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A rising star in Indian Politics, Honorable Nara Lokesh, Minister of Information Technology, Electronics and Communications, and the Human Resources Development Departments in the Government of Andhra Pradesh and the General Secretary of the Telugu Desam Party, was the Chief Guest at Synergy 2024, the flagship annual conference organized by ITServe Alliance, the largest association of IT Services organizations.
Delivering the keynote address on October 29, 2024, at Synergy by ITServe, the voice of all prestigious IT companies functioning with similar interests across the United States, Honorable Nara Lokesh, Minister of Information Technology, Electronics and Communications and the Human Resources Development departments in the Government of Andhra Pradesh and the General Secretary of the Telugu Desam Party lauded ITServe as it has evolved as a resourceful and respected platform to collaborate and initiate measures in the direction of protecting common interests and ensuring collective success.
A true visionary with forward-thinking, Nara Lokesh, a rising star in Indian politics told the over 2,500 CEOs of small and medium-sized companies in the United States, who had come to be part of the historic Synergy 2024 that he believes the data revolution is here, and Andhra Pradesh is well-poised in terms of harnessing that revolution.
Earlier in his welcome address, Jagadeesh Mosali, President of ITServe Alliance said, “ITServe Alliance originated in response to the unfair practices of The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services imposed on small and medium businesses, which are the economic engines of the country. We were the first in the nation to come up with an idea of an organization representing Information Technology professional services of like-minded business entrepreneurs. Through our PAC, ITServe has come a long way, especially vis-a-vis espousing our visibility and cause in the US Congress, introducing our very own HIRE ACT, talking to important key MOCs and Senators regarding our Bill, taking them into confidence and discussing a path to consolidate it with the EAGLE ACT.”
During his address to the ITServe delegates, Lokesh said that globally, close to $300 billion is being invested in data centers, and his government’s agenda is that we should bring over 100 billion of that to India and bring the majority of that to the state of Andhra Pradesh. Vishakhapatnam, he said, stands out with AI education, and particularly with a focus on an AI University. “They were really excited about figuring out the interactions of AI in governance, AI in politics, AI in healthcare, AI in entertainment. And like how the erstwhile Indian School of Business Model was, it was completely branching as to how you would love to do the same magic in the AI University and really create next-generation thought leaders and engineers, not only for Andhra Pradesh but for the world.”
Lokesh said he has learned the importance of the need in building a strong team. “I think that’s very important because when I joined Heritage, we had a crisis. Things were not good. We were losing a lot of money because of our retail expansion. The dairy was not bringing in that much profit. So, I had to decide early on, the direction or the trajectory of the business. Then I had to figure out whether the team members believed in that vision or not, and based on that, I had to make decisions. I think politics is all about that. Also. I think you need people who believe in your vision but also have the boldness to correct you when you are making mistakes. So, in that sense, in terms of building your team, building the leadership in both organizations is something that I find very similar.”
After he graduated from Stanford University, Lokesh returned to India and took on the role of the Director at Heritage. He ran both private enterprises and then entered into politics.
Describing the differences between running a private enterprise and being elected government official, Lokesh had this to say: “They’re quite stark and quite different. In the private sector, when you are the boss, you decide the direction, and you understand the journey. The results speak for themselves. If one month you miss something, you know where to correct it. I think in politics, you only have elections once every five years at the state level, so it gets very difficult to figure out the right trajectory. It’s very important to remain grounded, meet people, hear from them, and understand whether what you are doing is right and whether what programs you are taking are meeting their aspirations or not. So, for me, that was very, very important. I think both journeys are mutually exclusive.”
Recalling his experiences in politics and the road he has traveled, Lokesh reminded the audience of his journey in politics. “I’ve always broken the mold. Look, membership in the Telugu Desam party was never a smooth affair. And in 2014, I chose that as my focus area. Similarly, in 2019 when I had to contest the election, there was always a debate on which seat I should contest. You know, generally, according to political legacy and people, second-generation, and third-generation politicians choose a safe seat. I chose Mangalagiri. Here is a seat that we have not won since 1985.” Despite being defeated in the Mangalagiri Assembly seat in 2019, Lokesh continued his work in the constituency and gained the public’s trust.
Regarding his loss in the Assembly elections in 2019 and recontest in 2024, Lokesh said, “A lot of people told me, why not contest from a safe seat. And I told them, I know, to take an easy route or exit that’s accepting defeat, and I am not going to. So, I contested in the Mangalagiri Assembly seat again in 2024 and I am really proud to say that I won with the highest margin that Andhra Pradesh has ever seen, which is over 91,000 margin.
