to achieve its merchandise exports target of $400 billion this year, while Services exports were likely to be about $240 billion to $250 billion, which is much lower, but can grow rapidly and catch up with merchandise exports.

"When I look at the trajectory of these - I personally believe this is going to be a race to the top. We can converge $1 trillion. That should be the ambition, mission. You have a little bit of catching up to do. I'll be delighted if you cross $1 trillion faster than them," the minister told IT industry leaders.

In the virtual meeting over the weekend, the minister told leaders of the IT industry that they should focus on high-tech products. He said the IT industry had grown spectacularly on its own and many of the top companies grew at a time when India did not focus on creating a favourable ecosystem for Startups. Goyal said the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) will provide any assistance needed by the IT industry to help it grow rapidly and contribute to India's export of Services.

IT industry leaders said the sector had seen strong growth last year, and in the past week, strong earnings reported by companies has set a positive tone for the years ahead.