Innovate Not Copy Paste

Context: India and China standoff and the beginning of Beijing’s predatory designs will need to be checked by improving India’s education ecosystem through investment in quality and smartness of manpower.

Issues in “Make in India” Potential of India

• India lacks innovation skills but has capability to (re)create products or services 

• Flipkart, Ola and OYO, are Indian versions of Amazon, Uber and Airbnb.

• Lack of innovation due to flawed education system: i.e considering education as a means of getting job

• Demand mismatch with respect to quality education.
• Content i.e “what and how we learn”, does not meet todays market demands 
• Not enough jobs to accommodate the passing graduates.

Education:  for Fostering Innovation in “Make in India”

• Adopt non-linear approach : based on three factors

• • • Past is not the only indicator for the future
    • Risk-taking and disruption is inevitable
    • Potential return can be exponential.

• Promote online model as a mass education platform: with support from private edtech companies and GoI’s MOOC model (SWAYAM)

• Changing the fundamental structure of educational ecosystem: through public and private investment.

• Content of education: have to be more purpose/ demand driven. 
• Cultivate a risk-taking culture: to encourage the youth to seek livelihood outside the conventional job market. 
• Create culture of entrepreneurship: driven by innovation to find destiny in the global digital economy. 

Conclusion: Learning to live with risk, accepting failure as a probable outcome, access to early risk capital and the desire to offer technological solutions to daily challenges must become more commonplace for fostering innovative culture.