| Chandra
Babu Naidu |
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If a Leader is a dealer in hope as
Napoleon said, Mr. Chandra Babu Naidu is the smartest dealer one has seen in the recent
times. He holds out hope of a better tomorrow to citizens who had lost hope
of seeing a
politician who spoke the language of growth, equality, distributive justice, and
empowerment. He is arguably the only politician in the country who relates high-end
technologies with higher productivity and delivery of better service to the people.
Technology,
he argues, must not bypass vast sections of the population. "Information Technology
is not endowment-friendly. In the hands of the administrators, it can be made an effective
tool to constantly monitor and continuously respond to emerging situations. Tele-education
and tele-medicine are not mere concepts... they will change the way you approach a
problem, economise operations and help bridge distances. More than physical resources, you
need a vision to grow, a vision that clearly delineates the role and responsibility of a
citizen, an administrator, and a politician," says
Mr Naidu.
It is this vision of a better tomorrow that gives him the energy to work for 16 hours a
day. In three years, more than anything, he has changed the way people think. As a leader,
his real contribution seems to lie in rekindling hope in the hearts of the people - where
politicians lead, and administrators deliver. Whether he is a star, or a meteor, only time
will tell. But he has a vision, and he shares it with The Economic Times. Excerpts
from an interview.
Who's afraid of Chandrababu Naidu?
India's digital Mecca of Bangalore, or more precisely the state of Karnataka, is under siege as
neighboring Andhra Pradesh is competing fiercely to
attract the limited capital for the information technology industry.
At the National Association of Software and Service Companies' annual jamboree in Bangalore recently, it was Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N
Chandra Babu Naidu who stole the show with his grand plans for the IT industry.
The local industry is now warning the Karnataka government of a flight of capital from Bangalore
and elsewhere in the state.
Paranoia? The Karnataka government, at least, does not think so. It has already dispatched a
senior officer to Andhra Pradesh's capital Hyderabad to check on Naidu's work at
Madhapur, where he is building a grand information technology
park called Hitech City.
In the meantime, Karnataka's industry would prefer to peg its discontent on the delay in the
implementation of the state's information technology policy,
announced on June 9.
"There are bits and pieces here and there, but there is no central force driving
the policy," an industry source complained. "What we need is a driver to
implement the policy. The presence of a government secretary for IT will move the files."
The creation of an IT secretary's office has been the one major demand of the industry which has not been granted. Industry
sources argue that the IT policy can be implemented only if there are government officers solely
responsible for it.
According to senior government sources, the file to create the IT secretary's office is lying with the chief secretary. They allege that there is an
impression
within the Vidhana Soudha, the state secretariat, that there are already two secretaries who are
involved with industry and there is no need to create yet another, especially for IT.
A government source gave credence to the view when he said the IT industry's demand for a secretary stems from their need to have a
'figurehead' in the government and that there is no real administrative need for
one.
Or is the need of Karnataka's IT industry more than just that of a figurehead? Is it wanting to emulate Andhra Pradesh where Naidu has scored once again
by appointing an IAS officer to oversee IT policies?
Karnataka's technocrats have another grouse. The state's IT policy has envisaged
computerization of government departments but there is no sign of
any comprehensive action plan yet.
Only some departments like the Bangalore Municipal Corporation, the Karnataka State Finance
Corporation, the Planning Department and the Karnataka Electricity Board have made random announcements about
computerization.
Government sources point out that infusing computer awareness at all government levels cannot happen overnight.
The Karnataka industry is also nagging the government on the delay in setting up the Indian Institute of Information
Technology. This is the education project in which the government has proposed to invest Rs 100 million this
year and another Rs 100 million next year.
Across the border in Andhra Pradesh, Naidu is faring better on this front too. He has already identified land and got a few industries interested in
setting up 'centers of excellence'.
Karnataka government sources say "We had asked the industry to identify land. They have not come up with anything yet. If we have to invest Rs 100
million it will take time. It has to go for cabinet clearance. What we have suggested to the
industry is that we will offer the land if they will invest in the
institute. But till date, nobody has come forward on the proposition."
Government sources claim that complete implementation of the IT policy cannot happen overnight but point out that the document has already
hastened tax concessions for the industry. "Within 15 days we issued a notification for sales tax concessions promised in the IT policy," a Karnataka
government officer said.
A task force to implement the policy has been set up and has already met twice. It has as its
chairman the principal secretary to the Karnataka government and 20 members, which include, besides several secretaries from different
government departments, the chairman and managing director
of software major Infosys, the president of NASSCOM, the president of the
Manufacturers' Association for Information Technology, the CGM of the Department of Telecommunications, the resident chief of the National
Institute of Information Technology and the chairman and managing director of
Keonics.
