May 22: Observations

In many ways, being in India has allowed me to become a better listener and observer. In a foreign land, one’s senses are heightened to accommodate the repertoire of different sights and sounds around.

In the morning, it is already bright by 6.15 am and the air is relatively still with a hint of breeze in the absence of the intense morning heat when the clouds part after 8 am. When you walk out of the dormitory to catch the shuttle bus to work, you will hear the automatic sprinklers hum as they water the lush greenery of trees, shrubs, and plants that has become a distinct feature of the STC landscape. In some areas, you will even be greeted with a sea of red, yellow and pink flowers seating on beds of well-groomed bushes. A fresh aroma of nature permeates in the air. It is really wonderful in the morning.

The weather here can be rather extreme and unpredictable. Near the highway, the traffic kicks up a constant cloud of coarse sand and the penetrating heat makes it difficult to be outside in the open. However, the brief rains for the past 2 days brought some respite from the heat and temperatures have dropped from as high as 42 Degrees Celsius to slightly over 30.

In the night, the air remains still and dry from 7 to around 11 pm. On some days when the temperature drops further to the mid-20s, it becomes a pleasure to walk around the STC with the cool breeze and the uniform canopy of trees providing much shade to students making their way to the dormitory from the main learning centres. There’s also the usual chirping of the cicadas and just the other day, I saw fireflies coming out to play near a mangrove tree at a corner of the STC.

The best time to take a stroll however would be after midnight because the campus will be virtually empty and just by being around amidst all this nature provides space for the mind to think and reflect. Once in a while, you can hear the usual rowdiness of the South African employees (nice and friendly bunch of people) at the canteen having their suppers consisting of Maggie noddles and fried eggs on toast with milk. On other days, you see couples speaking in hush tones and strolling slowly from the canteen back to the main reception block or to more secluded spots around the dormitory.

I’ve also started to catch up on my much-awaited readings. Apart from the few articles that I can access on The Straits Times website, there’re feeds from The Economist and TIME in my email, as well as local news from newspapers like the Hindu Times. And there’s also Thomas Friedman’s The World is Flat and Joseph Stigliz’s Making Globalisation Work (both focus on the theme of development and outsourcing and make good work-related readings), as well as Benazir Bhutto’s autobiography Daughter of the East, a heart-wrenching anecdote of her life that mirrors the turbulent life of Pakistan and its people.

I would love to provide some excerpts and key pointers from these books. More to come when there’s more time.

May 20: A symphony of pain and pleasure

Coming to work can both be a pain and pleasure.

Firstly, for the past 2 weeks, valuable time was spent on getting internet access at the workplace. When our systems were finally configured to access the local LAN and wireless, the internet system miraculously chose to shut down. It was not restored until 4 days later. So we spent most of our time reading and watching movies on our laptop.

Upon restoration, we found to our dismal that many sites were blocked by the in-house filter (a Satyam Computers policy I suppose, to keep employees off time-wasting websites like facebook and blogger). Even gmail and forums could not be accessed.

However, thanks to the brilliance of our Indian colleagues, we found a way to bypass the filter and access all the restricted sites (without adversely affecting our productivity, of course).

Secondly, our initial project presentation to Mr Verghese, the Foundation’s CEO, was thrice postponed due to changes in his schedule. Each of us were supposed to come up with a suggested project plan, scope, deliverables, methodology and time-line. Any delays in the approval of the project plan will thus mean that we will only start at a later date. Not a good idea.

Luckily, we found time to present to Mr Verghese on Monday. I came up with 2 BPO project ideas – modeling and marketing – but settled for the first one which is more in line with what I intended to work on when I came here. More on this when the project details are finalized.

Thirdly, I’m getting a tad sick with the vegetarian lunch we have at the Foundation. It usually consists of rice, 2 curries, one vegetable (usually lady’s finger or some weird-tasting brinjal) and snacks. Meat can only be obtained periodically at the STC canteen or city outings on the weekends.

