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We cant be a 21st century power with a 19th century mindset

We cant be a 21st century power with a 19th century mindset

Sam Pitroda, 66, is based in Chicago, Illinois, and is chairman and CEO of World-Tel Ltd, an International Telecommunications Union initiative. Hes also the chairman and ounder of Sevend High-Technology, and runs the non-profit Foundation for Revitalization of Local Health Traditions in India. He holds more than 50 patents and has lectured extensively on telecom, technology, and development in all parts of the world.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recruited him to head the National Knowledge Commission. Excerpts of an exclusive interview with Sujeet Rajan in New York:

• India is grappling with the reservation issue. How do you see this unfold in its impact on society and corporate growth in India?

My personal view is that we cannot hope to be a 21st century power on the basis of a 19th century mindset. If India has to emerge as a knowledge powerhouse, it is essential to leave the legacies of the past behind. We cannot label people for the rest of their lives on the basis of their birth. It is true that a vast number of people in India need an easier access to education. I believe we need to help these sections of the people at the primary and secondary levels. Beyond that we need a system where effort and hard work take precedence over everything else. Also institutions of higher learning ought to have the autonomy to make their own decisions in all matters.

• You have talked about wanting to see many more IITs in India . . .

India needs many more IITs than it has now. Why cant we have ten times what we have now? There are many ways to increase the number of IITs. One is to involve some kind of private partnership in terms of investment without compromising the standards the institutions are so respected for.

• Speaking of technology, how do you think the nuclear deal, if it goes through in Congress, will impact India?

If there is any country that deserves this kind of exceptional treatment in the nuclear control regime, it is India. It is a measure of how much Indias profile has grown among US lawmakers that the other day Congress cleared the deal with an impressive majority.

The nuclear deal should be seen as a means to lighting the lives of millions of people in rural areas who need energy for their water pumps, fertilizer plants, lamps to read and improve the overall standard of living.

• What have been some of the highlights of your work as Chairman of the Knowledge Commission?

The National Knowledge Commissions mandate is such that its impact will be felt over a considerable period of time. Our work on telecommunications and information technology in the mid-1980s during Rajiv Gandhis government is paying off now. The commission has a very broad mandate in five areas. They are: access to knowledge, knowledge concepts, knowledge creation, knowledge application, and knowledge services. My individual role is to help create a cohesive vision.

• Where would you recommend most foreign direct investment to be allocated in India?

Apart from the obvious ones such as power and infrastructure, I would be very happy if entities with financial resources were to invest in Indias human capital, Indias knowledge base. More than 500 million people below the age of 25 represent an enormous brain trust for the rest of the world. That is what one needs to tap.

• You are the pioneer of telecommunication access in rural India. Has the growth in the development sector at large been a disappointment to you?

In Indias context, in any area of economic or technological endeavour, one can make the argument that we could better. So to that extent, yes, rural telecommunication should be much better than what it is now. In terms of the growth of rural development in general, it is true that urban centres in the country have attracted the most attention from the private sector since the country opened up its economy. The private sector has its own logic in seeking growth areas, which are mainly driven by considerations of their bottomline.

Having said that, I think rural India is now making a compelling case for substantial investment and business opportunities. Several companies have already begun tapping the rural market. In terms of the governments priority, I think successive governments have attempted to pay attention to this sector but it is only in the last two decades that the country has unleashed enough entrepreneurial energies to impact rural growth in the long-term.

• Experts often point out the slow development in rural sector act as a counter-balance to Indias rapid economic growth. What measres have you suggested to the Indian government on this front?

As you are aware, it has not been my mandate to suggest any policy measures to the government of India but insomuch as I understand what needs to be done I do share my thoughts from time to time. We cannot build a nation by improving the living standards of 35 to 40 per cent of our population. Eventually, development has to be evenly spread. We have to resolutely focus on agriculture, water, sanitation, health, education and basic human needs because all these have a lasting impact on the overall future of the country.

One of the many specific ideas that I have been talking about is just as cities such as Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai emerged as back offices of the world, the time is ripe to consider turning smaller towns and even semi-urban areas into the back offices of urban India.

Source : http://www.indianexpress.com/

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