This is a good sign..
MUMBAI: Cricket may no longer be as sporting as it once was when it comes to India-Pakistan ties but software
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is still going strong.
Barring 2008, when Mumbai was the victim of a terror attack, the apex software industry body of Pakistan, Pasha (Pakistan Software Houses Association), has been a regular at the annual Nasscom Leadership meet since the past five years. In 2005, the country’s top exporter Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) nearly formed a joint venture with a Pakistan software firm but eventually, dropped the plan. But that has not deterred Jehan Ara, president, Pasha, from coming here for dialogue and network at what she says is now increasingly a global conference.
“It has been useful to keep the discussion going. We should keep the relationship (between Nasscom and Pasha),” said Ms Ara, about coming to India for the Nasscom event even if there are no immediate business benefits on the horizon. Diplomatic relations between Indian and Pakistan have touched a new low in February with IPL’s snubbing of Pakistani cricketers. For Ms Ara and the delegation of four accompanying her, it is still an opportunity to network and listen to experts and also get updated about the latest in the IT world.
Nasscom and Pasha have been on friendly terms since 2005 when Ms Ara first attended the Nasscom Leadership Summit. It was also the year when TCS almost formed a joint venture with another Pakistani company, Techlogix. But the JV eventually did not materialise because of the inability to transfer funds between banks in the two countries, said Ms Ara.
“There was a perception that the Pakistani software industry would be threatened by the entry of Indian companies but that was never the case. The companies on both sides were always very excited,” she said, recommending business and politics should be kept separate. There were many Pakistani business groups with interests in textile and other areas, which were considering starting BPO operations and were keen on learning from India, she added.
Like culture, business also seems to have the potential to overcome political barriers. Systems, the largest outsourcing firm in Pakistan employing 1,200 people, has about 120 employees in Bangalore though through its US arm.
There are others, such as IT firm, Netsol Technologies, that are actively looking to set up an office in Bangalore. “I don’t know if they already have. Companies are always afraid of publicising such information because of the adverse reactions it may invite,” she said. The Pakistan software industry is only a fraction of the revenue of a large Indian software firm at around $2.5 billion. Its population at around 160 million is also a small fraction of India’s billion plus people and Ms Ara said the Pakistan software industry learnt early that they could not become a software services hub like India because of this.
But Ms Ara, who finally obtained a single entry visa after getting clearances from the ministry of external affairs, ministry of home affairs and Maharashtra government, she said.
There are many similarities between the two countries and learnings for the Pakistan software industry. Like India](India and Pakistan: No rivalry please, we’re IT buddies - The Economic Times), Pakistan also suffers from infrastructure bottlenecks and like India, it has a booming mobile subscriber base. Of its 160 million population, 100 million have a mobile phone. “You learn to be patient and not get disheartened. You have to keep at it,” said Ms Ara.