Baba Kalyani Technology Quotations

I am able to compete not because my labour is cheap, but because I can use technology better than others.

If my strength is technology, financial structuring is my son's skill.

I am sick and tired of the process where everybody tells you that Indian companies don't have the technology and capability. We need to put money where our mouth is and make things happen, and that is what we are trying to do.

India has the capability to create a fairly extensive defence manufacturing capability in many areas, and as a country and as an industry, we have matured in terms of technology and capability to make this happen.

So far, the general perception, including the perception in India, was that we are not capable of using high technology. They simply refused to believe an Indian can do it! I somehow was not ready to accept that this is not possible.

The emphasis on innovation and technology in our companies has resulted in a few of them establishing global benchmarks in product design and development, manufacturing practices and human resource capabilities. However, there is no room for complacency.

The first reactions from Germany and German industry was quite negative. People right from the start were saying that we will steal technology and take it away and move the plant to India and use low cheap labor to compete.

When I returned from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1972, my father was running a forging business with a turnover of Rs 3.5 crore. But I had no patience and wanted to grow the business via exports.