The Golden Bird Must Soar AGAIN

The Golden Bird Must Soar Again

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76 years ago, on the momentous day of 15th August, India won Independence from centuries of foreign rule.

‘Swaraj’ was no longer a dream. Nehru made his speech “At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom” as he hoisted the tri color.

Now living in a free country- my ancestors with dream in their eyes and patriotism in their heart dived into nation building. Despite much effort for long India made little progress.

Everyone around us was shining. The Asian Tigers- Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan zipped past us. The Middle East prospered from their newly struck oil reserves. China’s miracle story started late but dazzled brightest. India stagnated!

My grandmother used to tell me, and I realized its true meaning much later “Without economic independence, political independence is meaningless”.

In 1991 India was on the brink of bankruptcy and the economy had to be opened to the world. India was never the same again!

With a sense of urgency, the nation woke up and binned the archaic bureaucracy of license raj. Growth in value added exports equates economic progress. India upped its game and started making goods and services the world wanted.

Exports of goods and services from India in 2022 stood at $750B which is circa 25% of its GDP.

50 years ago, it stood at 4%! …We have come a long way…

So, what are the Top 5 exports from India:

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1.??????Information Technology and Services:

50 years ago, the world perceived India as the land of snake charmers. Today it is the land of IT geeks.

India exports over $350B of services. Only 2 of the world’s top ten IT companies are from India BUT the other 8 have more workforce in India than in any other country. India is also fast becoming a phone manufacturing and exporting hub.

The world’s largest phone manufacturing factory is in Noida, India

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2.??????Exquisite Jewellery

Belgium and Switzerland don’t grow cocoa yet is known for making the finest chocolate.

India doesn’t mine gold, diamonds, and precious stones yet it crafts the most exquisite jewellery

90% of all worlds diamond is polished in one city in India and mostly exported out.

The Diamond Bourse in India is the world’s largest office building – bigger than the Pentagon.

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3.??????Value added Petroleum:

India doesn’t have enough crude oil reserves and imports 85% of its needs. But it is also amongst the largest exporter of refined and value-added petroleum.

The world’s largest refinery with a capacity of 1.3M barrels/day is in India.

4.??????Generic Pharmaceutical Products

India is the #1 exporter of generic medicines in the world. 3 of the top 10 generic pharma exporting companies are from India. India is making healthcare affordable around the world.

Largest vaccine manufacturer and exporter in the world is from India

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Last but not the least…

5.??????Diaspora

The word diaspora?comes from the ancient Greek dia speiro, meaning “to sow over.”?People who leave their homeland for foreign shores.

Through epochs numerous kingdoms travelled to India- some to trade others to pillage.

Emperor Ashoka had sent emissaries to southeast asia to spread Buddhism and later the Chola kings had crossed the seas. But if we look to history barring a few examples not many Indians travelled to foreign shores. In those times the world was filled with Indophiles – meaning people wanted to come to India and not the other way round.

The first wave of migration from India happened under the British rule after slavery was abolished. Under the Indian Indenture System over a million Indians were shipped to European colonies to work in servitude as farm bonded laborers.

Later post-Independence there has been an exodus of educated top talent who travelled to the developed nations- like USA, Canada, Europe, and Australia. Many travelled to the middle east in search of better livelihood and send remittance back home.

Fast forward to today:

·??????Indians form the worlds #1 Diaspora with over 30 million

·??????GDP of the Indian diaspora 2% of Indian population is estimated at $1T, ~30% of India’s GDP

·??????Indians remit $100B+ and hold $150B+ in Indian banks overseas

·??????Indians in USA earn 2X of the average American

The eco system for exports from India has taken a giant leap forward:

·??????Production Linked Incentives is helping companies compete in the global stage

·??????The country has gone from power deficit to power surplus. The largest solar park in the world is in the Thar desert in India

·??????India has the 3rd largest road network and 4th largest rail network – and growing at a breakneck pace. India has doubled its highway network in just the last decade

·??????Project Sagarmala (Garland of the Sea) is unlocking the potential of efficient multimodal logistics with ports and waterways

India is emerging as a competitive sourcing hub for Value-added Fast-moving Consumer Goods (fmcg) with world class quality. Fmcg exports from India is yet to unlock its true potential with value pegged at a modest < $10B. It is however amongst the fastest growing export category compounding at 20% CAGR.

Hindustan Unilever (Indian subsidiary of Unilever) is the largest FMCG company in India. Living up to its purpose of serving the underserved Unilever International is leading the exports of the iconic Hindustan Unilever brands to the Indian diaspora around the globe.

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Driving exports from India is me playing my part, in a bid to serve the nation. ?

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From 2000 years ago there are Greek and Chinese references of India as the land of golden bird.

500 BC to 500 AD was India’s golden era when India accounted for over 25% of world GDP. India was ahead in science, mathematics, medicine, economics with thought leaders like Aryabhata, Sushruta, Kanad, Charaka, Chanakya. Nalanda and Takshashila Universities were the beacons of education.

India was at the forefront of international trade exporting exotic spices, fine fabric, elegant metal work, exquisite jewelry and much more.

In return all India wanted was gold.

Like a phoenix, the mythical bird from Greek mythology that rose from fire; India too will rise.

The Golden Bird Must Soar AGAIN