Fourthly, the onset of homesickness has started to kick in. Without constant contact with my family and friends back home, coupled with the absence of Singaporean style food around here, it can be real dent on morale. That’s why I’m using facebook on a daily basis now, making attempts to call home, and of course writing postcards and blogging.

What about the pleasure?

In many ways, I’m really excited about the prospects here. Firstly, I get to choose and determine a large extent of my project scope with lots of independent work and flexibility to choose what I want to learn. I don’t think many companies give their interns the luxury of such independent thinking.

Secondly, the broad and depth of learning in the Foundation is enormous. Just last Friday, I attended the first national conference on BPOs held at the Foundation. Several government officials, business and thought leaders, as well as the rural BPO operators came as guest speakers, providing insights into this sunrise industry (India is currently the world’s top destination for BPO opportunities, taking 40% of the entire BPO market) and demonstrating that BPOs can indeed be a business-friendly and sustainable method to reducing rural poverty in India. All that I’ve learnt and seen so far has justified me being here in India.

Social entrepreneurship and CSR versus out-of-the-box business models? I will dare say that the latter will always emerge as the choice for markets given the way profits and cost-cutting measures are always embraced by the business community, not some mumbo-jumbo CSR bullshit. Pragmatism dictates at the end of the day.

Thirdly, we are impressed by the hospitality of our colleagues. They are mostly interns taking their Masters at different universities across India, and interning at the Foundation as part of their compulsory summer internship programme which is graded (unlike ours). They have since invited us to one of the intern’s home where they whipped up a sumptuous (vegetarian) meal and showed us around many parts of the city including the renowned Sri Venkateish temple and the huge Buddha statue at Tank Bund.

In return, we were only happy to treat them to lunches around town and interact with them on our culture and beliefs. Basically, being relatively Westernised and Asian at the same time, they aren’t that different from us.

It was sad to see them conclude their internship today but we can only hope that we will meet many more friendly and hospitable colleagues like them.

May 3: Orientation

CK and Ramesh finally joined us this morning. Now, there will be more fun and laughter among the group.

Today marks our first day at Byrraju Foundation. Even though it is a Saturday, we had to turn up for orientation. We finally had the opportunity to meet Ms Padmavati - the HR manager – and Dr Verghese – the operations director – among a host of other personalities who dedicate their lives to rural development. We were also provided with a more in-depth briefing of the operations of the Foundation and spent most of the day exploring the place since we only get to meet our Guides on May 5^th.

The Foundation is the social arm of Satyam Computers, a huge conglomerate specializing in the manufacturing and retailing of computers and IT systems in India.

Committed to achieving the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), especially sustainable rural development, the Foundation advocates a holistic approach comprising of 12 different “modules”. To name a few, these include education, sanitation, healthcare, environmental sustainability, agriculture services, and my personal favourite: BPO (business process outsourcing) which involves outsourcing the execution of certain processes in the entire supply chain to the rural communities that the Foundation works with.

These processes can include communication (i.e. call centres \ telemarketing) and back office work (i.e. administration and low-level IT consultancy). All these provide opportunities for employment for the rural population by linking them to mainstream markets.

There are over 40 different programmes running in about 200 villages in the province of Andhra Pradesh (with Hyderabad as its capital). In fact, we sat in on one of the project presentations by a team of 4 Masters students from the SPJ Institute of Management & Research (they have a branch in S’pore) who introduced a 3-village cooperative model of coconut harvesting, processing into related products, and marketing for international markets.

It was a brilliant presentation and idea as the team analysed right down to the profit-cost sustainability of this business model with a 5-year projection period, the type of technology and manpower required, and even the recommended start-up scale of the project.

However, due to the existence of imperfect knowledge within markets such as the variations in prices of coconut products across different regions due to different transportation costs and a byzantium network of middlemen and dealers who distort prices, it is very difficult to determine the procurement price necessary to ensure the success of this model. As such, these models are often created based on a given set of assumptions (that often do not hold in reality).

