The evolution of the Indian IT industry has been a saga of hope, opportunity and vision, the road paved with numerous examples of endeavor and entrepreneurial grit. It started with hope—of breaking through the cloud of protectionism and flying toward a new age of triumph and achievement. It was laced with opportunity—the end of the license raj and the onset of economic reforms opened up new avenues, and Indian IT’s heroes were quick to spot the gaps that needed to be filled. Today, we can look back and safely say that foresight and vision made all the difference. India’s IT heroes outguessed the market, predicted future trends in a segment that was evolving faster than any other, and tapped a market that has given hope to millions of Indians, and a new form of respectability and credibility to the country itself.

And behind all the hype and hoopla, panic and trepidation, are tales of grit and determination. A trip back in time with the people who made an impact on Indian IT as it evolved through the years...

The beginning of a revolution
In the fifties and sixties, computers were restricted to the privileged lot. Only the ISI, the IITs and a few institutes had them. At that time, India had more states than computers! But things changed in 1977 – ironically, just after IBM left Indian shores. In fact, this proved to be a blessing in disguise for the development of the Indian industry, for the post-IBM era saw the emergence of several new companies. Pioneers such as Shriram and Usha, ICIM and CMC among others, took the plunge in order to fill the void. Industry veteran Ashok Soota, who played an instrumental role in leading Wipro to its present position, recalls, “IBM’s leaving India was a new opportunity for many new industries to come up. We had to be innovative and we had to be self reliant.”

People who made a difference As important as the milestones are the people who help shape them. Dataquest outlines the driving force of some luminaries, those who have been awarded the DQ IT Man of the Year Award for eight years now. We present some comments from them: 1993: N Vittal “The Indian software miracle happened in the 90s because of two unusual factors. One, there was conformity between the goals set by the industry and the objectives of the government. And secondly, something ‘ungovernment-like’ happened because the department of electronics started breaking rules to create a freer environment, which dramatically changed the scenario.” 1994: Ashok Soota “In the earlier years, hardware was a major driver. As the market began to mature, people began to look for solutions. After that we moved onto connectivity and communications. System integration got a lot importance and it gradually became clearer that the major driver for business in the years ahead was going to be the service industry. So we began to focus much more on the service industry and the service opportunities in the industry.” 1995: Shiv Nadar “Money will not be an issue. It has never been an issue in this industry and is not likely to be in the future. We needed people with imagination and hope. People who had foresight and determination to take the industry ahead.” 1996: Narayana NR Murthy “We had to face a lot of difficulties when we began. We didn’t have too much money. All we had was a vision. So we decided to leverage on a market in which idea equity and innovation played an important role.” 1997: Dewang Metha “Software is the brightest hope for this country. Our kids, the software professionals from this country are the brightest in the world. About 158 of Fortune 500 companies have outsourced their software requirement to India. This shows how brilliant Indian software programmers are.” 1998: Rajendra S Pawar “There was a point in time when we started realizing that if there is one industry which can put India on the global map then it is the IT industry. And the moment this realization started coming in front of us, it generated tremendous energy and passion in many of us.” 2000: Byrraju Ramalinga Raju “Companies have started redefining their business models, building on the experience of having worked for many multinational companies, building domain capabilities and technology capabilities. Their performance is a clear indication that we can compare ourselves with the best companies and prove that we are as good. We have certainly achieved that confidence.” 2001: Pramod Mahajan “When the IT ministry came into being, the industry was very apprehensive of what was in store. But fortunately in the last one-year, we have managed to do away with such fears.”

The country witnessed many new beginnings. India’s first PC was launched in 1982 and the country’s first Computer Policy came into effect in 1984. It reflected the government’s keenness to promote IT by reducing import duties, allowing foreign equity participation and software, being recognized as a separate industry. “India required the new computer policy in the wake of the PC revolution because both the users and the manufacturers faced a large number of policy constraints. We brought in liberalization as a major plank for the new computer policy,” says N Seshagiri, former director general, NIC (National Informatics Center). A favorable environment was created both for the buyers and sellers of infotech related commodities. A series of plans were announced to automate large organizations and improve public services. The RailNet plan was conceived for the Railways. The Rangarajan Committee report on computerization of banks was released. GIC (General Insurance Corporation) introduced an Electronic Equipment Insurance Policy to cover the perils involved in EDP (Electronic Data Processing). And the government issued a deadline for the computerization of all ministries.

IT needed visionaries
In the late eighties, opportunities knocked more than once as computers entered every walk of our lives. Right from routine activities to extremely critical aspects of society, the automation of public utility services was initiated and impressive beginnings were made. “We realized that if there is one industry which can put India on the global map, then it is the IT industry. This realization generated tremendous energy and passion in many of us,” says R S Pawar, CMD, NIIT.

The industry was, however, still nascent and needed to be nurtured with care. More than money, it needed people with a lot of passion and drive. People who could take the country through this journey… “There are enough angels who will bring in the money. Money is not an issue. It has never been an issue in this industry ever and never will be either. At that time, we needed people with imagination and hope. People who had foresight and the determination to take the industry ahead,” says Shiv Nadar, chairman, president and CEO of HCL Technologies.

Narayana NR Murthy, chairman and CEO of Infosys Technologies, says, “We had to face a lot of difficulties when we began. We didn’t have too much money. All we had was vision. So we decided to leverage on a market in which idea equity and innovation played an important role.” Murthy describes how he, along with the co-founders of Indosys, concentrated on the global market right from day one. “At the end of the day, we could prove to ourselves and to the rest of the country that this spirit of ‘can-do’ exists in terms of optimism, hard work, ideas and innovation,” says Murthy.

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