With his triumph, the TDP won the key Mangalagiri seat for the first time after nearly four decades. Lokesh is being credited for the TDP’s resurgence in Andhra Pradesh. “To be honest, this victory was certain, but I think this kind of mandate took everyone off guard. This mandate has increased our responsibility. It’s a great responsibility on our shoulders. We take it with all humility. The people of Andhra Pradesh have many aspirations, and as a government, we need to be focused on delivering on those aspirations. So, I think we are going to meet midway in terms of delivering on that.”
While discussing the Ministry formation in Andhra Pradesh, Lokesh offered to take on the Human Resource Development Ministry, which is one of the toughest ministries, with a lot of trade unions. “And I love the challenge, and it’s a great opportunity for me to shape the next-generation leaders, thinkers, engineers, scientists, doctors. So, I always believe as leaders, you should take a road less traveled and transform it in your own way. And that is what I have learned in my political journey.”
Learning from past mistakes, Lokesh said, the current Ministry headed by the TDP is looking at business processes, and re-engineering the government, and I am looking at how we can deliver seamless governance in the hands of people, in the hands of citizens. How do you make politicians and officers relevant in day-to-day governance, in any day-to-day citizens’ lives. So that’s where I believe technology will play an important role. But it is also important to transform our processes and re-engineer the processes, and this is what you will see happening in Andhra Pradesh in the upcoming months.”
Son of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, the young and rising star of Indian politics, while referring to the lessons learned from his dad, he said, “What I learned from my leader is to be very patient and passionate. If you look at his entire political journey, he has had great highs and great lows. He takes his highs just as he takes his lows. And for me, that has been a great lesson, and that’s what I’ve learned from him.”
Lokesh said that a new state like Andhra Pradesh is presented with a unique opportunity, which is to decentralize development and not to center development around one city or one ecosystem. Way back in 2014, Mr. Chandrababu Naidu had a clear vision of which district should do what, and that’s why KIYA came to Anantapur, TCL, Foxconn came to Chittor and Bello, and where Amravati is like our state capital. From day one, Lokesh said he strongly believed that Vishakhapatnam should be the state capital because it has the right ingredients. “Now let’s talk about what are those right ingredients. It has amazing connectivity. It has great engineering colleges and amazing talents. And I jokingly keep saying that if Bangalore were to marry Goa and have a child that would be Vishakhapatnam, it’s such a beautiful city, with a gorgeous ecosystem, and I truly believe that for it not only to survive but to flourish Vishakhapatnam has all the right ingredients of a state capital.”
Recalling his childhood and his relationship with the legendary N T Ram Rao, Lokesh said, “NTR is larger than life, and from my childhood, that’s all I remember about him. He was a tall personality there, but he had a very emotional connection with all his grandchildren, and he personally named all of us. So, you know, I got my name because of him, and all my cousins have their names because of him. He had a lot of personal attachment with all of us, but honestly, there were just too many of us for him to spend time with and nurture aspirations and ambitions. But he was very humble. And every birthday, you know, we used to go meet with him, spend time with him. I remember this so well. That is the way he would show his love and affection for all of us. He has left behind a great legacy for us to lead from the front and to take it forward.”
Young Lokesh shared with the audience his works and interactions with the rural Andhra. “I had a great chance to interact with farmers across segments. So, I met with Palm oil farmers, Paddy farmers, Mango farmers, Date Farmers, Banana farmers, and Mirchi farmers. You know what was fascinating for me is that they’re working hard, they are investing money ahead of time, and they are not sure in the end whether they are going to make money or not, and they are doing this every crop cycle. So, the way I looked at it, I said, “You know, there are two parts of this equation. One, we need to reduce the cost of production. Two, how do we grow commodities and variants of our commodities that we can take to the globe.”
Lokesh said that the Andhra state can play a very important role in guiding farmers. “There is a lot of work that we can do as a government in terms of guiding farmers, giving not just subsidies alone, but inputs, and even strengthening it with research stations and ensuring that the optimal output and productivity comes from the respective farm. So, for me, that’s of great interest and passion.”
He went on to add, “It is very fascinating that these are interventions you will see at a policy level that will come up. And I truly believe that the Rayalaseema region particularly has a great opportunity to leapfrog in agriculture. It has amazingly fertile soil and just giving water to drip and giving extension to the appropriate horticulture crop, I think can truly transform agriculture in that sense. And the last bit I’d like to add is technology plays an important role, more so from the government’s ability to map which commodities are being grown and in what quantities and how should government be prepared, in terms of sale price hikes or slumps.”
Lokesh has been credited with ushering in new technologies in all his work, with a focus on the transformation of rural Andhra Pradesh. In May 2018, he won the Business World magazine “Digital Leader of the Year” at the Businessworld Digital India summit in New Delhi, recognizing the best utilization of technology in governance. The same year, the Kalam Centre for Livable Planet Earth and Sustainable Development recognized Lokesh’s efforts in the successful integration of technology in rural governance and awarded the innovation award to Andhra Pradesh in the Panchayat Raj and Rural Development category.
