Prithvi Datta, of Castlefields, Runcorn, visits Prasanthi Nilayam, Andhra Pradesh, in India, to promote green energy

Prithvi Datta, of Castlefields, Runcorn, visits Prasanthi Nilayam, Andhra Pradesh, in India, to promote green energy
Oct 29 2009 by Oliver Clay, Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News

AN INVENTOR from Runcorn has visited an Indian holy site to promote his green ideas to businessmen.

Last week Prithvi Datta, a retired refrigeration engineer from Castlefields, and his son arrived in Prasanthi Nilayam – a remote village in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, to gather support for his carbon-cutting ideas.

While in the holy village, also known as Place of Peace, Mr Datta will propose a ‘solar dome’ invention to a team of social entrepreneurs from around the world.

Mr Datta, who tests some of his inventions at his son’s Xpress laundry business in Widnes, said his Evergreen Model 18 Regenerative Energy System combines solar, greenhouse and chimney effects.

Mr Datta hopes private and public bodies will back the project and a working prototype near Prasanthi Nilayam.

He said the solar dome is more efficient and affordable than wind turbines or solar panels used alone.

He said that with patents in place, he hopes the technology will be exported around the world.

The trip to the holy village kicks off a five month tour for Mr Datta.

The majority of the tour will be spent in India, where he is advising the West Bengal Regeneration Energy Development Agency on green energy. He will also visit Canada.

Mr Datta said:

“With blessing from Sri Sathya Sai Baba, the proposed dome will offer nine to 18 kilowatts of usable regenerative electrical power for a longer part of the year, than individual solar or wind turbine system.

With Sathya Sai Baba’s Grace a great reduction in carbon emissions and burning fossil fuels will be possible when the power is not used from the national grid or standby generators.

My family are happy that I am able to make a small contribution to others and the environment.”

Runcorn & Widnes Weekly News Reference

The BPOs are calling Bharat

The BPOs are calling Bharat
MINI JOSEPH TEJASWI TIMES NEWS NETWORK , TNN 10 October 2009, 05:27am IST

College and an office job was 17-year-old Abhijit’s dream. But financial problems meant he had to join his father on the farm, helping to grow paddy Steep rentals and a high attrition rate in cities are why many BPOs are moving and sugarcane, collect fodder and sell milk. That became his life in the tiny hamlet of Baburayanakoppal, near Srirangapatna in Karnataka.

Until three months ago, when an abandoned rice mill in the village was renovated and became the office for a 100-seater BPO (business process outsourcing) unit.

Word was soon out in the village that there were jobs to be had. Though he neither spoke nor understood English, Abhijit decided to give it a shot. He applied, wrote a test, was taken in and trained. Today, he’s part of the Indian BPO army, once seen as an urban opportunity accessible only to educated, English-speaking boys and girls.

Abhijit’s employer B S Venugopal, a director of Mpro Solutions, says though the training takes time, it is worth the effort. ”We did not expect to find readily employable talent in rural areas. They are raw with no language or communication skills but eager to learn.”

A few weeks into his training, Abhijit tells TOI Crest in grammatically correct English, ”It’s not that a farmer’s life was a bad one, but farming doesn’t pay enough for a comfortable living. In my case, I had no education and didn’t think I could be anything other than a farmer.” Now as part of his job, he makes calls to prospective donors from a database seeking funds for NGOs. His salary is Rs 3,500 a month.

Abhijit isn’t the only one taking advantage of BPOs going rural. Even as many outsourcing firms based in cities put a freeze on hiring, many new units are opening up in villages and towns in the south.

Karnataka’s IT/BT secretary Ashok Kumar C Manoli says the companies are bringing technology and financial empowerment to rural youth. ”The idea is to create a rural BPO cluster , which can be integrated with similar projects across the country,” he says. ” We want to promote jobs for rural youth who have some computer knowledge and belong to small towns with a one lakh population. To start with, each of these centres will have 100 seats,” he adds.

Abhijit’s colleagues at Mpro – Mahesh, Jagadish , an orphan, Soumya and a dozen others – are also taking advantage of this economic transformation. But what will they do with the extra money? Abhijit wants to help his father buy more cows. His friends, too, want to help their parents out but they also want to buy mobile phones and bicycles.

