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March 7, 1999

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Sam Pitroda

'To me telecommunications and information technology is a great social leveller. It ranks only close to death.'

Sam Pitroda
Leapfrogging - Telecom and the Internet
CII Annual Session

It is good to be back with so many friends. Good to be back home after a long, long time. I thank CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) for giving me this unique opportunity today.

Email this story to a friend. I like to take risk and dream like a nation of billion people. Not like some banana republic. I dream to be a rich, powerful, secular, united and meaningful nation in a short time.

I would really like to use information technology and communications as the common thread to that dream.

I want to dream with my head up. I want to take care of literacy, poverty; take care of all those fundamental issues.

My dream looks at these issues from telecommunications point of view.

Ten years ago, my dream was to connect rural India. In some we succeeded. In some we failed. Now my dream is to bring information to a large number of people in the next five years.

I want to empower the people; because you see the system is about power. Many people don't like to share it. If we take power down to people, they don't like it.

To me telecommunications and information technology is a great social leveller. It ranks only close to death.

It can raise cultural barriers; overwhelm economic disparities; put two unequal human beings on the same platform. I believe it can do the same to nations.

To me communications is the key to development in the next two years. The last decade has seen benefits of communications in the country. Look at television channels today versus 15 years ago when we had only Doordarshan.

I had to convince the government then to have a morning programme. They told me 'Why do you need a programme in the morning?'

There is more freedom of expression today; quantity of information on television has changed perception, created multiple dreams for people.

Once, when I was travelling from Baroda to Ahmedabad, near Kheda, there was a PCO (public call office) where 30 girls in brand new dresses, were all lined up. I could not understand it for sometime. We went a little bit ahead, and then we realised that these girls were waiting to call their brothers in New Jersey because it was Raksha Bandhan.

Today there are 20 million phones in the country out of which 10 million phones are C-DoT's (technology developed by the government's Centre for Development of Telematics). There are 23,000 exchanges and over 20,000 of them are C-DoT exchanges.

We have accessibility and rural connectivity today.

I see the next revolution just in front of us. Internet is going to have far reaching implications. The Internet is about richness and reach.

When I was in the water department, we wanted to get some information on how to repair water pumps. We decided to print 100,000 booklets. But this is India, you pay for 100,000, you get only 50,000. Then the secretary decides to keep some 5,000 out of them, saying I might need it for some emergency. Then it goes down to the district level and every person decides to keep a little bit of it. Ultimately the person who needs the booklet does not get it.

The Internet allows us to get information wherever we want it.

Our scales are so very large. It is so very difficult to distribute material. All that planning doesn't percolate down.

The Internet gives you the ability to deliver on demand the information you need.

In our business, things have changed in the last few decades. Now you have television on cable and telephone on wireless. Earlier it used to be television on wireless and telephone on cable. I was watching this cartoon which said 'Honey, will you answer the television, I am watching the telephone.'

Believe me, money as we know today will have no value in 10 years. The developed world wants to impose its will by declaring that the dollar and euro will be the only currencies. Why do we need only one currency?

They are trying to impose their financial clout on us. I am beginning to question the very foundations of our system and I believe information technology is going to do that.

Today, we measure nations based on balance of payment. Who decides that? How do you put on a balance sheet my temples in Madurai? How do you put on a balance sheet my Taj in Agra? Just because I have a $6 billion deficit, am I poor?

I want to question all that. At the age of 56, I suddenly realise who I am as a person. I used to have these discussions with my son all the time. I called my son and told him what have I done all these years. I have been part of disruptive technologies.

At 24 years, I started digital switching in the country. I was a terror in my organisation. Everybody hated me. But then, I thought digital switching was the best.

I then moved on, started my own businesses, C-DoT happened. That was disruptive technology.

India needs that today. If we want to visualise and dream we need disruptive politics in this country. There are times when it is wise not to listen to wisdom. There are times when people say you are wrong but you have to go ahead with it.

We all think of incremental change delta. We don't want to change the balance of power. But this country needs significant change.

We need many disruptive elements in the system. We have this whole social order even in the family. We are hierarchical and feudal. We like to touch people's feet, saying we like the dirt on their feet. We have to question all that.

If we really want to fulfil all our dreams, we need to question fundamental values. In this process, we may make mistakes.

I see information technology as a major element to bring about this change.

We have launched a programme in India in six states and hope to launch it in all others. We plan to set up Internet community centres with local content and local information.

Someone asked me what are the 10 things that you would like India to do. And this is from a layman's point of view. I said first, I would like us to have a national agenda, not a party agenda. We need administrative reforms. When I once went to a bank to open an account, I was told to get introduction from two people. I said I am going to keep my money with you, why should I get introduction from people, I should be asking you for them.

Second is we need to go for population control. We have to make sure all basic needs are met like water, literacy.

We cannot create a dream if 500 million people go into the 21st century illiterate.

We need further liberalisation, privatisation and less focus on control.

We need to change mindsets. Every Indian can dream as a powerful individual. That is the real vision for me and I hope it makes sense for some of you.

- Transcribed by Priya Ganapati

The Interview
'It is not the right time. I don't have a business plan. I need six business plans. But my guys are working on it.' Go >> | The introduction

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