Management guru Peter Drucker has always been in news for bold talks. Whether he talks of the fall of the U.S. in global business or the rise of India and China.

Such was Drucker’s influence amongst the corporate world and academics that his words were nothing short of words of wisdom. Not long ago, newspapers in India carried, in bold, what Drucker (1909-2005) had to say about India.

Despite China being at the centerstage of world politics, business and economy, Drucker
was convinced that India was where the future lay and India is where the real growth is while China’s growth is cosmetic, often hyped by the government backed media.

In one of his talks Drucker said India is becoming a powerhouse, very fast. The All India Institute of Medical Science is now perhaps the best in the world. And the technical graduates of the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore are as good as any in the world. Also, India has 150 million people for whom English is their main language. So India is indeed becoming a knowledge center.

He didn’t end at that. He had more words of praise for India. Drucker added that India has done an “amazing” job of absorbing excess rural population into the cities. Its rural population has gone from 90 percent to 54 percent without any upheaval as opposed to China.

He also said everybody says China has 10 percent growth and India only 6 percent, but that is a total misconception. “We don’t really know. I think India’s progress is far more impressive than China’s.”