Bangalore: Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) firm 24/7 Customer Pvt Ltd is setting up a centre in Hyderabad in September with 100 people and ramp it up to over 450 by March 2004.

"We are starting with about 100 people and expand to about 450 by March 2004," 24/7 Customer Pvt Ltd Recruitment Manager Prasad Menon told reporters in Bangalore.

The Hyderabad centre is to be inaugurated by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on September 10.

The Bangalore-based 24/7 Customer also plans to add about 1,000 people to reach a strength of 3,000 by December, Human Resources Chief G V Giridhar said.

The three year-old firm, one of India's leading third party BPO companies in July raised $ 22 million from venture capitalists including US-based Sequoia Capital, which has helped seed IT brand names such as Apple Computer Inc and Internet firm Yahoo.

PTI