Dude , 40% of Indians were living in poverty in 1990 (BPL) , before the opening up of the Indian economy. Today 23% of Indians live in poverty.Every year , there is atleast 1% drop in the poverty level.
How is that not improvement?
And IT in India potentially can employ 50 million people by 2008 according to certain experts.
Though that is nothing compared to what India's manufacturing sector,if opened up to foreign investment, is capable of.
But what I find interesting is - you guys seem to suggest since a section of India's population is poor (according to you , the majority) , the rest should not e allowed to get rich either. Keep them all poor , eh ?
The anger of the laid off geek knows no bounds. Seriously , what harm has poor little India ever done to you ? Get a life.
The importance of agriculture to India is gradually decreasing. It accounts for 23% of the GDP , Manufacturing accounts for 27% and Services (where IT is included) accounts for 50%.
True , agriculture still employs 65% of the working population , but that is something that needs to be reduced.
IT is important because it is India's fastest growing industry along with Telecom and Entertainment. (ICE).
The urgent need of the hour though , if to deregulate and open up the manufacturing sector to foreign investment. That will see India compete with China and very soon reduce the dependance on agriculture further.
And by the way the guy who said that IT is bad for India because it supposedly 'creates disparities' is a fool.
Any activity that creates wealth for anybody is always GOOD.
Well - the balance of nuclear power is firmly on India's side. So any nuclear confrontation is unlikely to happen between India and Pakistan (much to the chagrin of angry + laid off US geeks) because its suicidal for both countries.
The MAD (you know -mutual assured destruction) factor comes into play.
Dude , no need to be sarcastic. Take it easy. 40% of India's population(830 million) lived below poverty line in 1991 . Today 23% of India's population(1.1 billion) lives in poverty.Inspite of an increase in population by about 20% in the same period.
So poverty may not be nil by any stretch of imagination - but the point made is , every year 10s of millions of Indians are rising above poverty. This is unprecented and has happened only because of the opening up of Indian economy in 1991.
India was going nowhere till 1991. Since then incomes have shot up and India now has the world's 4th biggest economy in terms of PPP GDP.
Nothing special. But much better than before. I just read somewhere today that 800 million Indians have access to television , 400 million of them have cable tv at home. Now that is a definite improvement....
Dude , all that stuff about 'caste discrimination' etc. may be true in villages , but not so in urban India where 45% of the population lives. Its totally impossible to make out which guy is from which caste and really , nobody cares anymore. I think it is same as racism in US - where the prejudices exist more in small towns than in the cities.
But there is indeed a class system in India. The guy with the most $$$ is king - regardless of his caste/religion/sexuality etc.
Yeah. I'm a management student from India. Just wanted to clear up a few things.
IT exports only constitute 3-4% of India's total exports. BPOs/IPOs employ only a few hundred thousand Indians , just a fraction of the country's work force. So the whole IT/outsourcing thing is not as important as it is made out to be...
The reason the ICE (IT,Telecom,Entertainment[India has the world's fastest growing market for mobile phones and an estimated 400 million cable tv users]) sector has such a high profile in India is because it is India's best performing and fastest growing sector. The reason India has done relatively well lately in the ICE sector is because it is free from government interference and foreign investment is encouraged. And obviously because of the huge skilled labor force.
But to move to the next level , which is to compete with China , India has to free its manufacturing sector,open it to foreign investment , deregulate , disinvest and debureacratise. This can potentially employ literally tens of millions and take away the pressure from the IT industry.
To the angry geeks of slashdot , India might be a place which takes away their jobs by offering to do the same at 1/10th the price. But to me , as somebody who plans to have some say in India's future as an administrator and policy maker some day soon , I'm more concerned about the untapped potential in India's manufacturing sector.
It is important when you consider a country as big as India to look at the Big Picture. India already has the 4th highest PPP GDP in the world at $3 trillion . Any slight increase in the average Indian's per capita will lead to a phenomenal national growth. This can easily be achieved by opening up the economy and implematation of liberalisation and acceptance of globalisation in its totality.
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And regarding the proposal to move to India - forget it guys. Last week , I know for a fact that as many as 9000 qualified engineers competed for a single entry level position in one of India's IT companies. Not surprising because India produces 200,000 engineering graduates every year. So it is actually much easier to get a job in US than in India.
Infact I plan to try for a job in one of the top consultancy firms in US later this year if I can't get through the IAS (Indian Administrative Service) exams....
Another misconception is that India is an aid seeker. That used to be the case till about 4-5 years ago , but no more. Today , India seeks investment , but not aid. Foreign aid , as it has been proved , does nothing to improve the situation , and the aid seeking countries are caught in a debt trap.
So India does not accept aid anymore , and because of the new resurgence in its economy , has been paying off the old loans much ahead of schedule.
