Chairman of Reliance Industries Ltd, Mukesh Ambani, on Wednesday said that United States President Donald Trump might actually be a blessing for the Indian information technology industry. Trump’s administration has cracked down on immigrants in the US, and tightened visa rules that will affect Indian IT professionals there. Trump said he also intends to bring back more jobs for US workers, which will hit immigrants.
At the Nasscom Leadership Forum in Mumbai, Ambani said, “Trump can actually be a blessing in disguise. The domestic IT industry can focus on solving problems right here, which is a huge market.” He added that India currently has the infrastructure to make it one of the biggest software markets in the world, and that, “Trump’s measures will help Indian IT industry to focus on solving problems in India.”
He also added that India needed to be “open”, have partnerships, and not be closed. He said, “The world might want to build walls around. I think it is very important for us not to be influenced by those developments, to make sure that we are always open, always connected”.
The Reliance chief also supported the Centre’s Aadhaar cards and said that the identification cards had helped Reliance Jio add one million users a day using Aadhaar’s electronic know-your-customer or KYC. “We are really at the beginning of the era where data is really the new oil and India, with its talent and young population, will be the natural resource that will have a competitive advantage,” he added.
Tata Sons chairman designate N Chandrasekaran, who was also at the summit, said that despite hiccups and regulation changes, the IT industry was the most exciting one to be in. “I think every time there is a regulation change or a perceived challenge, whether it is H-1B or increase in visa fee, people talk about IT industry being in trouble… Every business is getting reimagined. So, the opportunity and the demand that we are going to see is just huge…it’s almost like a cricket pitch where the occasional ball will do something.”
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!