Al Akhbar supplement, p.7, (25/11/2006)

Days in India

By : Diaa Al Hagery

A red carpet was extended from the VIP lounge to the airplane parking lot in the Indira Gandhi airport. A musical band was ready to play the Indian national anthem. The guest was not an ordinary guest but he was the richest man in the world. He was Bill Gates, the owner of Microsoft. 

The official reception of Bill Gates was an indication of the interest India pays for information technology.

I met with the US press councilor in a symposium held for foreign correspondents in New Delhi; the symposium centered on the role of media in achieving rapprochement between India and Pakistan. I asked him to arrange for an interview with Bill Gates. But he apologized that Bill Gates was very busy and he was on his way to the airport.

However, what made Bill Gates, this software tycoon, visit India? It is sure that he went to India because of its international fame in the field of information technology. India has tens of thousands of experts in this field. A lot of them went to the US to work at high salaries.

India's software exports reached about $ 5 billion. It intends to multiply this figure in the coming years to reach $ 50 billion. Thus the information technology will be a main source of hard currency to India. In addition, India is providing backdoor services to international companies. Sending and receiving data via internet.

I had a very unique opportunity to visit Wipro, the largest software company in India when Dr. Gwaili, former Minister of Trade visited Bangalore. Azim Premji, chairman of Wipro and richest person in India, a Muslim, stood before this electronics stronghold to receive the Egyptian delegation.

Inside the company there were hundreds of computers on each of them a programmer was sitting.

The second visit was to the Silicon Valley. International companies have branches there and the production is exported.  This industry represents a value added advantage for the Indian economy. It also helps India achieve a comprehensive progress and will help it rank fourth among international economies after the US, Japan, the EU.

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