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India set to become planet's knowledge hub With the fourth largest reservoir of scientific manpower in the world and numerous institutions engaged in frontier areas of research and development (R&D), India is emerging as the preferred hub for knowledge-based industries. Its skills in the knowledge economy are not restricted to information and communication technology alone but spans agriculture, defence, novel drug discovery, biotech, nano-technology, missile technology and space. India's efforts to become a superpower in knowledge economy are spearheaded at the highest level by President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, who is a noted scientist himself, and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, an Oxford and Cambridge-educated economist. "It is often said that the 21st Century will be the knowledge century. We in India are proud of our inheritance in this regard," Manmohan Singh told India's 4th annual conclave to connect with its vast diaspora in the southern city of Hyderabad Jan 7. The prime minister has also proposed a Diaspora Knowledge Network that will establish a knowledge corridor between India and the top achievers in the 25-million diaspora spread across 110 countries. Already, Microsoft, General Electric, Intel, IBM, Boeing and Google are some of the 100-odd global firms that have set up R&D centres in India, and many more are actively considering similar facilities. In fact, a study by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) estimates that India would emerge as a $17-billion hub for knowledge process outsourcing by 2010, growing at a staggering 46 percent annually. Pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, information and communication technology, legal support, intellectual property research, and design and development for auto and aerospace are some of the areas where India's strength lies, says the apex business lobby. "I have immense faith in the intellectual capital of India and the amount it can contribute to GE's success," says Scott R. Bayman, president of GE India, which has a John F. Welch Technology Centre in India, the largest outside the US. "India is rich with bright, young talent. Indian engineers are quick to grasp Six Sigma and make it their way of working," Bayman told IANS during a recent visit, referring to the strict quality standards of GE that is being mirrored at the India centre. GE's state-of-the-art lab in Bangalore does R&D in areas such as engineering, electronic systems, ceramics, metallurgy, catalysis, advanced chemistry, new synthetic materials, polymers, process modelling, simulation and IT. In a recent study, global consultancy Frost and Sullivan said India had taken a lead over China in the global movement to outsource R&D, while a McKinsey survey said large corporations find India a more attractive hub for R&D than China. "All this is happening because of the rich and vast talent pool of technical manpower in India," says S.R. Rao, scientific advisor in the Ministry of Science and Technology. "It is estimated that the headcount of our scientific manpower is arguably among the top five in the world and second-largest in terms of knowing English," says Rao, who has a PhD each in biotechnology and biochemistry. To sharpen India's knowledge edge in the 21st century Manmohan Singh has established a unique body, the Knowledge Commission, under Sam Pitroda, who led India's telecom revolution in the mid-1980s. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn