The new Indian government has already received widespread support from the Western business press for its desired political and economic change. But some of the country's serious problems cannot be changed overnight. Foreign investors must therefore not lose sight of the realities. A comment from Dr. Wamser + Batra GmbH.

A healthy sense of proportion falls by the wayside.

India is this year's partner country of the Hannover Messe. This is good for India! This means that there will be more reports about the country and its long-term growth potential and the opportunities for foreign investors will be discussed. This is good news because after years of extremely negative reporting, it is simply good for the country to be making positive headlines again.

However, some authors - self-proclaimed "India experts", consultants, associations and organizers - are trying to systematically abuse the current developments in Germany by using one-sidedly positive representations to create an artificial euphoria that simply does not do justice to reality. The following statements come from event announcements, interviews and publications of the last few days: “India the land of unlimited opportunities”, “Billion dollar market in the fast lane”, “the best gateway to Asia”, “If you are not there yet, you are actually already too late” , “German investors are exclusively successful”, “this is where the future lies”. Let's say it clearly: a healthy sense of proportion is obviously being neglected and grossly exaggerated market data is being presented in order to create expectations that can never be realized.

Even the Indian Consul General, Raveesh Kumar, warned against adulation back in November 2014 at the German-Indian Roundtable in the Ruhr area: “It is of no use if foreign investors come to India with inflated expectations and are then disappointed by reality.”

History repeats itself. Do we learn from this?

Experiences around the Hannover Messe should actually make the attentive observer think. Here are the facts: In 2006, when India was already the partner country of the Hannover Messe, the situation was comparable to that in 2015. A quote from the publication “Myth and Reality” (March 2007) by Dr. Wamser + Batra GmbH at the time: “In countless events, the same good news is always proclaimed about the wonderland of India: the largest democracy in the world, consumers with purchasing power, gigantic economic growth without end and so on! Warning undertones from experienced India experts are lost in this concert. So it should not be surprising that many entrepreneurs went to India too quickly, only to be surprised by the Indian imponderables on site. But who cares when the Indian market is apparently so infinitely large...” What parallels! One-sided information is of no use to anyone. Regardless of whether it is one-sidedly negative or one-sidedly positive.

We as Dr. Wamser + Batra Group therefore stands for realistic information!

Just as our customers can expect us to show India's opportunities and potential, it is natural for us to also address the risks and problems. We are firmly convinced that only those (German) investors can be sustainably successful in India who know the country in all its facets and are particularly prepared for possible difficulties.

We believe in India's long-term future potential. And we are firmly convinced that as a (German) company it is right and important to focus intensively on the Indian sales and production market. But we also know the daily challenges and have experienced first-hand that success in India has to be achieved hard.

If you are looking for realistic assessments, neutral reviews and an open discussion about all positive and negative aspects of India, then contact us.

Dr. Wamser + Batra GmbH – not consultants in the classic sense, but experienced managers who know India from their own experience. [more]