Lot's happening in India!

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." -Ferris Bueller

In almost every edition of Business Week you will find at least one article on India. It's common to hear India named where ever the hot topics like global warming, and job outsourcing are passionately discussed, be it radio or television.

I came across a few news makers, in case you missed them...

The annual Bangalore air-show attracted many big shots this time around. In a PR stunt, Ratan Tata flew in a F-16, a fighter jet. I don't know if indigenously made airplanes also participated in this show. Just after writing this line, I found an article that mentioned about an aircraft developed in India that crashed during the show. I hope no one got hurt and that this is only a temporary setback. The picture below is of a Light Combat Aircraft built in India.
Join the BBC debate: India - regional bully or friend
"The radio broadcast will be on 11 February. It will be televised on 17 and 18 February. You can participate by sending in your questions or views for the panellists by 8 of February".

Recent BBC Poll findings: "The poll found that a majority (71%) are proud to be an Indian"
BBC Article: Globalisation Shakes the World

Coincidentally, as I was writing this entry, my brother emailed me about how India is being dubbed as the next super power and how India is far from becoming that. In his own words - "I am quite happy as everyone else to see the progress India's been making over the last decade, but it's important to realize that there's a loooong way to go and not get too cocky... So, here's an article from this perspective: India the Superpower? Think again ...Raahy"

I agree with that notion. I would say that India is catching-up with industrialized western nations in many aspects. However, India has to take advantage of its recently gained wealth and invest in itself. I would argue that India is doing that, but it takes time to have any significant impact on larger public simply because of its huge population.

As an example there was a report on NPR about a reporter bombarded by surveys (NPR Audio - In India, It's Survey Mania) where ever he went. He was complaining about a survey he got many times while traveling in train to somewhere in India. Some students gave him a survey to fill out about 'how the toilets were' as toilets in that train were modernized and they would like to get some feedback. He might have gotten annoyed, but I see it as a sign that India is investing in itself - however slowly that might be.