Thanks to Nitin who evocatively writes about the various governmental attempts to shackle the IT industry’s growth in Bangalore.

It took a group of Bangalore’s knowledge economy CEOs to threaten a boycott of the Karnataka government’s IT trade show for Dharam Singh’s government to finally sit up and acknowledge that it was, after all, committed to improving Bangalore’s outdated infrastructure.[...] after finally having taken on a government that seemed to do its best to undermine Bangalore’s economic growth…

It has taken roughly two decades for Bangalore to reach its present position of eminence. And for the political nitwits to rush to reach into the pockets of the IT leaders. This apart from others is one of the main reasons the said nitwits have responded as if a tiger bit their private parts. Azim Premji’s caustic remarks about the deplorable Sarjapur road followed by an angry memorandum of IT heads now has a history of 6+ months. Nothing came out of it except for Paper Promises. This too, similarly, shall pass.

This lengthy preface was necessary for I can almost see Dharam Singh and co’s snide expression: we’ll deal with you after the IT.in–the annual IT fair in Bangalore–event is over. All the right moves have already started.

Bangalore’s genuine clamour for improved infrastructure is now being systemmatically painted by a section of the politico and its media stooges as a clamour of the IT rich. The current “debate” doing the rounds claims that these improvements will benefit only the “IT people.” Local Kannada tabloids over the past two weeks have devoted their cover stories to precisely this theme. Sample just two (translation mine):

• How the IT Mighties Shook the Government by its Collar
• Government Shamelessly Succumbs to IT Dons

The thrust of their “argument” centres mainly around the issue of “exploitation” by the IT companies. Here goes:

• Bought agricultural land at dirt-cheap rates and rid hundreds of farmers of their livelihood
• Used up precious resources of Bangalore/Karnataka but contributed nothing in return
• No contribution towards “social” causes–this includes not providing aid to the flood-stricken North Karnataka region
• Contributed to increase the rich-poor gap
• Cornered all “facilities” like roads, flyovers, etc
• Bled the exchequer using the “fraudulent” Tax Holiday scheme

Apart from its sheer one-sidedness, these articles make another insidious proposition, nay demand: reservation for Kannadigas in the IT sector. I am a Kannadiga myself, which is why this “stand” leaves me appalled. That the local media–I’m loath to give tabloids the status of “media”–has chosen to back a populist demand makes me furious. A demand that threatens to undo the good that has been achieved so far despite having idiots at the political helm. A demand that suddenly makes people realize that there’s something “unfair” in the IT people earning so much, and resort to violence to set the economic balance right.

Chief Minister Dharam Singh has joined his Cabinet colleagues Deputy Chief Minister M P Prakash and Finance and Industries Minister P G R Sindhia on the issue of reserving jobs for Kannadigas in information and bio-technology technology companies in the State. Dharam Singh told reporters … on Friday that there was nothing wrong in demanding reservation for Kannadigas in IT and BT companies.

(Link courtesy: MadMan)

Perhaps this braindead bunch was planning to use this demand as a bargaining chip. We’ll never know. They’ve come to their senses for now at least. Why don’t these guys realize this simple truth:

Som Mittal and chief finance officer of Infosys Mohandas Pai had said that reservation for Kannadigas was not possible as they were considering only merit as the criteria for recruitment. They, however, had said a number of people were getting indirect jobs in various other sectors due to the IT boon.

I’ve also wondered constantly about IT companies being the target of political gimmicks. In Bangalore at least. Is it visibility? Mobility? Ostentation?

In Bangalore, perhaps the only other industry that can be compared to IT in terms of wealth and employee salaries is the garment industry. There are hundreds of “garment factories” in Bangalore’s periphery which like IT, employ thousands of people. The salaries are comparable, too. A tailor with say 3-4 years experience is paid in the range of 15-25 thousand rupees while a “master” is paid almost double of that. My friend oversees operations of about 7 units and takes home to the tune of about 80K. If you’ve lived in Bangalore long enough, you’ll notice that the friendly neighbourhood tailor shops are fast dwindling. The reason? These folks have found that after running the shop for over 15 years, they’ve made a pittance: they stood to earn 10 times (or more) their current profits if they took their expertise to a “garment factory.” The clothes these guys design and/or stitch will eventually find their way to Walmart.

Indeed, years before IT left its imprint on Bangalore, the Garment/Apparel manufacturing industries cornered huge chunks of land; the government set up export duty free/EOU zones around Bangalore. Check out how ITPL rubs shoulders with many garment units, notice how garment units dot the entire stretch of Hosur road up to and beyond Electronic City, and try to count the number of garment units around Yeshvantpur, Bannerghatta Road, and Tavarekere.

On the subject of employing Kannadigas, it is true that garment factories do employ a great many of them. It is however, very relevant to note their employment grade: a majority of them work as daily-wage tailors, helpers and other similar positions in that cadre. Without demeaning anybody or any position, I think it doesn’t take a great deal of formal/professional/higher education to perform these jobs. It is pure skill that works. A leading garment export company put an ad hoarding that called for tailors. The ad was in Kannada. It reads (my translation):

• SSLC pass or fail
• Age: 18+ years
• Free transportation in airconditioned “tourist” buses
• Free lunch
• Weekly bonus for “good attendance and punctuality”
• Overtime benefit
• Monthly 5 gold coins for “performance”
• Assured promotion on completing a year

However, it is equally true that a “humble” but highly skilled tailor can within five years, command a salary that’d put a seasoned C programmer to shame. Like IT, garment companies vie against each other in attracting and retaining talent. Off my hand, I personally know at least 12 such success stories.

There’s another, dark aspect to this industry: garment companies are (in)famous for tax evasions, payroll irregularities and poor employee welfare measures. There’s also a relatively high degree of financial non-transparency given that most of them are either one-man shows or family-run businesses.

Why doesn’t the government/tabloids target them?

This post has less to do with the political flavour of the season: in my perspective, the issue is at worst insidious; at best it is non-existent. However, I’m concerned with its potential to damage what good the IT has wrought on Bangalore. The IT industry stood protected so far for a simple but significant reason: the government couldn’t understand the monster it had allowed to grow. And now, desparate to ease its Interference Itch, it’s trying to make a backdoor entry using the Kannadiga Reservation Rhetoric. If the IT industry capitulates, it’s inviting suicide. The only way out, as Nitin says is to develop:

…a more sophisticated approach is to also fund institutes, policy think-tanks and industry organisations that can advocate and articulate industry interests. They must get their op-eds in the regional language press and their talking heads on local TV channels. India’s IT industry has shown time and again that it is immensely capable of moving ‘up the value chain’. It needs to do the same with its politics.