This article is really worth reading...........................................
Stronger Rupee = Stronger India
Let me ask a question first.
What type of economic strength is preferable to India?
A) A strong Indian economy fueled by its cheap labor due to a weaker rupee against dollar, where the Indians end up working in shifts, late nights, whole nights and what not… only doing low profile jobs which foreign companies want to offload to India, so that they can concentrate on high end works and become even better. For instance in IT field, providing BPO services, support and maintenance work for products…
OR
B) A strong Indian economy fueled by its strong innovations and products, no matter whether the rupee is strong or weak against dollar.. where Indians work only in regular office hours of 9 to 6, developing cutting edge technologies and solutions, selling our world class products both inside and outside India. For instance in IT field, imagine operating systems, compilers, databases etc all coming out of India..
I do not deny the fact that the IT boom in India came to a large extent because of (A). Well and good, we have had the benefits of our cost being cheap in western markets due to a weak rupee against dollar.. We have had our share because of this advantage in the past 2 decades..
But at the same time doesn't it make sense to move towards (B), instead of crying foul against rupee becoming stronger against dollar?
What a pity! Indian IT companies are feeling bad because rupee is becoming stronger against dollar! Reason, their profits will go down when the value of rupee is stronger, as every single dollar that comes into their account now means lesser rupee than earlier..(if for instance earlier they used to get 47 rupees for every dollar that comes in, but today its about 40!)
But isn't this a matter of celebration? Our rupee is gaining importance internationally and is becoming stronger again.. How many of us know that in 1947 when India got independence 1 Rupee was 1.2 US dollars?
These Indian IT companies instead of relying on a weaker rupee for their profit should now look at coming out with innovative products and technical solutions. What have these companies done in the arena of core system products? Why don't we have any operating systems, compilers, database systems, development platforms etc coming out of India? Why don't we develop tools like photoshop or flash? We have talent, but they all are working in American companies on these products.. Cannot our Indian IT companies setup at least small teams to develop such products?
Instead they are planning to make their employees work on saturdays too ! So that their profits can increase due to extra hours the employees put in.. As if India doesnt have any other option other than cheap labour, workaholic labor!! Are there no brains in India who can setup companies developing products and make money just by printing out more serial numbers and burning their product DVDs?
If Indian companies continue to depend on its weak currency, then how would Indian economy survive in a world where all currencies have equal value? Survival of the fittest.. Only greater innovation can help us in that case..
We need to have knowledge and technological advantage if India wants to become a superpower, not low cost based cheap labor advantage! Let the Chinese do it..
I hope that rupee becomes more and more stronger so that Indians are forced to use their brains and come up with innovative products and next generation technologies, than to provide low end services…
We need to create a situation where other countries line up to buy our F-16s, to buy our operating systems, to buy our mobile phones and I-pods, to buy our Boeing, to buy our Mercedes…
A stronger rupee means we can easily afford foreign trips!
"A stronger rupee means Indians can buy things anywhere in the world on par with developed economies! We dont have to spend crores of rupees then to buy a Boeing! We don't have to pay tens of thousands of rupees for international air travels! A stronger rupee means greater international exposure! There wont be a difference between buying a Maruti and buying a Mercedes! One can go on a trip to the Grand Canyon just like the way one goes to Ladakh or Nepal ! How do you think american citizens are able to tour all over the world? Because they earn more? No. But because their currency USD is stronger.. and this is where a strong rupee will lead us to!…"
I am not saying providing low end services is wrong .. It gave us a very good start in the 90s. But that should definitely not be the bread and butter fueling our economic boom indefinitely in the future.. For the simple reason that it can't continue to do so any longer.. other low cost destinations, cheaper than India are already coming up in the world… Let us move ahead… become more innovative.. the journey has just started…
This is just the beginning of all the beginnings…
Ruchika
From Singapore, Singapore
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2Stronger Rupee = Stronger India
Let me ask a question first.
What type of economic strength is preferable to India?
A) A strong Indian economy fueled by its cheap labor due to a weaker rupee against dollar, where the Indians end up working in shifts, late nights, whole nights and what not… only doing low profile jobs which foreign companies want to offload to India, so that they can concentrate on high end works and become even better. For instance in IT field, providing BPO services, support and maintenance work for products…
OR
B) A strong Indian economy fueled by its strong innovations and products, no matter whether the rupee is strong or weak against dollar.. where Indians work only in regular office hours of 9 to 6, developing cutting edge technologies and solutions, selling our world class products both inside and outside India. For instance in IT field, imagine operating systems, compilers, databases etc all coming out of India..
