How Poor Infra Could Be A Drag On India's Future Growth

There is an interesting aspect about India's ranking as underlined in the World Economic Forum's (WEF) global competitiveness report for 2016. The body has ranked India 63rd, 46th and 30th in terms of basic requirements, efficiency enhancers and innovation and sophistication, respectively. The overall ranking of the country is 39 among 138 countries. The competitiveness of countries is judged based on these three key pillars.
One thing becomes quite clear when you look at the numbers: India will have to work hard on its “basic requirements” if it wants to improve its performance on “efficiency enhancers” and “innovation and sophistication”. While the first parameter mainly infrastructure, macroeconomic environment and health and primary education, the second marks the presence of higher educational institutions and well-performing labour and financial markets. A business-friendly government that encourages innovations in its machinery decided how that country will be ranked on the third parameter.
The current government is all about innovation and sophistication. Our Prime Minister Narendra Modi is an avid technology fan, which is quite evident in his government's schemes. We will soon have 100 smart cities to boast; even remote areas will have it clicking if everything goes according to the plans. This explains the ranking on innovation and sophistication.
India has world-class educational institutes which find a mention in global reports on the quality of education;  they are also the reason why our labour and financial markets are performing quite well. Not to mention the role of skill training programmes that gained momentum under the Centre's Skill India Mission.  No wonder India scored well on efficiency enhancers, too.
At 63, the basic requirements ranking has dragged the overall rating of the country. It is only when the ranking at this parameter improves, India will get a better score. We don't need smart cities with world-class universities. However, a bumpy ride to the university from a small, dusty town would leave us dissatisfied. As long as we have to apply “vision adjustments” to enjoy the world-class facilities around us, India will not progress as it should. As urban planners point out, emerging economies such as India address their urban woes retrospectively. While getting back to the basics and rebuilding, it all might not be an option now, India will have to shift focus to improving its basic infrastructure before getting the mighty tag of a “developed” nation. We need better roads, potable drinking water, functional sewage system for a company on the path of development.