The growth of the IT sector bodes well for a country that, in spite of continued socio-economic challenges, seems to know where resilience is most required and where its best opportunities lie.
India, the world's most populous nation and largest democracy, is home to 1.4 billion inhabitants, making up the world’s fifth largest economy. Its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of approximately US$3.4 trillion is now higher than the UK, France, Russia and Canada. India is home to the world's largest film industry, the second largest newspaper market, and the third most billionaires. Roughly 67% of the world’s outsourcing is done in India, and the local IT industry is valued at US$150 billion. After 75 years of independence, this is a country very much on the rise. The question is, how high can it go?
India’s mixed economy balances old and new. Dizzying high-tech-driven growth sits alongside traditional industrial powerhouses. A fast-growing urban middle class propels forward a country with deep cultural traditions and a strong rural, agricultural backbone. In so many ways, the story of India’s resilience lies in its infinite contrasts.
Measuring its business resilience is just as challenging. Its vastness and the variation in the sub-continent’s physical risk factors, including climate risk exposure, climate change exposure, climate risk quality, seismic exposure and fire risk quality, determine that – together with Canada, China and the United States – it is one of only four countries broken down into distinct zones in the 2024 FM Global Resilience Index.
Zone 1, including the eastern coast and key Tamil Nadu agricultural area, ranks No. 92, enduring wind and flooding as its dominant natural hazards. Zone 2, comprising the northern part of the country plus a chain of Islands in the Bay of Bengal, also faces significant wind and flood threats, but the additional threat of the country’s highest seismic risk puts it at No. 102.
Zone 3 ranks at No. 77 due to its lower exposure to wind, flood and earthquake threats on the coastal west and southwest. This no doubt has been a factor in the significant development of key industrial clusters in the region, including manufacturing plants, IT service centres and developer hubs in Mumbai and Bangalore – the Silicon Valley of India.
The Index’s non-physical or macro factors present a broader picture of the country’s current resilience profile, its prospects for progress and its continued challenges.
A founding member of BRICS, a group of world's major emerging economies, India’s modern economy is built on the services, agriculture and manufacturing sectors, with the development and outsourcing of IT services and software-based business solutions contributing to 40% of GDP. Technology start-ups also are booming. Unsurprisingly and impressively, India’s No. 19 ranking for cybersecurity is the country’s stand-out ranking in this year’s FM Global Resilience Index.
Historically, India has been a key location for shipping and logistics in the Asia-Pacific region, so its No. 43 global ranking for logistics reflects continued improvements and development in that high-potential area of the country’s infrastructure.
India’s inherent complexities are reflected in its rankings for political stability, where it sits at No. 99 for Political Risk and No. 75 for Control of Corruption, which measures the influence of public power on business.
India’s political leaders express bold economic ambitions, based on annual economic growth, which has remained constant at more than 7% over the past several years, surpassing that of China.
India sits at No. 56 for inflation as a result of increasing economic diversity, higher GDP and targeted economic policies. Its energy intensity ranking at No. 66 has been an outcome of increased adoption of renewable energy across industries and households, and campaigns to promote energy efficiency. This is a positive development for a country often cited as an outlier in the global move to reduce dependency on fossil fuels. Its greenhouse gas emission is indexed in the top half globally at No. 73 in 2024, signalling positive intentions.
India has taken proactive steps to bolster its physical resilience against natural disasters and climate impacts, and has introduced early warning systems and prompt response forces to mitigate hazards.
The country is promoting the construction of resilient infrastructure such as embankments and wider drainage channels for flood-prone areas, along with road redesigns. The National Afforestation Program not only restores forests but also aims to reduce carbon emissions and enhance natural buffers against extreme weather events. To combat climate risk, India is promoting the adoption and investment of renewable energy in businesses and households, and reducing single-use plastics. Experts are applauding the Government of India’s National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) as well, where approximately US$1.7 billion has been allocated to fight air pollution over the next five years.
India’s resilience remains a balance of ambition and inherent risk. It presents an abundance of opportunity for investment, as well as property and asset owners in an economy of seemingly unlimited potential as a global giant. Its focus on resilience may very well be what makes the difference.