Sharing his thoughts on how Technology can play an important role in rural communities, Lokesh said, “Technology has changed all our lives. India has been lucky. We jumped the PC era and went straight to smartphones. There are more smartphones in India than there are toilets. That’s a known fact. I think that presents a unique opportunity in terms of governance. I think a government’s ability to forecast that, prepare for that, and guide and advise farmers for that, I think will be very important. And that’s something that we are working on this time.”
Lokesh shared a greater vision for Inda to be the leader in world economic growth. According to him, India needs to work on two fundamental things. Number one, India requires a lot of policy intervention at the national level to attract greater investments to our nation. See, today, honestly, it’s not just about competing amongst ourselves as states, but we are also competing with other countries. You know, I am competing with Vietnam to attract electronics investments. I am competing with Ecuador on Aqua exports. I am competing with other countries on Agri commodities. So, it is very, very important that we create a very conducive environment for medium, large corporates, and global corporates, to look at India. Second, it’s no longer about the ease of doing business. It is about the speed of doing business. So, all the business process re-engineering that we are doing in our state is to focus on the speed of doing business.
“We will compete with other states, and we will create a very conducive environment in Andhra Pradesh in terms of attracting investments and grounding those industries,” Lokesh said.
Among the challenges his state faces, Lokesh pointed to how you translate the vision of the Chief Minister down to the grassroots life functioning. So, the Chief Minister has a clear vision to attract investment. At every meeting, he talks about how many jobs we create. “But the problem that I see, even at the grassroots level, at the field level, is there is still the need for greater momentum. The tendency is to tell how not to do things, and that’s the challenge that we struggle with. So, we are in the process of bringing about that change, institutional change among the officers, among the political system in Andhra Pradesh to thrive and be very focused on getting investments and creating local jobs.”
On his ambitions to play a national role as leader of India, any role beyond Andhra Pradesh in the coming months and years, Lokesh was very candid. “Politics is one great field where you can positively or negatively influence people’s lives. Being a third-generation politician, I see this as a great opportunity to transform things. There are amazing aspirations at the grassroots level that it is important that we meet those aspirations and deliver and after that, it is for people to decide where I should be. So, you know, we are here. We are here to serve the people. We are here to create amazing policies and investments, create jobs, create ecosystems, and then it is for people to decide whether I should be a Delhi politician or a state politician.”
His advice to everyone, who wants to enter into politics has been, “First, you need to settle down financially. That is very, very important. Be financially stable and come into politics to serve people. That should be a true calling, nothing but that, when that is clear, come to politics. And the only way that can be clear is when you have financial security when you don’t need to depend on politics for any income.”
Lokesh pointed out how his party has been attracting lots of new first-generation leaders to be part of the government. “I call ourselves as a university. We have this ability to create leaders who want to lead. We create leaders. We give people the opportunity to lead from the front. And if you look at it this time in the 160 seats that we contested, close to 70 of them are actually first-timers. If you look at it as an alliance, 17 out of the 25 ministers are first-time ministers. So, I think that’s what makes TDP unique.”
Lokesh said, “I think you should take life as it comes. Never carry stress home. There is no need to carry stress. So, I believe that the stress of work should be left outside your door. When you go home. You should spend time with your family, no second thoughts about it. What I’ve realized is, when you are stressed and you make decisions, you end up making a lot of mistakes. When I feel a little bit of stress, I should want to breathe, and that de-stresses me, makes me calm, and enables me to make good decisions. If you want to achieve greater things in life, and if you want to leapfrog, then you will have to make certain sacrifices. And it’s not just you, it’s also your family. If there are no sacrifices, you really cannot achieve what you want in life.”
Lokesh said that one of the agendas with which his government is working is, “How do we double the per capita income of Telugu people here in the US and all across the world. And one thing we want to work with IT services, and how do we skill up all our IT professionals in the US and across the world.” Lokesh commented on the renewed interest among non-resident Telugus and “this greater commitment, that let’s do it now, I see that in everyone. We really want to work hard and really do good for our state and as a Minister and part of a delegation, we are really excited to take all of you back and showcase what you can do best and what areas that together we can work on in developing the state of Andhra Pradesh.”
According to Lokesh, AI is an area of great interest for us as a state of Andhra Pradesh and is open for doing business. “We are ready. We will match it with the speed of doing business. I am leading a delegation in which we have a very young officer who is the CEO of the economic development board. As you said, all of you have an interest not only in IT. It could be tourism, it could be education, it could be healthcare. And as a state, we are ready. We are ready to make this an amazing journey, and together, I believe that all of us can transform the state of Andhra Pradesh.”
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