Deepening infrastructure pothole pits Shaw against politicos

Deepening infrastructure pothole pits Shaw against politicos
The Hindu

Mumbai, Jan. 7 (PTI): Peeved by infrastructure woes plaguing Indian cities, biotech entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, today joined the likes of Infosys chief N R Narayana Murthy, in bashing politicians for lacking vision and resisting change.

Shaw, India's richest self-made businesswoman, said instead of keeping pace with the changing times, politicians adopted a parochial outlook to rule the nation.

"I believe that public-private participation was an important part of transformation but in Bangalore and other places this is challenged by politicians and bureaucrats", she said here while receiving the `Technology Change Agent' award instituted by Infosys Technologies and Wharton School.

She alleged that the political leadership in the country was not focussing on change and did not seem to have the global vision. "It is the right time for politicians to accept public-private participation in developmental projects for the economic growth of the nation."

Shaw, whose Biocon is headquartered in Bangalore, said just changing the name of a place would not generate jobs or improve infrastructure or improve law and order -- alluding to the move to change the name of IT city Bangalore to Bangaluru.