What Karnataka Inc Wants
The top item on every citizen's or business person's wish list is an honest government. Where elected officials are not only honest themselves, but also watch others who are corrupt.
But in Karnataka, this is perhaps too much to ask for. With a few exceptions, the citizen views corruption and elected officials as synonymous.
Hence, realistically, I would like to ask for only one other thing: A stable government, even if corrupt, but one that realizes that investment in infrastructure aligns business interests and that of the poor person.
I don't want anything special for IT. Everyone, IT industry or any other, is looking for improvement in infrastructure. Karnataka's infrastructure focus is behind many other states, including Andhra Pradesh, Delhi NCR, Punjab, or Kerala. As a recent example, Karnataka has done a shoddy job of transport infrastructure to the new airport. But Andhra Pradesh has done a great job to Hyderabad's new airport.
Focus on the poor is the right thing to do. To reduce poverty, we all agree that Karnataka needs to create more jobs, especially for the rural poor. And these jobs will only come from the business.
Karnataka is already losing its attractiveness as a business destination. Poor infrastructure is the top reason, whether it is transport, power, or water. A stable government that can focus on infrastructure is my Number 1 wish list.
(Dr. Anil Gupta is the Chief Operating Officer of Aditi Technologies)
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