10 Comments
Apr 10, 2023Liked by Anil Padmanabhan

Dear Anil,

Very informative article. The description by Sajith of India 1, 2 and 3 is very interesting!

Last few years have been very turbulent for our economy especially due to the Pandemic.Many strong entrepreneurs dived into new business opportunities, tested their ideas and were successful.India supports the rise of start ups due to its low cost skilled labour, funding from international and national investors and diverse growth opportunities.

Top gainers have been the fintech and financial services, retail and e-commerce and ed tech companies.At present there are around 105 unicorns, including health care services.The emergence of these startups is driven by millions of new customers in India and new international presence of India ..Let's hope it is able to solve the most serious problem of vast unemployment and disguised unemployment in the country.

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Thank you Vandana.

Absolutely. Just loved the way Sajith unpacked the India story into its various layers. Helped us grasp the different Indias operating at different speeds and needs. Those who question the massive spending on welfare should look at India-3. Without the participation of this cohort, the overall Indian economy is destined to be marooned.

The asks ahead are humungous. Good news is that the direction is clear. Now, just for politicians to close ranks and agree on a common agenda.

Best

Anil

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Apr 12, 2023Liked by Anil Padmanabhan

Hi Anil !

I have my reservations on all the inferences which are being drawn from Indus valley report . The reservations arise from the statistics used and analysis done on that . While the start ups have helped democratise the economic structure , it is pre mature to assess its impact as significant on the macro economy . The percentage of failures among the Units which arose is significantly high for to be ignored , Probably the lack of regulatory framework , not necessarily of the Government , need to be looked at .

I will like to go back to your deep understanding, as to highlight the three real accelerators of the present times of the Indian Economy;

Digitisation

GST

World'sbest combat strategy against Covid Pandemic devised in India

Sorry for the dissent .

regards

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Dear Balesh,

Thank you for your thoughts and "dissent" (Always welcome, especially from you; someone who has believed in this newsletter from the very start. Grateful)

Maybe our perceptions are not really at variance. The part about busts in startups is par for the course. Every idea will not be a unicorn. The business model will make the difference. There are scores of them who have folded up along the way. The same is true--not in such frequency--even with respect to brick and mortar stores (look at Connaught Place in New Delhi; half the original shops have shut down and being replaced by a new set). This is the classic creative destruction that we learnt from Schumpeter.

You are spot on about regulation. I would add corporate governance too. The lack of it is hurting so many good startups.

Cannot agree with you more on the big multipliers that have driven India's recent growth performance.

All I am saying is that earlier startups were on the periphery. Now, they are mainstream and very much part of economic activity. Which is why I cited the example of cloud factories tapping SMEs to service demand for manufactured products. There are many more such examples if we look around. A silent revolution is underway with respect to AgriTech.

Hope that clarified my argument.

Look forward to your continued participation.

Best

Anil

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Apr 10, 2023Liked by Anil Padmanabhan

Very cool article, I relate to a lot of stuff, since I joined a start-up 13 years ago. It was boot strapped. Some stats are a revelation, especially, people taking flights, COD payments etc.

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Thank you Rajiv. If you can do share your startup experiences--will be useful to all of us.

Even I was blown away by the power of few.

Best

Anil

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Apr 10, 2023Liked by Anil Padmanabhan

A very important article, as it opens up the most critical problem in India. The present trend of employment and the potential of future employment avenues. One feels that being self employed would be the safest place to be outside the stable employment in Government or Semi government establishments. Hence, ample opportunity for skill development will have to be provided by the Government, in order to have a productive employable workforce, leading to a growth in GDP and per capita income. Thank you Anil for some very critical information. Enlightening !

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Thank you Gautam.

You are right, we need lots and lots of reskilling. Especially, given the times we live in, wherein redundancy is par for the course thanks to technology inspired disruptions.

Agree with you. Probably, the first time the ecosystem has evolved to a degree wherein it is equally rewarding to be outside government and invest in your own venture.

Look forward.

Best

Anil

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Very interesting numbers on the consumer stack.

Positive: 120m is a big number. Downside: Everyone's chasing the same set of people.

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Dear Madhu,

Thank you for your thoughts. You are spot on. The number is big when compared to see the US with a population of little over 300 million. But insignificant when compared to 1.4 billion Indians. Clearly, the trick is to move India-3 up into India-2 and so on. Won't be easy. Won't be quick.

Look forward to your continued participation.

Best

Anil

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