It just makes me cringe when I see the sort of ignorance that exists about my country -India . Anyway. India obviously is poor compared to USA,but still better off than most Latin American,Asian and African countries. Until 1991 , Indian economy was held captive by the government under a socialist agenda. Since then , after a period of (albeit excruciatingly slow) economic liberalisation and globalisation,poverty has come down from 41% in 1990 to the present 23%. Today India has a middle class of 350-380 million (and growing fast) - which serves as a huge market for all sorts of consumer items , automobiles, mobile phones etc. - so India today has the 2nd fastest growing economy in the world , and also a PPP GDP of almost $3 trillion.
The importance of IT , Call Centers , BPOs has been exaggerated. Truth is , only a few hundred thousand Indians work there. The real revolution will happen in India when the manufacturing sector is liberalised , and the obstructive labor laws are removed and foreign investment in manufacturing and infrastructure is encouraged. That should generate jobs in millions.What India desperately needs is a FREE MARKET - that is the only way India can catch up with China.
(And please , it would be silly to compete with USA , China is a more realistic target.USA should be seen as a partner rather than as a competitor. US and India can complement each other.)
Hi! I am a management student from India and have been a regular lurker at slashdot , but never a contributor. But this time I am compelled to have a say here,because what has been said above by the guy from Singapore is factually incorrect. Malaysia's Purchasing Power Parity(PPP) GDP per capita is 8000$. And India's PPP GDP per capita is 2950$. So Malaysia's PPP per capita is 2.6 times more than that of India. What our friend from Singapore does is make the error , intentional or not , of comparing Malaysia's purchasing power parity per capita with India's market exchange per capita . Its like comparing apples with oranges. Its a pity none of the smart people here on this forum have pointed this out.
Howzabout looking at the GDP figures? Malaysia's GDP/capita is around $8000, while India's is closer to $400 (yes, one zero less). This means Malaysia is roughly 20 times richer!
Hi! I am a management student from India and have been a regular lurker at slashdot , but never a contributor. But this time I am compelled to have a say here,because what has been said above by the guy from Singapore is factually incorrect.
Malaysia's Purchasing Power Parity(PPP) GDP per capita is 8000$. And India's PPP GDP per capita is 2950$.
So Malaysia's PPP per capita is 2.6 times more than that of India.
What our friend from Singapore does is make the error , intentional or not , of comparing Malaysia's purchasing power parity per capita with India's market exchange per capita . Its like comparing apples with oranges.
Its a pity none of the smart people here on this forum have pointed this out.
Slashdot Mirror
Dude , 40% of Indians were living in poverty in 1990 (BPL) , before the opening up of the Indian economy. Today 23% of Indians live in poverty.Every year , there is atleast 1% drop in the poverty level. How is that not improvement? And IT in India potentially can employ 50 million people by 2008 according to certain experts. Though that is nothing compared to what India's manufacturing sector ,if opened up to foreign investment, is capable of.
But what I find interesting is - you guys seem to suggest since a section of India's population is poor (according to you , the majority) , the rest should not e allowed to get rich either. Keep them all poor , eh ?
The anger of the laid off geek knows no bounds. Seriously , what harm has poor little India ever done to you ? Get a life.
Half the posts on this thread are by this character with confused sexuality , 'anonymous coward'. So boring.
The importance of agriculture to India is gradually decreasing. It accounts for 23% of the GDP , Manufacturing accounts for 27% and Services (where IT is included) accounts for 50%. True , agriculture still employs 65% of the working population , but that is something that needs to be reduced. IT is important because it is India's fastest growing industry along with Telecom and Entertainment. (ICE). The urgent need of the hour though , if to deregulate and open up the manufacturing sector to foreign investment. That will see India compete with China and very soon reduce the dependance on agriculture further. And by the way the guy who said that IT is bad for India because it supposedly 'creates disparities' is a fool. Any activity that creates wealth for anybody is always GOOD.
Maybe you should try yoga....
Well - the balance of nuclear power is firmly on India's side. So any nuclear confrontation is unlikely to happen between India and Pakistan (much to the chagrin of angry + laid off US geeks) because its suicidal for both countries. The MAD (you know -mutual assured destruction) factor comes into play.
Dude , no need to be sarcastic. Take it easy. 40% of India's population(830 million) lived below poverty line in 1991 . Today 23% of India's population(1.1 billion) lives in poverty.Inspite of an increase in population by about 20% in the same period. So poverty may not be nil by any stretch of imagination - but the point made is , every year 10s of millions of Indians are rising above poverty. This is unprecented and has happened only because of the opening up of Indian economy in 1991. India was going nowhere till 1991. Since then incomes have shot up and India now has the world's 4th biggest economy in terms of PPP GDP. Nothing special. But much better than before. I just read somewhere today that 800 million Indians have access to television , 400 million of them have cable tv at home. Now that is a definite improvement ....