”The initiative will change the economic fabric of the countryside,” Manoli says. BPOs will make youth in the hinterland financially independent as they did in the urban areas. They will have money for marriage, to pay off debts or buy sewing machines and cows. More importantly, it will stop the mass exodus of young people from villages to cities seeking employment, he says.

It is the cost of business in big cities – exorbitant rentals, steep wages, high attrition – that has many companies looking towards the village. Mpro Solutions is the first to become operational under the Karnataka government’s ambitious rural BPO scheme. The state plans to set up a hundred such units to create one lakh jobs in the next four years. A few weeks ago another centre was opened at Gundlupet, while two centres are being readied in Salgame and Shiggaon in Karnataka. Also in the pipeline are eight more in Sirsi, Huliyur, Chikbalapur, Hosadurga, Pavagada, Mundargi and Devadurg in rural Karnataka.

The state is rolling out the red carpet for those adventurous enough to go rural. It’s offering financial incentives of up to Rs 20 lakh and a per employee training incentive of Rs 10,000. Manoli says the response from entrepreneurs has been overwhelming. Infosys and Wipro, too, have shown interest.

Bangalore-based BPO company RuralShores, which already has a centre in Bagepalli, is in the process of entering rural areas in Tamil Nadu and Bihar. Xchanging, which acquired Cambridge Solutions, and Hinduja Global Solutions too are venturing into semi-urban places like Shimoga in Karnataka and Durgapur in West Bengal.

Other southern states too are developing business models to encourage private players to venture beyond the cities. Tamil Nadu already has rural BPO units and is planning another 100 rural units in the next few years.

Kerala is looking at a hub-and-spoke model. The government aims to set up 100 rural BPOs at the panchayat and district level in 14 districts over the next three years. The first rural BPOs have already come up in Perinad and Kadakkal in Kollam district.

Sai Seva Business Solutions, a rural BPO unit, was set up in Puttaparthi (the abode of Sathya Sai Baba), a couple of years ago by management students of the Sri Sathya Sai University. HDFC Bank outsources part of its work on data capture and profiling of new accounts to them. Tata Business Support Services has set up a BPO in Mithapur in Gujarat, near the manufacturing unit of Tata Chemicals.

A country-wide rural BPO drive is expected to create employment opportunities for millions of rural Indians, allowing them a share in the country’s $12-billion BPO pie.

Times Of India Reference

Robotics – The Next Big Career Path

Robotics – The Next Big Career Path
Raj Singh Rathee

In India, the industry is expected to grow at a rate twice the global average.

Ever imagined that the bike you ride, the car you drive, the bus or train you travel in of even the clothes and groceries you buy has robots and robotics involved in it at some point or the other? Well it true. Robotics has grown far beyond the realm of fantasy, imagination and sci-fi. What we remember as robots being toys with blinking lights and mechanical sounds or as one would remember from the Hollywood blockbuster Robocop, are now left far behind. Robots and Robotics is far more firmly entrenched into our day to day life, though invisible and working in the background.

Let’s first define Robotics. Robotics is a field of engineering that deal with design and application of robots and the use of computer for their manipulation and processing.

How to be an expert?
Robotics being an inter-disciplinary course, students who have completed their graduation in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, instrumentation engineering or computer engineering with an interest in robotics and artificial intelligence can pursue a career in Robotics.

In India, there are few institutes imparting the state-of-the-art professional skills wherein people from industry and also the student community are trained on different aspects of robotics. Different types of courses from Basic Robot Programming to Expert Robot programming are being offered.

A course in Robotics trains and educates an individual in artificial intelligence, computer aided manufacturing, computer integrated manufacturing system, computational geometry, robot motion planning, digital electronics and micro-processors, robot manipulators.

Courses in Robotics are offered by leading institutes like IIT – Kanpur; National Institute of Technology – University of Hyderabad (M.Tech in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics); Kuka Training Centre – Pune; Jadavpur University – Kolkata; BITS – Pilani; Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning – Prasanthinilayam in Andhra Pradesh and PSG College of Technology – Coimbatore. These are a few names.

Avenues for you
The scope for a career in Robotics in India is tremendous and people can explore career opportunities in diversified sectors ranging from space research organisations to pure manufacturing companies. Apart from Automobile companies, which account for 70 per cent of Robotics applications in India, other sectors like foundry, food, logistics, healthcare and entertainment are also aggressively looking at adopting robots.

