Yuva India! Viva India!

Yuva means youth in Hindi. These expressions very well summarize the Indian ethos, as one of the world's oldest civilisations having one of the largest young population advances into the 21st Century with confidence and hope.

More than 50 percent of India's population are below the age of 25. That is over 500 million people, nearly twice the population of the US.

India's great strength is its people--technology-savvy youth, English-speaking skilled manpower, a large pool of engineering talent and one of the world's largest domestic markets. The number of people in the working age group will increase by 250 million from 2003 to 2020. Its 250+ universities and 10,000+ colleges produce more than three million graduates each year.

India has mature financial markets which are booming, reflecting the buoyant economy. Its GDP is expected to grow at the rate of 8 percent year-on-year over the medium term. As the IT services and BPO (business process outsourcing) industry moves up the value chain, new sectors like animation and gaming are opening up. The knowledge revolution is accompanied by cultural change ushering in consumerism. The untapped rural market, with 600 million people, is expected to be an engine of growth.

The land of Maharajas is teeming with one billion souls, 100 million mobiles, 100 million TVs, 60 million cable homes, 38 million Internet users, 12 million PCs and millions of gadgets.

Even if the physical infrastructure in India is typical of a third-world country, the technology infrastructure is first-rate. India's length and breadth is covered with fiber and data-ready mobile networks.

But the installed base of PCs and adoption of Internet in India leave a lot to be desired. Out of nearly 200 million households, only about five million have a PC. Fewer of those have an Internet connection, while broadband is just getting started. Most of the 38 million Internet users are from cybercafes, for whom being online is sporadic and not an integral part of their life. Connection speed of 256Kbps is considered as broadband. Even after 11 years of Internet, online activity is largely restricted to jobs and matrimonial sites, email and chat. The top two portals are still advertising "better email" as their USP (unique selling point).

The low installed base of PCs is countered by a large and fast-growing user base of mobiles. Out of the 100 million mobile phones, nearly a third are GPRS-capable. Indian users are mobile-savvy, networks are data-ready, handsets are feature-rich, market size is humongous, and therefore market potential and room for innovation are high.

Join me on this blog as the Technology Walla narrates India's developing tech story.