subhamoy.das wrote:Service includes engineerign service where engineering grads are solving engineering problem assited by computers. All major IT companies have a huge setup of engineering IT-enabled services. But, I think, VKumar has hit the nail on the head by summarizing the DNA of INDIANs and it is this DNA which will make us the number two service GDP in the world, after US, by 2022 or earlier. Personally, I am glad that we are going the US route,where we donot make consumer widgets rather have a strong currency to import them and let the MNC do local production for scale. INDIA should not waste time onthese items but instead should, and is, leap frog into higher value core manufacturing like heavy machines, heavy electricals, aerospace and nuclear electronics, automibiles, laser, nano tech etc...
Your concept is design it here, and get it made elsewhere, thats not going to happen, becos we dont have the human talent pool for that. What will happen with the current model, is limited money flow will come in through IT services, we will export little bit here and there. That money will fuel some domestic services industry to cater to the demand of the people employed in IT and agriculture and to some extent manufacturing. If you want real wealth creation, you need to make stuff yourself and that will benefit services sector also.
My friend,, are u implying that IT companies are providing tools for engineers to work with, that doesn't quite solve the problem. You still need quality engineers to do the design, i am not aware of any IT company that designs bridges. Good luck leap frogging, we haven't put a system where engineers can design a good basic car engine or a nice polymer, and you think, they can make heavy machines and nano tech straight away.
I stick to my point, you don't have human resources to leapfrog, you just don't have enuf quality engg grads or PhD's to help companies make that leap. Have you seen the quality of engineers we churn out. Barring a few elites institutions, do you think these guys can help you sustain advanced technology, I say no way in hell.
Just for a sample, pull out all just graduated civil engineers working in infosys, I bet 98% don't know what a torsional stress is, and you say they will leapfrog and make the next Gen light weight cost effective energy efficient buildings. I am sure you think, they can even make a solar airplane, when we can't even make a photovoltaic cell. All I can say is good luck.
I have seen engineers quit l&t becos they can't handle the work, they were just not good enuf to design a basic structure. Guess where they are now, coding at Infy. 4 years of civil engineering, cannot do basic design, but infy is always there. I assume ur plan is to import Chinese engineers to design roads and bridges.
I know that engineering consulting is a service, but my larger point is that our young generations fancy with IT has depleted us of any engineering skills. When I say engineering, I mean core engineering.
More importantly, the topic is about mass job creation, no way services can employ the bulk of indian population. To employ a nation of 1.2 bn, you need to do the low level manufacturing also. The money has to flow from somewhere to sustain the services and the population, you need to make something that you can sell to the world, just lines of code will not do it. Leapfrogging is a way out, but as i said before, its near impossible, and even if u can, it will 100 yrs before you can leapfrog ahead of others who are ahead now.
Improve the human talent pool, improve r&d, start making stuff locally and be competitive to sell into the world. Reduce number of engineering colleges and replace with fewer but quality universities with all departments. Our 17 yr olds deserve better, they need to learn quality stuff in depth to replicate it in practical environment. In the process you will come up with some leapfrog tech here and there becos you have started putting a system in place to sustain that leapfrog. You cannot all of sudden compete with boeing in the aerospace market when you have 10 colleges which have aerospace departments, and just a handful of factory workers who have any meaningful experience in that sector. Worse you have no competency in any supporting aviation equipment. Empty castle building all this leapfrogging is, you have to take the long route and build a base, no country has ever done it and India will not be an exception.