The big ones
Blue chip companies like Tata Motors, Hyundai Motors, Reliance Industries, Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland, etc have separate designated departments to handle the programming and functioning of robotics.

Many small and medium enterprises in India are also warming up to the idea of investing in robotics to increase their global competitiveness.

The cases in point are the two prominent industries of the SME sector – Forging and Diamond. Robots contribute substantially towards rationalising cost-effective automation solutions in all areas of the forging industry. Whatever the application, be it loading and unloading of die-casting machines, deflashing presses or machining centres; spraying; finishing processes like milling, sawing and grinding, or handling hot, heavy forgings, these robots meet every need including applications in harsh ambient conditions. Trends suggest that internationally the diamond industry is moving towards very high precision workmanship. Robots play a critical role for this industry which is pegged at Rs. 60,000 crore.

Robots actually help SMEs to transform their competitiveness and deliver significantly enhanced levels of productivity, efficiency and profitability.

Robots are also used in the field of nuclear science, sea-exploration, servicing of transmission electric signals, designing of bio-medical equipments etc. A candidate having an M.E. degree in Robotics can get job opportunities in space research organisations like ISRO and also in industries which manufacture microchips.

Job opportunities also exist in Indian Institute of Technology for doing extensive research work in artificial intelligence.

Furthermore, The Indian Institute of Chemical Biology offers openings research fellowships in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence.

Internationally, a Robotics Engineer can get employment opportunities abroad to program, troubleshoot and maintain robots; Research fellowships are also available in research institute emphasising on humanoid robotics and computational neuroscience.

Companies like Intel recruit robotics and artificial intelligence specialists for microchip manufacturing. The Robotics Industrial Association in North America provides job opportunities in robot manufacturing and maintenance systems integration. NASA is the ultimate job destination for those interested in applying robotics to space science.
While Japan is often thought of as most adept at the use of robots, India now labelled as the new manufacturing hub of the world is emerging as the top market for Robots.

Future of Robotics:
Ever consider the Future of Robotics? What will it really be like? Did Science Fiction get it right, if not how close were they? Will robots be everywhere and involved in every aspect of life? Will robots eventually take over all the modern Factories; will robots be making robots too? Which sectors will we see robots excel in?

• Robots in Commerce – Retail, Services, Fields
• Robots in the home – Maids, Washing Car, Doing Chores, Mowing the Lawn
• Robots in Security – Guards, Guard Dogs, Bomb Sniffers, Bomb Squads
• Robots to the Rescue – FEMA, Earthquake, Hurricanes, Wild Fires
• Robots for the Weather and Environment – Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
• Robots in Transportation – Light Rail, Cars, Aircraft
• Robots in Distribution – Trains, Warehouses
• Robotic Androids – Assistants, Mentors, Educators
• Robots and Artificial Intelligence – Thinking Machines and Systems
• Robots in the Military – Smart Munitions, Net-Centric Systems, UAVs

With the global robotic industry pegged at $17.6 billion this industry is expected to take rapid growth strides in the future.

In India, the industry is expected to grow at two to two-and-a-half times the global average with robots worth about Rs 3500 crore already being sold so far. If working with computers and mechanics sounds interesting and if you have science and math skills, then pursuing a career in Robotics might be just right for you. If you like to build new things and fiddle around with electronic gadgets then consider robotics as a career option.

The exponential growth of robots in India is fuelling the demand for skilled manpower that can design, build, operate and repair robots and robotic machines. Robotics is now emerging as the new hot destination where more and more graduates are establishing lucrative careers.

Deccan Herald Reference

World’s Largest Solar Steam System Comes Up In Shirdi

Sai Baba Of Shirdi

World’s Largest Solar Steam System Comes Up In Shirdi
Submitted by admin4 on 30 July 2009 – 6:49pm. India News Technology
By IANS,

Shirdi (Maharashtra) : Hindu and Muslim pilgrims visiting the shrine of Sai Baba in this town will be served food cooked with the help of a solar steam system, inaugurated by New and Renewable Energy Minister Farooq Abdullah Thursday, that officials say is the world’s largest.

The solar steam system can generate 3,500 kg of steam every day – enough to cook food for 20,000 people. It has been designed for cooking food for devotees visiting the shrine devoted to Sai Baba, a 19th century Sufi saint who was revered by Hindus and Muslims alike.

