"Its time to start thinking about Indian IT 2.0"

NEW DELHI: India is on a continuos growth path, steadily its making all efforts to shed the 'developing country' label and adopt the one of 'a developed country'. While all are gung-ho about the bright future of India Inc. there are many challenges to overcome.

Ravi Venaktesan, Chairman Microsoft India, spoke about the issues plaguing the Indian economy and how they can be addressed at a Microsoft seminar on 'India is Innovation'.

According to a recent study by CII & WEF (World Economic Forum) 'Pahale India' -inclusive development for entire India; 'Bolly World' — exclusive development for few pockets of India; and 'Atakta Bharat'- isolation from and with the world are three paths that can be taken to ensure continuous growth for the country.

Ravi stressed the importance of addressing the middle and bottom layers of the pyramid, "For centuries, it is a proven fact that the largest fortunes have been created by expanding the market, by serving the middle if not the bottom of the economic pyramid." Rural India is where the focus should be, as a majority of Indian population is there, and it is they who need to understand the impact technology can make to their lives.

Citing the example of MS' initiative called 'Project Saksham' under which MS aims to setup connected PC kiosks in at least 200,000 villages, Ravi said that installing kiosk is not enough, one has to understand the need of the end user and take adequate steps to ensure he gets value out of such initiatives. All involved in the ecosystem have to join hands to deliver full benefits to the end user.

Speaking on the contribution of the Indian IT industry, Ravi said "There is no doubt that the Indian IT industry has successfully placed India on the world map. It has given us the self confidence to dream of India as a developed nation and to see ourselves as a knowledge society and to see our population as an asset not a liability."

Ravi made a critical point by saying that Indian IT 1.0 has reached its peek, and its high time that we start working on Indian IT 2.0. India has till now been considered as the 'back office of the world'; talent at low price has been the key driver for success of Indian IT industry; its time that India starts thinking beyond this and 'transition from simply innovating from India to innovating for India,' opined Ravi.

Quoting him, "This is where we have to make some significant transitions. The transition from renting IQ to creating our own IP. The transition from serving wealthy clients overseas to also thinking about how to solve large scale societal problems by leveraging technology. The transition from labour arbitrage to applying problem solving skills to market insights. The transition from simply innovating from India to innovating for India."

The Microsoft India Chairman, called out people and organizations with vision to take the forefront and create a platform for the smaller players and entrepreneurs. Microsoft has taken a lead in this direction and will influence the IT innovation agenda for India, said Ravi closing his keynote address at 'India is Innovation'.