Monday, October 16, 2006

Telecom reforms reaching the people

When India started de-regulazing and disinvesting the telecom industry about 8 years ago, I never thought it would make such a sea change in the life of ordinary people. The change is evident every time I visit India. From ordinary rickshaw-wallah to your street-corner grocery store guy has a cell phone and is transforming the traditional business models by breaking the communication barriers. Just like telecom, air travel industry is just starting to go through a similar revolution. Whoever said reforms are anti-people? It may result in short term job losses - but in long term it no doubt reaches ordinary people.

Because of the powerless Manmohan Singh government which has put a stop to further disinvestments - which is an irony because it was Dr. Singh himself who set the ball rolling back in Narasimha Rao days - the progress has slowed. I hope GoI continues to disinvest and privatize the Public Transport, Energy, Insurance and other babu-holds.

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