That Bhutanese in general have good command over the English language may be more myth than reality. At least that was the experience of Bhutan Business Solutions, a private firm, which wanted to employ at least 80 Bhutanese youths to start a medical transcription service in the country.

Of more than 500 graduates and Class 12 students interviewed over three months, only 39 got through the selection interview to train for the job. "The interview itself was the most basic requirement, which most candidates failed to fulfill," said the firm's spokesperson and former business partner. Of the six partners, five have reportedly pulled out. "The main thing here is that this business is not a mechanized industry, it is entirely human resource based," said the spokesperson. "It is labor intensive." He said that the firm needed 80 people to start off with. They would be trained for six months by professionals hired from India to become certified medical transcriptionists who would be recognized globally.

The chairperson and the managing director of Bhutan Steel Industries limited, Damchae Dem, who is continuing with the venture, said the interviews couldn't be easy given the high standards required by C-Bay, a medical transcription centre based in USA. According to the firm's spokesperson, C-Bay, USA gets the transcription contracts from abroad and C-Bay, India, sets up the transcription centers in India. C-Bay India would set up the transcription center in Bhutan.