The total cost of the new system at Shirdi, some 90 km from Nashik, is estimated at Rs.1.33 crore for which a subsidy of Rs.58.4 lakh has been provided by the new and renewable energy ministry.

The system will result in annual savings of 100,000 kg of cooking gas. It has been designed in such a way that it will generate steam for cooking even in the absence of electricity to run the feed water pump for circulating water in the system.

The ministry offers support of up to 50 percent of the cost of such systems set up by non-profit bodies and up to 35 percent cost support to profit making bodies.

“Over 40 systems covering a dish area of about 12,000 sq metre have been supported by the ministry so far for various applications, though the major application is cooking only,” an official statement said.

Some of the large solar steam cooking systems installed include those at Mount Abu in Rajasthan for serving 10,000 people every day, and at Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh and Satyabhama university in Chennai, which cater to about 15,000 people a day.

Reference

Our Nearest Kith And Kin

Sathya Sai Baba Our Nearest Kith And Kin

Our Nearest Kith And Kin

Although science and technology have made rapid strides, man has not acquired the divine qualities. Technology is the child of science. But very much anterior to science is the Veda. cience seeks to know all about creation, but the Veda reveals the knowledge about the Creator. All the natural sciences are concerned with knowledge about created things. But there is a Creator who is the source of all of them. In the quest for understanding the objects in creation, man is forgetting the Creator. By forgetting the Creator, man is failing to develop the quality of love. Why? Because God is Love and Love is God. When we forget Love, we forget God. When God is forgotten how can Love grow? Science has been enormously helpful and has achieved many wonders. But, simultaneously, it has done incalculable harm. Science as such is not to be blamed for this. It is the wrongful use of science that is responsible. Science discovered for man the secrets of nature and the cosmos. But what is the benefit we delve from knowing these secrets? Knowledge is one thing; its proper utilisation is a different thing. Of what avail is it to know the power of the atom if we have not learnt how to put it to good and beneficial use? The knowledge delved from science should be used for sacred and righteous purposes.

Science is below the mind; spirituality is beyond the mind…said Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. Never ending and ever ambitious explorations in the field of science leads man to a never ending expanse of outer knowledge whereas spirituality prompts man to delve deep into his inner self that yields him the ultimate gift, Wisdom! India’s illustrious scientist, Dr. S. Bhagavantam, formerly scientific adviser in the Ministry of Defence and Director General of Defence Research Development Organisation, who had a long association with Bhagawan, narrates his initial dilemma that often baffled the scientist in him. He later convinced himself to look beyond science in order to understand Bhagawan’s reality. Read on… (source: Sanathana Sarathi June, 1967)

It is a rare privilege for anyone to be invited, in whatever capacity it may be, to sit on the same platform as Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. It is a rarer privilege to be asked to preside over the Prasanthi Vidwanmahasabha.

You have been told during the past two days that the tribe of scientists is a peculiar one, that they have their vision extended outwards only, that they forget the essence of life which is embedded in the spiritual make up of the man, that they generally add to the misery of mankind rather than help to alleviate it and so on.

Moreover, it has been made out that in general, the scientists are either atheists or near-atheists and that they do not find a place in such gatherings. One need not learn science to turn away from God. Others too, both learned and unlearned, have turned away from God. Of course, the scientist asks inconvenient questions and so is charged with conceit. An incident in regard to Oppenheimer, who had succeeded in exploding the first atom bomb in 1945, would be appropriate here. It was a terrible and awe-inspiring event. The pressmen asked Oppenheimer what his reactions were and he replied that he was reminded of the sloka in the Bhagavad-Gita by which Arjuna described the Viswarupa of the Lord as:

Divi Surya Sahasrasya
Bhaved yugapad uththithaa
Yadi bhaah sadrsee saa syaad
Bhaasasthasya mahaathmanaa

“That is the only way I can describe the magnificent brightness I have seen now”, he said. The truly learned are aware of the wisdom of our ancient texts and of the teachings of the Upanishads.

