Rahul Bhasin is a private equity investor who is trying to invest in Indian factories despite the government of India emphatically telling him that this is not a smart thing to do. He had two stories to tell me. The first is as follows: Bhasin received a business investment proposal from a dynamic entrepreneur in Tiruppur. The proposal involved dismantling the existing factory in Tiruppur and moving it to Oman. The entrepreneur claimed that despite Oman’s high labour costs, the sheer ease of doing business there would make this proposed shift economically viable and profitable. Needless to say, Bhasin, being an Indian patriot of the subdued variety and not a hyper-minister, was not sure whether he should weep or laugh. The second story is about a run-of-the-mill factory. The factory manager answered all questions competently. When it came to questions relating to the use of the back-up diesel generator, the manager started to fumble. Finally, he said rather sheepishly: “To tell you the truth, Mr Bhasin, we have never had a need to use the back-up generator in years. Our power supply has been quite reliable.” No prizes for guessing — this factory is in Gujarat-from IE
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