I do not deny the fact that the IT boom in India came to a large extent because of (A). Well and good, we have had the benefits of our cost being cheap in western markets due to a weak rupee against dollar.. We have had our share because of this advantage in the past 2 decades..
But at the same time doesn't it make sense to move towards (B), instead of crying foul against rupee becoming stronger against dollar?
What a pity! Indian IT companies are feeling bad because rupee is becoming stronger against dollar! Reason, their profits will go down when the value of rupee is stronger, as every single dollar that comes into their account now means lesser rupee than earlier..(if for instance earlier they used to get 47 rupees for every dollar that comes in, but today its about 40!)
But isn't this a matter of celebration? Our rupee is gaining importance internationally and is becoming stronger again.. How many of us know that in 1947 when India got independence 1 Rupee was 1.2 US dollars?
These Indian IT companies instead of relying on a weaker rupee for their profit should now look at coming out with innovative products and technical solutions. What have these companies done in the arena of core system products? Why don't we have any operating systems, compilers, database systems, development platforms etc coming out of India? Why don't we develop tools like photoshop or flash? We have talent, but they all are working in American companies on these products.. Cannot our Indian IT companies setup at least small teams to develop such products?
Instead they are planning to make their employees work on saturdays too ! So that their profits can increase due to extra hours the employees put in.. As if India doesnt have any other option other than cheap labour, workaholic labor!! Are there no brains in India who can setup companies developing products and make money just by printing out more serial numbers and burning their product DVDs?
If Indian companies continue to depend on its weak currency, then how would Indian economy survive in a world where all currencies have equal value? Survival of the fittest.. Only greater innovation can help us in that case..
We need to have knowledge and technological advantage if India wants to become a superpower, not low cost based cheap labor advantage! Let the Chinese do it..
I hope that rupee becomes more and more stronger so that Indians are forced to use their brains and come up with innovative products and next generation technologies, than to provide low end services…
We need to create a situation where other countries line up to buy our F-16s, to buy our operating systems, to buy our mobile phones and I-pods, to buy our Boeing, to buy our Mercedes…
A stronger rupee means we can easily afford foreign trips!
"A stronger rupee means Indians can buy things anywhere in the world on par with developed economies! We dont have to spend crores of rupees then to buy a Boeing! We don't have to pay tens of thousands of rupees for international air travels! A stronger rupee means greater international exposure! There wont be a difference between buying a Maruti and buying a Mercedes! One can go on a trip to the Grand Canyon just like the way one goes to Ladakh or Nepal ! How do you think american citizens are able to tour all over the world? Because they earn more? No. But because their currency USD is stronger.. and this is where a strong rupee will lead us to!…"
I am not saying providing low end services is wrong .. It gave us a very good start in the 90s. But that should definitely not be the bread and butter fueling our economic boom indefinitely in the future.. For the simple reason that it can't continue to do so any longer.. other low cost destinations, cheaper than India are already coming up in the world… Let us move ahead… become more innovative.. the journey has just started…
This is just the beginning of all the beginnings…
Ruchika
From Singapore, Singapore
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superb article Ruchika, really hats off to you for letting professionals awake and have a stress to use a part of their mind in innovative part but am not confident how much support government will provide if in the tenure of research , brains fail some time and how much support will they be provided the next time by government, but even we must look forward as every cloud has a silverline and as government is spending a lot , so really yours words are impressive and we need" halla bol" for no more brain drain , let the govt. support the best brains and let them produce the brand India technologies and products in own country and lets make our country really sound in every field.keep posting such articles ruchika
thanks a lot ....
jai hind......
From India, Delhi
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thanks a lot ....
jai hind......
From India, Delhi
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Good article Ruchika... Every musy read it and atleast start trying from now to make a stronger Rupee and India too. Thankd fro sharing Regards Neeraja.K
From India, Hyderabad
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From India, Hyderabad
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Very good article ruchika, fopr this we need our govt support the tax money should be properly utilised inflow of money shld be monitored and shld be used in a well organised manner, each n every individual shld think of this and there shld be an awareness which shlld thrive everybody to work together to reach the heights rather influencing the second level activities n bribery etc..........
