IPAMA BULLETIN PRINTPACK INDIA 2019
IPAMA BULLETIN PRINTPACK INDIA 2019
Make in India
This tale of the narrator ’ s encounter with a printer publisher friend , attempts to explore the true sense of ‘ Make in India ’ – a concept that we all seem to have misunderstood . Hopefully this is the first of several articles on similar themes to be written by Indian print and packaging equipment , consumable and software manufacturers .
BY PALLIPPURAM SAJITH
CK is a printer-publisher . I work for an MNC . We have been friends for a while now .
CK feels the karmic reason for his existence is to be my conscience keeper . And I don ’ t usually mind it .
This is the governing principle of our friendship .
CK plays his role well — making me stay away from making decisions , good or bad . He does this over long-lasting phone calls ; my phone drains its juice and along go the ideas on my mind . Phone rings – “ Hello !”
CK ( Annoyed ) – “ Don ’ t you feel guilty of helping an MNC establish itself as the leader in its field in India ? Why don ’ t you help an Indian manufacturer , instead ? Haven ’ t you heard of our PM ’ s great initiative called ‘ Make in India ,’ which will provide a market for Indian products , not only in India but across the globe .”
CK continues , “ And when our leader is globetrotting , trying to sell our products , you promote a global giant at the cost of many deserving MSMEs who can give you a similar product .” The phone disconnects That was my friend losing his cool . I could hear a lion roar , somewhere in the background .
I was disappointed . Despite so many articles , reviews , discussions and ‘ news at 9s ’ around this subject , even my learned friends like CK had no idea about the concept of ‘ Make in India .’ ‘ Made in India ’; ‘ Made for India ’; ‘ Made against India ’; ‘ Can be made in India ’; ‘ Can ’ t be made in India ,’ and all these suggestions combined together form ‘ Make in India ,’ right ? I call up CK . No answer . The landline is answered by his wife . Regular pleasantries are replaced by swearing . As CK comes on the line , I can hear : “ Why does he have friends who make him lose his sleep ?”
CK is still sore with me for being the single largest stumbling block to the ‘ Make in India ’ dream . Without taking any further risks of him cutting me off , I invite him for attending a special screening of the movie ‘ Gandhi .’
CK sits with his eyes glued on Ben Kingsley , tears trickling down , sobbing at times and in the end when even his kerchief starts crying , I loan him mine . I ask him for a walk after the show . The lion starts roaring again – “ Do you have any nationalism left in you ? Didn ’ t those historic moments in our freedom struggle , which were so beautifully depicted in the movie , wake up the Indian in you ?” I reminded him that I did loan him a wet kerchief .
I cannot take this any further ; the last gaali I want him to call me was anti-national . Yet , I did not dare remind him that the movie was made by Richard Attenborough : I did not want to see him crushed . Over a dozen cutting chais and vada pavs , I go on the offensive , trying to trash his misconceptions .
“ The MNC I work for , manufactures products in Indian factories , employs five thousand people in these factories , all Indians . And Indians are at key positions in their offices and factories in other parts of the world , too . They provide best-in-class products costeffectively to our Indian customers so that they can improve their quality without resorting to imports . Tell me , what is anti-Indian in this ?”
“ But they repatriate the profits back to their countries .”
“ After paying all taxes in India , right ? And as against these , the smallscale manufacturer friend of yours employs less than 100 people . Both are making in India , having factories in India , using Indian labor , raw material
either sourced locally or imported — in similar percentages — and which one do you think is more beneficial for India ?”
CK takes more time to gulp down the sip of tea , as though tasting wine .
Unable to bear a silent lion , not hungry anymore , looking at escape routes , I provoke him further . This time with numbers . “ Fifty percent of labor in India is employed by the agriculture sector . And this contributes just 15 percent to our economy .
“ The service sector that includes the IT sector , employs 30 percent of the labor pool , but is responsible for 60 percent of India ’ s GDP . The rest is contributed by manufacturing .
“ India ’ s GDP has been growing at three times the rate of employment in the last few years . From now , for the next ten years , we will add ten million youth to the labor pool , every year .
“ Agriculture employment is declining by 5 million every year . As against this , we have been able to grow jobs by about 7 million per annum in the last decade and this includes low paying construction jobs and the government rural employment schemes .
“ Imagine the unrest , if we can ’ t bridge the gap ?
“ The developed nations progressed from agriculture to more productive manufacturing during the industrial revolution . At peak efficiencies , they
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