Dude , all that stuff about 'caste discrimination' etc. may be true in villages , but not so in urban India where 45% of the population lives. Its totally impossible to make out which guy is from which caste and really , nobody cares anymore. I think it is same as racism in US - where the prejudices exist more in small towns than in the cities. But there is indeed a class system in India. The guy with the most $$$ is king - regardless of his caste/religion/sexuality etc.
Yeah. I'm a management student from India. Just wanted to clear up a few things. IT exports only constitute 3-4% of India's total exports. BPOs/IPOs employ only a few hundred thousand Indians , just a fraction of the country's work force. So the whole IT/outsourcing thing is not as important as it is made out to be... The reason the ICE (IT,Telecom ,Entertainment[India has the world's fastest growing market for mobile phones and an estimated 400 million cable tv users]) sector has such a high profile in India is because it is India's best performing and fastest growing sector. The reason India has done relatively well lately in the ICE sector is because it is free from government interference and foreign investment is encouraged. And obviously because of the huge skilled labor force.
But to move to the next level , which is to compete with China , India has to free its manufacturing sector ,open it to foreign investment , deregulate , disinvest and debureacratise. This can potentially employ literally tens of millions and take away the pressure from the IT industry.
To the angry geeks of slashdot , India might be a place which takes away their jobs by offering to do the same at 1/10th the price. But to me , as somebody who plans to have some say in India's future as an administrator and policy maker some day soon , I'm more concerned about the untapped potential in India's manufacturing sector.
It is important when you consider a country as big as India to look at the Big Picture. India already has the 4th highest PPP GDP in the world at $3 trillion . Any slight increase in the average Indian's per capita will lead to a phenomenal national growth. This can easily be achieved by opening up the economy and implematation of liberalisation and acceptance of globalisation in its totality.
--------
And regarding the proposal to move to India - forget it guys. Last week , I know for a fact that as many as 9000 qualified engineers competed for a single entry level position in one of India's IT companies. Not surprising because India produces 200,000 engineering graduates every year. So it is actually much easier to get a job in US than in India.
Infact I plan to try for a job in one of the top consultancy firms in US later this year if I can't get through the IAS (Indian Administrative Service) exams....
Another misconception is that India is an aid seeker. That used to be the case till about 4-5 years ago , but no more. Today , India seeks investment , but not aid. Foreign aid , as it has been proved , does nothing to improve the situation , and the aid seeking countries are caught in a debt trap. So India does not accept aid anymore , and because of the new resurgence in its economy , has been paying off the old loans much ahead of schedule.
It just makes me cringe when I see the sort of ignorance that exists about my country -India . Anyway. India obviously is poor compared to USA ,but still better off than most Latin American ,Asian and African countries. Until 1991 , Indian economy was held captive by the government under a socialist agenda. Since then , after a period of (albeit excruciatingly slow) economic liberalisation and globalisation ,poverty has come down from 41% in 1990 to the present 23%. Today India has a middle class of 350-380 million (and growing fast) - which serves as a huge market for all sorts of consumer items , automobiles, mobile phones etc. - so India today has the 2nd fastest growing economy in the world , and also a PPP GDP of almost $3 trillion.
The importance of IT , Call Centers , BPOs has been exaggerated. Truth is , only a few hundred thousand Indians work there. The real revolution will happen in India when the manufacturing sector is liberalised , and the obstructive labor laws are removed and foreign investment in manufacturing and infrastructure is encouraged. That should generate jobs in millions.What India desperately needs is a FREE MARKET - that is the only way India can catch up with China.
(And please , it would be silly to compete with USA , China is a more realistic target.USA should be seen as a partner rather than as a competitor. US and India can complement each other.)
Hi! I am a management student from India and have been a regular lurker at slashdot , but never a contributor. But this time I am compelled to have a say here ,because what has been said above by the guy from Singapore is factually incorrect. Malaysia's Purchasing Power Parity(PPP) GDP per capita is 8000$. And India's PPP GDP per capita is 2950$. So Malaysia's PPP per capita is 2.6 times more than that of India. What our friend from Singapore does is make the error , intentional or not , of comparing Malaysia's purchasing power parity per capita with India's market exchange per capita . Its like comparing apples with oranges. Its a pity none of the smart people here on this forum have pointed this out.
Howzabout looking at the GDP figures? Malaysia's GDP/capita is around $8000, while India's is closer to $400 (yes, one zero less). This means Malaysia is roughly 20 times richer! Hi! I am a management student from India and have been a regular lurker at slashdot , but never a contributor. But this time I am compelled to have a say here ,because what has been said above by the guy from Singapore is factually incorrect.
Malaysia's Purchasing Power Parity(PPP) GDP per capita is 8000$. And India's PPP GDP per capita is 2950$.
So Malaysia's PPP per capita is 2.6 times more than that of India.
What our friend from Singapore does is make the error , intentional or not , of comparing Malaysia's purchasing power parity per capita with India's market exchange per capita . Its like comparing apples with oranges.
Its a pity none of the smart people here on this forum have pointed this out.