Almost most of the things shld be streamlined...................
From India, Madras
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Almost most of the things shld be streamlined...................
From India, Madras
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Brilliant article, Ruchika. A new perspective to think about. ISRO is the trendsetter, which has taken the lead not only in developing cutting-edge technology on their own but also in being cost-effective and successful in the highly competitive space technology field, where behemoths like the US, Russia, Europe, and Japan have been present for a long time with huge investments.
The software industry in India should take a cue from ISRO, which doesn't receive huge funds from the government yet still makes India proud with its stellar achievements. Unfortunately, entrepreneurs like Narayan Murthy look for more and more government support for the IT sector in the form of tax holidays, uninterrupted power supply at cheaper rates, easy H1B visas for software professionals, well-developed infrastructure for IT parks, etc. They seem to have grown old in their thinking and fail to understand the simple fact that their success stemmed from minimal government intervention and being in high demand in the world market at one point.
The problem with the Indian software industry is that they now want to expand horizontally in terms of products and services without delving into cloud computing, artificial intelligence, or other innovative products as you've suggested. However, they still aim for vertical profit growth. Companies like Infosys, TCS, and Wipro focus more on providing COTS than on pursuing innovation.
Similarly, DRDO, though it has contributed to developing missiles, LCAs, and some other minor products, has failed to come up with cutting-edge technology or cost-effective products within a limited time frame.
The state of higher and technical education in India lacks new R&D work and shows a diminishing interest in core science due to the allure of high-paying jobs in the management and service sectors, which is drawing the new generation away. India, like China, has even failed to replicate world-class products or become a manufacturing powerhouse due to a lack of highly skilled workers. Therefore, for a developing economy like India, the most crucial aspect currently is stabilizing the Rupee against prominent world currencies at a comfortable level.
Politics in India is the most disturbing and disgusting aspect. Bold, big-bang reforms or changes in direction cannot be expected as the majority of people are more concerned about access to cheap food, shelter, transport, fuel, and high wages or income, without putting in much effort or taking any pains.
Leadership has failed to inspire through example, as only individuals with school certificates are appointed as HRD ministers or Deputy CMs of states that boast of achievements like Super30, sending the highest number of students to IITs, and deploying significant numbers of civil servants. Mediocrity seems to be the new success mantra in India now.
From India, Faridabad
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The software industry in India should take a cue from ISRO, which doesn't receive huge funds from the government yet still makes India proud with its stellar achievements. Unfortunately, entrepreneurs like Narayan Murthy look for more and more government support for the IT sector in the form of tax holidays, uninterrupted power supply at cheaper rates, easy H1B visas for software professionals, well-developed infrastructure for IT parks, etc. They seem to have grown old in their thinking and fail to understand the simple fact that their success stemmed from minimal government intervention and being in high demand in the world market at one point.
The problem with the Indian software industry is that they now want to expand horizontally in terms of products and services without delving into cloud computing, artificial intelligence, or other innovative products as you've suggested. However, they still aim for vertical profit growth. Companies like Infosys, TCS, and Wipro focus more on providing COTS than on pursuing innovation.
Similarly, DRDO, though it has contributed to developing missiles, LCAs, and some other minor products, has failed to come up with cutting-edge technology or cost-effective products within a limited time frame.
The state of higher and technical education in India lacks new R&D work and shows a diminishing interest in core science due to the allure of high-paying jobs in the management and service sectors, which is drawing the new generation away. India, like China, has even failed to replicate world-class products or become a manufacturing powerhouse due to a lack of highly skilled workers. Therefore, for a developing economy like India, the most crucial aspect currently is stabilizing the Rupee against prominent world currencies at a comfortable level.
Politics in India is the most disturbing and disgusting aspect. Bold, big-bang reforms or changes in direction cannot be expected as the majority of people are more concerned about access to cheap food, shelter, transport, fuel, and high wages or income, without putting in much effort or taking any pains.
Leadership has failed to inspire through example, as only individuals with school certificates are appointed as HRD ministers or Deputy CMs of states that boast of achievements like Super30, sending the highest number of students to IITs, and deploying significant numbers of civil servants. Mediocrity seems to be the new success mantra in India now.
From India, Faridabad
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Article-Times of India.pdf
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