KOCHI: When Infosys founder N R Narayana Murthy visited Kochi in 2003 to deliver the sixth K P Hormis Commemorative Lecture, this reporter posed a question that had long troubled Keralam’s industry watchers: why was Infosys staying away from investing in the state?
Murthy’s response, delivered half in jest, was revealing. His two fellow co-founders, Kris Gopalakrishnan and S D Shibulal, both Keralites, had apparently warned him about the perils of investing in their home state.
The remark reflected an uncomfortable reality. Keralam, notorious then for hartals, militant trade unionism and nokkukooli, had earned a reputation as an investor-unfriendly destination.
A year later, in 2004, Infosys finally entered Keralam, operating from a leased facility in Thiruvananthapuram. And it was not until 2007 that the firm established its own campus in the state. By then, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Pune had already raced ahead in the IT revolution.
Two decades later, the question remains: how much did Keralam lose by missing the bus, and can it make up for lost time?
For V K Mathews, founder of IBS Software, the answer lies partly in the state’s own contradictions. “Keralam’s achievements were rooted in its social progress. But one of the problems that came with it was trade union militancy. Protesting for genuine rights eventually became a habit, almost an autoimmune disease for the state,” he says.
The reputational damage inflicted during the 1970s and 1980s outlived the practices themselves, keeping investors away even as other states rolled out the red carpet. “Private enterprise was considered bad. Anything corporate was considered bad. That did not create confidence among investors,” Mathews says.
The consequences were profound. For generations of youngsters, the accepted formula for success became simple: Get educated in Keralam and leave. “That’s why the IT revolution escaped Keralam,” he says.
Ironically, it took entrepreneurs with roots in the state to challenge that perception. Mathews established IBS Software, G A Menon built UST, while Kris Gopalakrishnan played a pivotal role in bringing Infosys to Thiruvananthapuram.
But IT was hardly the only opportunity squandered.The proposed Thiruvananthapuram–Kasaragod Express Highway, conceived during M K Muneer’s tenure as public works minister in the early 2000s, could have transformed connectivity across the state.
The access-controlled corridor, stretching over 500 km, promised to slash end-to-end travel time from around 17 hours to six. The project, envisaged under a private-participation model, never took off.
The Sabari Rail project, announced in the 1997-98 Railway Budget, remains another monument to delay, nearly three decades later.
V J Kurian, former managing director of Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL), believes the difference between success and stagnation often boils down to committed leadership and execution. He points to the contrasting fortunes of Kochi and Kannur airports. “The idea for Cochin airport was mooted in March 1993, and the first aircraft landed in May 1999. Kannur airport was conceived in 1998 but commissioned only in 2018,” Kurian says, highlighting the cost escalation accompanying prolonged delays.
For Mathews, the way forward requires a fundamental change in attitude. “What Keralam needs is profitable enterprises and well-paying jobs. If we want to stop brain drain, we must create opportunities for youngsters,” he says.
He identifies three priorities: world-class infrastructure that makes Keralam clean, safe and liveable; an ecosystem that attracts and retains talent; and continuous reforms.
Yet, not everyone believes Keralam’s economic story should be told through the opportunities it missed.
C Balagopal, chairman of the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation, would rather see the glass half full. “Enough of the narrative about what Keralam did not do and the opportunities it missed. We should look at the opportunities Keralam took,” he says.
His optimism rests on a quiet transformation unfolding across the manufacturing landscape. Companies such as Synthite, Terumo Penpol, Agappe Diagnostics, SFO Technologies and DentCare have built successful businesses around advanced technology and high-value products.
The medical technology sector alone, he points out, has grown to around 110 companies, with an aggregate turnover of `15,000 crore and employment for nearly 25,000 skilled workers.
“With our high-wage structure, Keralam cannot compete with low-wage states. High-value manufacturing is the way forward,” Balagopal says.
The larger message from these industry veterans is unmistakable. Keralam may have missed the first wave of India’s industrial and IT transformation, but the next wave — driven by deep technology, innovation and skilled talent — offers another chance. For a state that once exported its brightest minds, the real test now is whether it can create enough opportunities to bring them home — and persuade the next generation to stay.