Global leaders applaud Telangana’s transformation
Hyderabad: As the two-day Telangana Rising Global Summit and the sweeping investment momentum at Bharat Future City wrapped up on Tuesday evening, a global audience raised a celebratory toast. The guest list read like a who’s who: former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, senior executives from multinational firms, Hyderabad icons such as Adobe Inc. chairman and CEO Shantanu Narayen, and Prem Watsa, CEO of Fairfax Holdings, along with Indian business luminaries including Anand Mahindra of the Mahindra Group and film star Chiranjeevi, attending in person or joining virtually.
In a video address to the plenary, Tony Blair lauded Telangana’s ascent as more than a regional triumph. He described it as a crucial contribution to India’s emergence as a major democratic, economic, and technological power, noting the state’s rapid strides over a decade and calling Telangana a global model for technology-led, inclusive growth. He emphasized that Telangana’s story represents not just progress but vast future potential, remarking on how a region once viewed as struggling has reshaped itself into a hub for technology, agriculture, and inclusive development. "You have become, in many ways, a model for other parts of the world. As Telangana marks this milestone year, it arrives at a moment when India as a whole is shaping its future, aiming to build a fully developed and globally leading India by the centenary of independence in 2047."
Adobe’s Shantanu Narayen echoed this sentiment, linking Telangana Rising to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ambitious Viksit Bharat (Developed India) vision for 2047, a future where India leads in innovation, sustainability, and overall development. He highlighted Telangana as the youngest state in India, already blazing a trail in governance, technology, and inclusive growth, and he expressed optimism about reaching a $3 trillion economy by 2047. Narayen credited the people of Telangana—particularly students, families, and communities—for shaping a roadmap centered on better education, healthcare, clean environments, and broader opportunities. He praised the plan’s focus on empowering youth, women, and farmers as a strong sign of inclusive development. He also highlighted the state’s emphasis on foundational enablers, technology and innovation, efficient financing, and good governance, and applauded Telangana’s move to establish the Telangana AI Innovation Hub as a bold step toward linking the state with top-tier global AI ecosystems. This initiative, he noted, would attract foreign investment, generate high-quality jobs, and spur entrepreneurship.
Prem Watsa, also a Hyderabad Public School alumnus who addressed the session virtually, called Telangana Rising an inspiring vision. He highlighted the effort to attract foreign investment while empowering people—youth, women, and farmers—and suggested that there is no limit to Telangana’s economic growth if free enterprise and capitalism guide the path. He projected that by 2047, Telangana could earn a substantial share of Fairfax Financial’s planned expansion in India, as the company has already invested $10 billion locally and intends to double that amount.
Anand Mahindra described the Telangana Rising Vision as a bold future manifesto. While the summit opened up new avenues for industry, the vision document impressed him with its people-centric and ambitious approach. He called it one of the most inspiring frameworks he has seen, not only in India but globally. Mahindra emphasized that the vision was not drafted in isolation but built through extensive consultation with Telangana’s citizens to understand their needs, aspirations, and dreams. He noted that history shows dreams become reality when people help design their own future, and when policy is crafted with purpose, impact multiplies. The plan centers on youth at its core, places women as economic leaders, and anchors sustainability as a non-negotiable foundation. He pointed to the Mahindra Group’s own commitment to Telangana, citing the women-led battery manufacturing facility in Zaheerabad as a tangible statement of belief in the region’s future.
Mahindra also warned that as digital technologies proliferate, the value of the human touch grows more critical. In his view, developed economies face a shortage of skilled, real-world talent amid rising technology and capital. He argued that nations are built not only on cloud technologies but with solid ground-grade capabilities.
Regarding the Young India Skills University, where he chairs the board of governors, he observed that Telangana is taking a different path to prepare a workforce that remains indispensable even as AI advances. By shaping a generation that can serve India and a globally hungry market for skills, this initiative stands as one of his highest priorities.
And this is where the conversation gets provocative: Telangana’s blueprint pushes back against a purely automation-led future by foregrounding human-centric skills and inclusive growth. It invites debate on how much emphasis should be placed on AI and automation versus expanding opportunities for traditional, hands-on, high-skill labor. Do these strategies truly harmonize, or will the balance tilt toward accelerating digital dominance at the expense of certain job families?
In summary, Telangana’s transformation is framed as a comprehensive, future-oriented movement that couples advanced technology and governance with broad-based participation. It positions the state as a model for the world, invites international investment, and stresses the enduring importance of human expertise in a rapidly digital era. What are your thoughts on this approach? Does Telangana’s model offer a blueprint others can replicate, or are there unique local conditions that limit transferability to different contexts?