Many of these projects also require a huge grant from either businesses or government schemes due to their high initial capital costs. Many also fail to break even after the projected period and have to be stopped. While failure is aplenty, there are still many success stories out there too.

In that short 30 minutes presentation, I learnt more about rural development schemes than I ever did in the 2 years of my university education so far.

It has bolstered my hunger to want to learn more. In fact, this has vindicated my very presence here in India.

The plot thickens...

Friday afternoon was spent exploring the Cineplanet – a local cinema which is comparatively run-down compared to standards in S’pore but nevertheless shows the latest films such as Ironman – and the “neighbourhoods” nearby.

Walking down a stretch of country road with our shoes caked in sand, our bodies sweltering beneath the 41 Degrees Celsius heat, and getting honked at by inquisitive drivers, we examined the assortment of grocery stores found in these small “neighbourhoods” that dotted the countryside.

I’m amazed by the self-sufficiency of these small communities where you can virtually find everything that you need to survive in the shops.

In one of these communities, a local medical shop sells a small variety of modern medicine such as creams and pills. A few more shops specialize in retailing groceries and household essentials while an internet café (with a couple of run-down computers) doubles as the phone card shop. A tailor specializing in women’s wear operates nearby while kids can be found playing along the dirt-road or at a small tuition centre operated by the more educated members within the community.

Though virtually cut off from the main markets, these “businesses” survive by supplying to the communities living around the area, or catering to resting tuk tuk and truck drivers. They are in turn supplied by a network of middlemen, or simply head down to the city in their rusty own scooters (cars are rare in these areas) to procure supplies. It was a subtle lesson on how rural economics operate and determine population distribution.

Getting back to the STC was the problem, especially when its approaching dusk (the sky gets dark real fast) and it is dangerous to be outside without a proper mode of transportation home. The few tuk tuks that drove along the country road were packed with families returning home from the city. It wasn’t until we reached a busy crossroads which served as the resting point for tuk tuk drivers that we found one that was willing to take us to the STC.

The ride on a tuk tuk was simply fantastic. The 4 of us squeezed in (I sat with the driver in front) and we had to hold on tightly to our belongings to avoid them falling out when on the road. Despite the heat and relatively slow speed of the tuk tuks, you can feel the wind rushing by as we move, giving us an exhilarating feel of what it means to be traveling on the rugged terrain, with a first-hand account of the (infamous) “traffic negotiation skills” of these tuk tuk drivers.

Now I know how the joke originates about how Indian drivers should make world-class F1 racers.

May 2: Treasure hunt in the city

Satyam Technology Centre (STC) is an enclave boasting of well-stocked food supplies, recreational facilities, wide spacious roads lined with trees and rock formations, gleaming glass-paneled buildings that glow like jewels in the sun, and an assortment of dormitory that caters to trainees and visiting dignitaries from various countries. It even has its own collection of birds, rabbits, and plants (we found one supposedly planted by then DPM Lee Hsien Loong during his visit to India in 2004 and another by Bill Gates) in a special section behind the clubhouse and helipad.

Yesterday, the bunch of us decided to head to the city to look for local SIM cards and other stuff that we can’t get at the STC. We took the shutter bus with a huge group of South Africans we befriended at the STC and stopped at Satyam Corporation at Mayfair located in the heart of the city.

There, we hooked up with Sharon, one of the interns heading for Tata who separated with her friend while backpacking in Ponticherry and Bangalore, and then headed for Hyderabad to seek “refuge” with us. Her stories can make any tourist scrimp: tales of how a conman cheated her of her cellphone, stray dogs that threatened to bite the heads off her and her friend, her eventful solo bus ride from Bangalore to Hyderabad, and how she landed in police custody when she lost her way in the city.

Outside, in the main city, it is a scene which can only be described as worlds apart from that in the STC. Most of the buildings were dilapidated with beggars and idle men and women loitering outside (most of them were either sitting or squatting by the road side, gawking at us foreigners). The ones that were in relatively good shape had security guards stationed outside with their own metal detectors (to ward off potential terrorists?) that beeped regardless of whether we carried any metallic items with us.

