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Business leader Bajaj pushes political reform

The head of one of India's bellwether companies and the scion of its most prominent political families, Rahul Bajaj urged speed in continuing privatisation of India's state-owned monopolies.

"The problem is politics, not economics," Bajaj, chairman and managing director of Bajaj Auto Limited, told Reuters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in New York on Saturday. "I'm optimistic, but we need to see implementation, implementation, implementation. We don't have a lot of time."

Bajaj's comments followed his discussions with Indian Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha during the five-day meeting of 2,700 of the world's business and political elite in New York.

In a meeting with Indian business leaders, Sinha pledged continuing privatisation of state-owned enterprises, such as power.

Bajaj, who is the son of a parliamentarian, said the Indian business community is happy with the administration of US President George W Bush.

"As close as India could be with an American administration, it is comfortable with the Bush administration," said Bajaj, who is the former president of the Confederation of Indian Industry and former co-chairman of the WEF.

SCOOTERS AND SENEGAL

Bajaj, whose company is the largest maker of motor scooters in India and among the top five in the world, said that Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade had approached him about the possibility of building a three-wheeler plant in the western African nation.

No deals were struck, but Bajaj said he would "be delighted" to contribute technology if local parties would supply the capital.

Despite the possibility of expanding his company's global presence, domestic growth stays closest to the 62-year-old scooter mogul's heart.

India's economy is one of the fastest growing in the world with a gross domestic product growing at 4.0 per cent per year, but Bajaj lamented that growth is not better.

"Five per cent is not bad, but why 5 per cent? Why not 7, 8, 9 or 10? India has to grow at a rate of 7 or 8 per cent for the next 20 years," he said.

On Friday, India cut its economic growth estimate for the 2000-01 year to 4.0 per cent from an earlier estimate of 5.2 per cent, citing a fall in farm sector growth and a slowdown in the services sector.

"India is poor country, with great potential because of stupid policies," said Bajaj. "When is the potential going to become reality?"

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