The centre, which will employ 100 software professionals initially, is part of the 400-million-dollar investment announced by Microsoft chief Bill Gates during his visit to India last November.

"Microsoft product support services support 54 million customers globally on an annual basis," Rajiv Kaul, managing director of Microsoft India, told the Times of India daily.

"In order to continue its efforts ... Microsoft is announcing a pilot programme in Bangalore to support select Microsoft professional products," Kaul said.

About 250 additional software engineers from Microsoft partner firms such as Infosys Technologies, Wipro Limited and Tata Consultancy Services will also work with the professionals in the centre.

Kaul said Microsoft is also ramping up its development centre in the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh's capital Hyderabad.

Microsoft will employ 300 new professionals and build a 100-million-dollar campus in Hyderabad.

"The focus on the Indian development centre continues to be the development of strategic products and technologies for customers all over the world," Kaul said.

Global technology firms and corporations are shifting their research and development activities and of late have increased their outsourcing work to India where labour costs are one-eighth those of the United States.

An army of engineers and English-speaking graduates, the largest pool outside the United States, is fuelling the outsourcing boom in the country.

India's 'Silicon Valley' -- Bangalore -- is home to more than 1,000 global technology firms such as IBM, Intel, Dell, Cisco, Sun Microsystems and Oracle.

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