Singapore's Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong, has made a strong pitch to Indian information technology workers, asking them to consider moving to the island nation.

Mr Goh said if Indian IT professionals would consider relocating to Singapore instead of Silicon Valley in the US, he could offer them venture capital funding.

"Being a small country of three million people, we recognise that our local population will not be able to produce sufficient talent that is needed to develop Singapore into a knowledge economy," Mr Goh said.

"We, therefore, welcome the contribution of Indian talent," he added.

The Singapore prime minister, who is in India on a five-day visit, said he was starting a venture capital fund specifically for Internet start-ups.

"The good news is that this venture capital fund is not only for Singaporeans," the prime minister said.

"Indian IT professionals can dip into this fund to set up strong businesses in Singapore," he said.

Singapore's strong financial infrastructure and the presence of many international trading houses could create an excellent setting for partnership with India, the prime minister said.

Singapore is currently India's 13th largest investor and has been steadily increasing its investment since India's economic reforms programme kicked off in 1991.

Southern visit

The Singapore prime minister is also visiting the southern cities of Hyderabad and Bangalore, home to India's burgeoning IT industry.

Chandrababu Naidu, the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh where Hyderabad is located, said the visit was particularly significant because he had adopted Singapore as a model for the state's development.

Mr Goh was accompanied by Foreign Minister Shanmugam Jayakumar, other senior government officials and a business delegation.