We were once sitting on the sands of the Chitravati River and it was a full moon day. Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba asked me, “Would you like to have a copy of the Bhagavad Gita?” and took some sand into His hand. The sand instantly turned into a text of the Gita and He put it into my hands! I was curious to know in which press it was printed and later, I turned over the leaves to discover it; but, needless to say, the name of the press was not to be found. I was a fairly lost person at that time, for, all this was in utter denunciation of the laws of physics for which I stood and I still stand. Subsequently too, He has been breaking one law of physics after another, laws which I learnt as being inviolable. Having learnt the laws of physics in my youth and having taught others for many years thereafter about the inviolability of such laws—at least so far as any known human situation is concerned—and having put them into practice with such a belief in them, I naturally found myself in a dilemma which needed to be resolved. On one other such occasion, He performed a surgical operation with instruments created by Him; I was an eyewitness and my young son was standing by my side. What has science to do with this or to say about this? Prof. Gokak said yesterday that Bhagawan Sri Sathya SaiBaba defies the laws of physics and chemistry. I would prefer to say that He transcends the laws of physics and chemistry. He is a Phenomenon; He is Transcendental; He is Divine; He is an Incarnation. I accepted that as His role, for this is the right way and the only way to get out of the dilemma I referred to a little while ago and in which I was placed. Today, I do not ask silly questions, nor do I seek to discover what laws He is breaking or how. I speak only of what happens and can happen under known laws.

Scientists have done many such wonderful things and added to their knowledge but they are aware that knowledge is not the same as wisdom. While adding to knowledge, we add more to our ignorance too. What we know is becoming a smaller and smaller fraction of what we do not know. Wisdom has to be got from Bhagawan and the likes of Him who come amidst us from time to time for this express purpose.

We can borrow many things from the west; technology, materials, equipment, instruments, books and even food, but, we cannot borrow character, culture or tradition. The latter are to be derived from our own heritage, our own selves and our own disciplined effort. Becoming good and godly is a very difficult process; it needs hard discipline. It will take a very long time. I am speaking not pessimistically, but, realistically. Sathya Sai Baba is our nearest kith and kin; turn to Him for the Eternal Message. That alone can change us. (speech given in Chennai, at the Prasanthi Vidwaan Mahasabha on April 24, 1967, in The Divine Presence)

Reference

IIT will be established at Muddenahalli, says Moily

IIT will be established at Muddenahalli, says Moily

Chickaballapur June 2: Union Minister for Law and Justice M. Veerappa Moily on Sunday said that an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) would be established at Muddenahalli on the outskirts of Chickaballapur.

Addressing a meeting of Congress workers here, Mr. Moily, who represents Chickaballapur in the Lok Sabha, said that he had discussed the matter with Union Human Resources Development Minister Kapil Sibal. Steps would be taken soon to set up an IIT at Muddenahalli, he said. During his election campaign, Mr. Moily had promised that he would strive to get an IIT established at Muddenahalli, the birthplace of the legendary engineer Sir M. Visvesvaraya. Muddenhalli is all set to occupy a prominent place in the country educational map. Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) has also drawn up plans to set up Visvesvaraya Institute of Advanced Technology (VIAT) at Muddenahalli.

According to Higher Education Minister Arvind Limbavali, foundation stone for the VIAT would be laid this month at the 200-acre plot identified for the project. Besides facilitating advanced research in various branches of engineering and technology, the VIAT would offer degree and post-graduate courses.

Further, the Puttaparthi-headquartered Sri Sathya Sai University is also in the process of establishing its campus at Muddenahalli. Sathya Sai Baba, the Divine Chancellor of the deemed University, laid the foundation stone for the new campus at Muddenahalli in February this year.

Mangalorean Reference

Ensuring A Smooth Transition Of Leadership At Patni

Jeya Kumar

Ensuring A Smooth Transition Of Leadership At Patni
22 May 2009, 0737 hrs IST, Dibeyendu Ganguly, ET Bureau

It was the Indian IT industry’s biggest-ever man hunt. A global search for a CEO for one of the country’s oldest software companies, who would replace the founding doyen. The hunt lasted four years and targeted the IT industry’s top executives world-wide , some of whom were pulled in, then let go.

Then the process was derailed by the possibility of a change in ownership, with a section of the owners preparing to sell their stake. But that’s all over now and Patni Computer Systems (PCS) finally has a new CEO in the 54 year-old Australian expatriate Jeya Kumar, Sathya Sai Baba devotee and former CEO of MphasiS.