The task force has to submit its recommendations within three months. It will take up issues
concerning development models to be adopted to speed up
growth of IT industry in the state, identify potential locations for establishment of additional
'electronics cities' and 'software technology parks', assess the requirement of manpower for various categories during the
Ninth Five Year Plan period, suggest introduction of new courses in academic and training institutions; and examine the existing syllabi and
curricula in academic and training institutions.
Karnataka's IT policy comprises, besides fiscal incentives such as entry tax exemption, purchase tax exemption on computer hardware and sales tax
exemption for 10 years; the creation of a pool of software engineers to meet the demand-supply gap of nearly 10,000 engineers needed annually;
software parks at Mysore, Mangalore and Dharwad; Electronics City II near the first one in Bangalore and at Mysore, Mangalore and Dharwad; a Videsh
Sanchar Nigam Limited Internet gateway and training centres in districts and
setting up internationally recognised quality certification such as ISO 9000 and SEI certification.
However, the Naidu bogie need not unnecessarily cause sleepless nights in Karnataka yet. Let's look at the figures: Andhra Pradesh's IT industry
turnover was of about Rs 1.2 billion, which it hopes to increase to Rs 2 billion. Karnataka had a turnover of about Rs 12 billion which it hopes to
increase to Rs 20 billion this year. Karnataka is almost 20 times ahead!
The pool of talented and skilled software engineers in Bangalore may not be easily coaxed to move to Hyderabad. But the competitive spirit between the
states may lead to a tax-cut war. And that's good news for any business.
Dear Mr Naidu
Bill Gates offers to jump start Andhra Pradesh's digital revolution.
A Staff Reporter in Bombay
Microsoft CEO Bill Gates, in a letter to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandra
Babu Naidu, has offered to depute a senior manager to help the
state firm up its information technology programmes.
Gates has said he is excited about the information technology initiatives taken by the state. 'I am
personally excited about your Information Technology Vision Group for Andhra Pradesh. As
a software technology leader, I believe we can contribute to this group. If you agree, I would be
happy to nominate one of my senior managers to participate in this group,' the letter said.
The corporation has recently formed alliances with the Indian Institute for Information Technology and the Indian subsidiary of
the company has inked a memorandum of understanding with the Andhra Pradesh Technology
Services.
Gates has said in the letter that between three and six months Microsoft will take a major decision on whether to locate a
software development centre outside the United States. 'Should we decide to do a development centre
outside the US, we are looking at India as a location for such a facility,' he assured.
He has also requested Naidu to provide any information and assistance to enable Microsoft to take the right decision in the matter.
When Rediff On The Net got through to Naidu's residence at Hyderabad, he could not immediately comment on the
development.
The letter also said that setting up of an electronic government is a focus area
for Microsoft in India and that Microsoft India now has a team dedicated to work with central and state governments. They would also assign a person to
focus on Microsoft's projects and initiatives in the state.
Hoping that they could work on several projects together in the state to showcase their products in
government, he said the 'citizen card' and
'file-tracking projects' would be of great interest and value. This would cement the partnership between Andhra Pradesh and Microsoft, Gates said.
T S Krishnan, Microsoft India's director, ECU, told Rediff On The Net that the letter is "to reinforce the fact that Microsoft is keen to work with AP".
He explained that the correspondence is a sequel to Gates' visit to the country,
his meeting with Naidu and the handful of recent ventures Microsoft has entered into.
Krishnan said the business of wiring governments "is an extremely important
focus area for not only Microsoft worldwide but also Microsoft in India". He, however, could not immediately say in which countries Microsoft has
had the experience of computerizing governments.
When pointed out that Tata-IBM, Big Blue's joint venture in the country, is actively targeting the government
computerization business and has also got
an Institute of Electronic Governance to back its claims to expertise in the field, Krishnan said "Competition is inevitable in any large business. But we
have breadth of technology to our advantage. We have a better
understanding of governments as we always work with them."
Tata-IBM Managing Director Ravi Marwah, when contacted, was not aware of the development. He said he would comment only after seeing the
Gates letter.
When Krishnan was asked to comment on the speculation that Microsoft's offer to help Andhra Pradesh with
computerization may be conditional to
Microsoft setting up its first overseas development centre in the state, he denied it outright. "No final decision has been taken on the matter. It is too
early to talk of it."
Earlier: Who's afraid of Chandra Babu Naidu?
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