India often boasts about its ancient achievements, highlighting Aryabhata and his invention of ‘zero.’ But what about today?
Today, the world is dominated by Korean cars, Chinese phones, and American or European fashion and luxury brands. What Indian brands have made a global mark? Yes, our invention 'zero' is smiling at us.
Even with lakhs of crores worth of software companies, India hasn’t built a laptop brand of its own. These firms secure large tracts of land from the government for as low as 99 paise per acre, in the name of investment. Yet, their focus is mostly on employing young talent and exporting them to onsite projects in the US.
Yes, India is known for producing tech talent, but primarily as service exporters. What about product manufacturing and innovation?
Despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, neither the youth nor the companies have embraced this vision fully.
Everyone is chasing IT jobs and projects, ignoring the bigger picture. In an era where AI threatens service roles, where will these engineers go? Without a strong manufacturing and innovation base, how can we claim that the world depends on us?
Even in education, India’s top institutions struggle for global ranking. IIT Delhi, the best in the country, is positioned at 123rd in the world, with an employability rate of just 50.5% and an academic reputation of 67.9%. Its international student diversity is a mere 6.3%, and the international faculty ratio is 3.2%.
Every Indian feels ‘Mera Bharat Mahaan,’ but it’s crucial to acknowledge where we truly stand globally and focus on how to compete in a rapidly advancing world. This isn’t about criticism, but reflection — an urgent call for the government, industries, and youth to unite.
Together, we must build a stronger future by prioritizing innovation, boosting manufacturing, and strengthening education to match global standards and aspirations for growth.
Kiran Sharma