For the 66 year old Narendra Patni, who is now designated non-executive chairman, the denouement comes as a relief, even if it marks the beginning of the end of his long reign in the company he founded fresh out of MIT and Sloan Business School. The long search for a CEO, mandated by the company’s board, has been fairly painful for the company’s top management, with many falling by the wayside.

Patni appointed a CEO in 2006, with the idea of grooming him for the CEO position, but things didn’t go according to plan and he resigned two years later. Then there was the CEO of Cymbal Corporation, USA, acquired by PCS in 2004, who was also in the running but failed to make the grade.

And finally there was Dutch expatriate Loek van den Boog, appointed as executive director in charge of operations as an interim measure, who has now handed over responsibilities to the new CEO and become nonexecutive director on the board.

“It’s one of our failings that we were not able to generate a successor internally,” says Patni. “But I’m delighted that the process has come to an end. We needed someone with international experience and we found the right combination in Jeya, with his 14 years at Sun. Now his mandate is to revive and rejuvenate the company.”

In Kumar, PCS has an ideal combination of a CEO with an Indian face, but very global experience . An MBA from Australia’s Curtin University, he had worked in Singapore and Japan before being promoted to Sun’s headquarters in the USA and put in charge of its $5 billion software services business.

When PCS began head-hunting him last year, Kumar had moved to India for the first time, as CEO of MphasiS in Bangalore. “I heard from friends and associates that PCS was making enquiries about me,” he says with a laugh. “By the time they approached me, they had spoken to everyone but my mother-in-law.”

Bored with MphasiS, which had become a captive unit of Hewlett Packard after its merger, Kumar was keen on the Patni offer — but had to convince his wife, Philo. “We had moved four times in six years, from one end of the globe to the other and it was hard for her,” he says. “I think it was Naren’s wife Poonam who finally convinced her over dinner that the move to Mumbai would work out fine.”

Since he joined three months ago, Patni has introduced Kumar to all major customers and to the rank and file of PCS through a series of 16 town-hall meetings. Kumar has also made it a point to attend ceremonies to facilitate employees who have spent 25 years with the company, which occur more regularly at PCS than one might imagine.

“I think our employees have accepted the change very well,” says Patni. “They understand that we need to change. Our structures have become outdated and inefficient over the years. Jeya needs to transform the company.”

So is the charismatic chairman finally ready to withdraw and leave the running of the company to his new CEO? Patni remains wonderfully ambiguous on this point. “I’m technically the non-executive chairman according to clause 49, but I intend to remain fully participative in the company,” he says breezily.

Given that one of the objectives of Kumar’s appointment is to separate ownership from management at PCS, Patni’s statement might be expected to cause the new CEO some heartburn. But Kumar is ready for a little ambiguity at this stage of the transition . “Naren loves the company, it’s in his blood, so he wants to help in any way he can. But he is the non-executive chairman and the role is clearly defined,” he says.

One role that’s not as clearly defined is that of Anirudh Patni. A graduate of MIT and Wharton, with work experience at McKinsey & Co. Narendra Patni’s 32 year-old son is a senior vice president at PCS. Is Kumar expected to groom him as a successor as Brian Tempest did with Malvinder Singh at Ranbaxy?

“I don’t know too much about Ranbaxy but I like the example of Wipro, where Premji has kept his son on the sidelines ,” says Patni. “Nobody should be anointed crown prince. It’s very discouraging for the professionals.” But then he adds: “But I’m a strong believer in owner-management . If it works out, it can be very good for the company.”

Kumar, on the other hand, is more categorical when he says, “Anirudh will be evaluated on the same performance matrix as everyone else. The process will be very transparent and available for all to see on the company web-site. It should make no difference that he’s part of the promoter family.”

Narendra Patni and his brothers Gajendra and Ashok hold an equal stake amounting to 49% in PCS, with General Atlantic holding 18% and 33% with the public. The other Patni brothers had made a move to sell their stakes two years ago, when the PCS scrip was ruling at an all time high.

This had hastened the search for a CEO who would separate management and ownership, but made the process that much more difficult since few were interested in joining a company that might soon change hands. Today, the scrip is down to a level close to the company’s cash reserves and there’s no more talk of a stake sale.

Kumar’s focus is to now on improving PCS’ valuations with a clear competitive strategy in the rapidly evolving market for IT services. “Right now, I’m building an A-team from within the company and outside,” he says. “Fortunately, people are available like never before.”

Economic Times Reference