The Digital India initiative and the consequent technology adoption across the country will significantly boost the domestic IT market, says Alok Ohrie, president and managing director, Dell India. He believes that there exists a massive opportunity for Dell to partner the government and build the nation through technology. “Our extensive expertise in setting up and managing IT infrastructure will prove to be beneficial in the Digital India initiative. We have been working with both the Central and state governments for the last six years and have successfully executed National eGovernance Plan and other such initiatives,” he tells Sudhir Chowdhary in a recent interaction. Excerpts:
By Sudhir Chowdhary
What are your thoughts on the new technology push ushered in by the Narendra Modi-led government?
There is no better time than now in India to look at technology as infrastructure. It was so heartening to see our new Prime Minister call out his firm belief in the power of technology on his newly designed website minutes after he was sworn in. And he believes that technology is one of five Ts that could build ‘Brand India’.
In an economy where information is currency, the growth story of our country would henceforth depend on our technology investments. We need technology that would connect the government to its people, businesses to their customers and citizens to each other. Technology alone can steer India in today’s information economy by empowering decision makers with (data) insights. With India rebooting with a new government, now would be a good time to install technology as the backbone of all development. Overwhelming as the task may sound, the good news is we have all that it takes to build this nation with technology. For decades, IT solutions developed in India have been powering global enterprises and other developed countries. It is time to take cognisance of our own potential and our ability to deliver.
From your experience, can you give an example of technology infrastructure that has drastically transformed the day-to-day life of the common man?
I think IRCTC is an awe-inspiring example; it has made a phenomenal difference to the Indian Railways. Today, the IRCTC has an enhanced booking capacity of 7,200 tickets per minute (as against 2,000 tickets per minute possible with its old system) wherein 120,000 concurrent users can book e-tickets simultaneously.
Despite the limitations and inadequacies IRCTC may have, these numbers are nevertheless tremendous. At the very least, we need to think of the number of man-hours we have saved collectively as a nation over the last 15 years with IRCTC, the ease, accessibility and mobility that it has given to the common man.
But ticketing is just one aspect of the Railways. Reports indicate that there is a need to invest over $20 billion to upgrade the overall technology and infrastructure of the Railways. With the adoption of the right kind of technology—safe coaches, anti-collision devices, advance warning systems—thousands of lives would be saved every year from railway accidents. This is an important example of how physical infrastructure and technology infrastructure need to complement each other and grow in tandem to benefit the users and the country at large.
What according to you is an area of immense growth for the journey of nation building to be fulfilled with the application of IT?
The state of banking in this country is one that requires immediate attention. Nearly 50% of Indians still don’t have bank accounts. How do we reach out to the unbanked and under-banked? Only technology adoption and innovation can change this scenario effectively. In a recent survey released by CII-PwC, 63% of the respondents (banking) have emphasised that technology is a critical pillar to meet the strategic objectives of the business; technology is no longer a mere tool to enhance efficiency and reduce cost of operations. The future of banking, and consequently our economic growth, will depend on our ability to leverage new and disruptive technologies, such as SMAC (social, mobile, analytics and cloud). The government has called out that financial inclusion is one of its prime objectives; that it would provide households with the facilities of savings, credits, remittances, insurance and pension among others.
Broadband connectivity to various parts of the country is another important area that is the need of the hour. The National Optical Fibre network programme seeks to establish broadband connectivity to 1,50,000 panchayats across the country. Increased broadband connectivity, universal access to mobile connectivity and PC penetration needs to be of topmost priority in the country today. This will in turn pave the way for effective e-governance, cutting edge innovations, spurring jobs opportunities, as well.
How can IT companies partner the government in its Digital India initiative? How important is the thrust on enterprise?
With regard to nation building with technology, there are six key pillars that major IT companies like Dell can focus on—enterprise, connectivity, innovation, employment, education and healthcare. Over the next five years, as private enterprise partners to help the new government take India to unprecedented heights, we would need to drive technology adoption in our large enterprises to make them globally competitive. We would need to recognise the importance of technology-enabling our small businesses, with the most advanced solutions. Accelerating Internet and PC penetration will need to be a priority. This will in turn pave the way for effective e-governance.
How could technology redefine the education space?
IT companies can make a phenomenal difference to technology-enabled education, delivering this in particular to the underserved sections of society. For instance, employing cloud computing in the delivery of education is a tremendously promising proposition.
There is a huge demand for quality and accessibility of healthcare infrastructure. How could IT address this need?
Healthcare in India is beginning to be driven by fast, affordable and progressive new technologies. Speciality hospitals could spread across the country with the help of IT infrastructure making modern healthcare more accessible. Dell, which is the largest healthcare IT provider in the world managing 15000+ healthcare associates and 7 billion medical images on the cloud, can help Indian companies innovate and use technology to deliver healthcare to remote areas in a better manner.
What would be the implications of nation building on the employment opportunities in India?
On the talent side, nation building with technology would have a couple of critical connotations. How do we elevate India’s position to that of the Innovation destination of the world? In a country where 65% of the population is 35 or under, and half the population is under the age of 25, IT companies will have a crucial role to play in nation building through job creation and improving employability rates.
What are the other advantages of Digital India?
The ‘Digital India’ initiative and the consequent technology adoption across the country will significantly boost the domestic IT market. The government is taking actions that will create new opportunities to catalyse investments coming into India. IT companies can now turn to the
domestic market for growth and new business opportunities. The Indian market is poised for massive growth in the period of the next 3 years.
