WIPRO chairman Azim Premji has blamed communal violence and proximity to Pakistan as key reasons why Wipro has not started operations in a major way in Gujarat. He was answering a question from a student of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, at the opening session of Confluence 2003, a management fair organised by the institute. ‘‘My customers don’t want me to operate business from a state which is close to Pakistan for fear of cross-border violence. Rajasthan suffers the same way,’’ he said. ‘‘But apart from that, we have communal violence and riots here. This needs to stop before we can attract investment. Even though I’m a Gujarati, my business will not run on sentiments but on customer mindset.’’ India’s exports in the information technology sector would touch $15 billion — a 30 per cent growth from last year’s performance—he predicted, adding that business process outsourcing and IT-enabled services would have a much higher growth rate. ‘‘With lower costs and better quality of engineers, India will get more jobs outsourced here. We should be ready to see more visa restrictions in coming years, because BPO outsourcing to India will get more momentum and thus countries will suffer,’’ he said.‘‘Germany, France, UK will also follow in these footsteps as their interest is harmed. Visas have already become costlier.’’ However, he said, they will not be able to stop India as it offers a huge market to multinationals. But this will happen only if we keep costs low and deliver good quality continuously, he cautioned. Premji listed five steps as ‘‘absolutely necessary’’ for India in this era of globalisation: n India has learned enough from developed nations; now, it must set high standards. n Values and integrity — which have been the mainstay of Indian culture— should reflect in our business. n Made in India brand will have to win accolades abroad. This the government cannot help achieve; businesses will have to do it on their own. n Excellence is a habit that we must cultivate and learn to execute within a deadline. n Indian entrepreneurs must learn that leadership in business must come through integration of mind, heart, and spirit.