Pavements were uneven and dirty with puddles and sand. We even saw men openly peeing on the side of the pavements. I prayed that those puddles I stepped on weren’t formed by their reckless response to their calls of nature.

In the city, almost no one can be trusted. We were swamped with tuk-tuk drivers offering to send us to any destination at a high price, security guards who asked for “tea money” in return for information, idle men who beckoned us over, beggars who stretched out their palms in our faces asking for money (their kids were either clutching our pants for attention or running around trying to sell whatever merchandise that they think tourists might buy) and people who generally gawk at us because we are foreigners.

We held on to our belongings for dear life, checking every now and then that we were not victims of pickpockets or snatch thieves.

On top of that, the traffic is unruly (try crossing any road that is not manned by the traffic police) and we had to mimic the locals when crossing the road (breathlessly risk-taking individuals they are, I swear).

In short, it was a city that we felt was distinctly unfriendly and alien to us. Being on the ground there was so much different from traveling through it on the way to the STC on the night that we landed. To make matters worse, we could not get the SIM cards we wanted (many of the shops were closed because it was a public holiday) and team morale was low (one of the girls felt very tired and wanted to go back to the STC).

On the bright side, we bought delicious biryani that we brought back to the STC for dinner and I bought a pair of good formal shoes for work (at only S$8). Going back however was the problem because we had to find a cab to take us all back. We ended up scouring the rent-a-car shops for available drivers (all turned us down because it was supposedly peak hour period – kind of like getting a cab in Orchard Road at 6.30 pm) before we chanced upon a cab driver who took us back at a higher price than we wanted.

Sharon was our guest at our lodgings. Mr Shyam spoke to STC security about granting her temporary access to stay-over with us before she heads to Mumbai to intern with Tata. So now, there are 5 of us, with 2 more arriving on Friday night and another heading down on May 12.

What an adventure. More to come in the days ahead.

May 1: Touch down!

Really glad to have met family and some friends before I flew off to India. Thanks for all the well-wishes. I will try my best to bring back all the goodies and gifts that you all expect, haha.

As I am typing this, I am sitting in my room at the Satyam Technology Centre (STC) at the outskirts of Hyderabad - Secunderabad. It is a very beautiful place with good facilities (kinda reminds me of Downtown East resort, seriously) that was constructed by the Satyam Corporation.

The plane landed at around 11 pm (local time) and we were received by Mr Shyam and his carrier (local slang for driver), Mr Versa. Nice chaps, both of them.

We were then driven to our current lodgings at the STC. The journey from the airport was an eye-opener, especially the way drivers “interact” with each other while navigating the roads.

Cars were honking at each other, overtaking other cars ahead of them, flashing their high-beam lights at drivers, and winding their narrow bodies into the chaotic mass of traffic. Imported and locally-made cars, scooters, bicycles, tuk-tuks (like the ones you see in Thailand and Indonesia) and rickshaws all share the same narrow stretch of road that winds through the city, fighting for every inch of space. Periodic bumps on the road. Cars suddenly braking every now and then. This is traffic life in India. It is truly comical.

And as I think about why I’m here in India, it pretty much seems as if I’m leaving behind many things in Singapore. AIESEC and Blurt. The on-going IDP project with the SMU Ambassadors. A potential local internship. Quality time that can be spent with family and friends. The list goes on.

And of course, time that can be spent with her, getting to know her better, and helping out with her journey to Christ. But I’m really surprised and glad that I bumped into her in school on Tuesday, even if it’s for the briefest of moments. Perhaps this is God’s way of answering my prayers of wanting to see her one more time before I leave.

And yup, I will definitely upload pictures of my first forays in India. Too bad it has to be taken by my lousy N70 with its 2 mega-pixel camera. I simply do not have the cash to buy a new camera, given how much I’m financing for this trip.