KTR said the recession in one part of the world necessarily does not have a repel impact on other parts of the world, but it might result in creating jobs elsewhere.
Updated On – 08:08 PM, Tue – 28 November 23
Hyderabad: IT Minister KT Rama Rao said the soft recession in the US and what was happening in China was a time for resurgence in India.
“It’s a moment to seize and create more opportunity. The world looks at India with a lot more optimism and enthusiasm in the immediate future and even for the short term,” he said while taking part in the ‘Leadership Speaks’ programme of LinkedIn.
Rama Rao said the recession in one part of the world necessarily does not have a repel impact on other parts of the world, but it might result in creating jobs elsewhere.
“If you look at the technology industries, India really has a great opportunity because two things are happening simultaneously. One is the US on which we rely on the IT and service sector in an indirect kind of manner. Second, all the movement taking place away from China in electronic manufacturing and in large scale manufacturing is also good news for India,” he said.
If India could position itself in such a way that it could bring knowledge based economy and manufacturing economy expertise on a platform, it will do well in the next 10 years or so, he said.
“High labour cost in China and excessive dependence on China is going to create a compulsion for large numbers of manufacturers to move away from it. Soft recession in US will force large multinationals to look at India. That would be the biggest advantage for us. Our workforce and our think force take advantage of the situation,” he said.
Commenting on the Telangana Model, he said an integrated and holistic approach had been taken to ensure inclusive and balanced development. “We focused on three eye mantras-Innovation, infrastructure and inclusive growth,” he said.
He said IT exports in 2014 were Rs.56,000 crore and now it was Rs. 2.41 lakh crore. The number of employment in technology has also increased steadily from 3.23 lakh in 2014 to 9 lakh now, despite two years of the Covid-19 pandemic. “Our industries have grown and so has the environment. Telangana has the highest green cover with 7.7 percent. The State has given 24,000 approvals and attracted over 4 lakh crore of investments and created a potential of 24 lakh direct employment,”he said.
The State had created institutions like the T-Hub, the world’s largest technology incubator and India’s first State-led incubator for Women Entrepreneurs, We-HUB, he said. The government had created Telangana State Innovation Cell (TSIC) which accommodates social and young innovators. It works towards creating palpable excitement around innovation at schools, grassroots and rural areas. The TSIC runs innovation challenges around 26,000 schools across the State under the guidance of the education department, he said.
The State had been leading in women-run MSMEs and women workforce in the country, he said, adding that the Telangana per capita income was highest in the country. In 2014 it was Rs. 1.14 lakh and now it had touched Rs. 3.17 lakh, which was the highest among all the States in the country, he said.
Commenting on his journey as a Minister in the State cabinet, Rama Rao said in 2014 when he took the charge of IT and industries Minister he wanted to know why Hyderabad could not be like Bengaluru in terms of innovations and job creation. The Indian School of Business, IIIT Hyderabad, Nalsar and the government of Telangana came together to create India’s largest incubation hub. This helped in creating a lot of start up companies like Skyroot Aerospace, India’s leading aerospace company specializing in futuristic space-launch vehicle design and building, he said.
He said a vibrant atmosphere created due to the combined efforts of the State government and the industries had helped Hyderabad’s growth. In the last two years Hyderabad had beaten Bengaluru in job creation,he said, adding that innovation , infrastructure and inclusiveness had helped Hyderabad in becoming a true global city.
Commenting on his personal life, Rama Rao said though by profession he was a politician, he had many other passions and tried to balance both the roles. “I like public life, It gives a lot of satisfaction. I also work with a lot of NGOs. I love travelling. I love watching movies too. I believe in a superpower who is running the universe,”he said.
