I'll say this much. Since 1994 I've spent about sixteen months in India spread over three long trips. I love the country but would be very hesitant to invest there. At the very least, I'd do a lot of extra DD. India's infrastructure is still comparatively limited. What is built tends to be shoddy by Western standards. During my last trip to Asia, I also spent a few months in SW China. I came away from that astounded by comparisons between India and China. If the infrastructure built by each county reflects in any way the broader economic potential, India has a LONG way to go.
My experience with Indian bureaucracy was also much more frustrating than with the Chinese. From the border entry to visa renewal to hiking permits to purchasing train or bus tickets, the Chinese were pretty straightforward and efficient. India, simply put, is still very much a joke. I have never seen so much repetition, absenteeism, regulations turning out to be other than what appears in guide books, interactions more fraught with delay and requests for returns at later times.
Perhaps the biggest problem I see in India is communalism. Each ethnic, religious, regional or caste (those still haven't gone away) looks out for themselves first. The demographics may point to a growing Indian middle class but I have the impression that elite Indians will have a hard time accepting masses up on the higher rungs of the ladder.
Where I live in Northern CA there are hundreds of thousands of high-achievers from India. There are many in India, as well. There is, however, from the Himalayas to Kerala, an ocean of Indians who, for reasons I cannot comprehend, can't find the time in a day to sweep a floor or sidewalk, wash bed linens, fix a broken door, etc. Again, if this is indicative of qualities that run deeper, India has to shape up a LOT. |
