Indian industry has seen many changes since we attained independence in 1947. At the time of independence there were a few large organisations that controlled Indian industry. Most of them were family-run enterprises, but there were also others, who could be looked upon as public limited companies in the private sector.

With the advent of independence, there was a great surge towards public services and the first two decades saw the emergence of many heavy industries in the public sector, the ''temples of modern India'' as Jawaharlal Nehru termed them. It was unfortunate that whilst developing the public sector, the growth of the private sector was stymied. With the advantage of hindsight, one can now judge that the growth of our organisations in India would have been enhanced if both the sectors were encouraged to grow concurrently, and thus provide competition and stimulation to each other.

In the early days it was felt that the main objective of the corporate sector was to provide employment and social services to the population. This was an extremely socialistic point of view. The private sector was looked upon as politically unacceptable because the wealth generated by it was supposedly for the benefit of the private parties who owned the industry. The concept of generation of wealth in general, and of profit in particular was not considered important. It took a long time for the Indian organisation to realise that whereas we need not follow the narrow capitalist concept of pursuing profit only, the ''generation of wealth'' is essential for all good things that flow out the organisation.

The concept of 'trusteeship', which was enunciated by Jamsetji Tata and his successors, had finally found acceptance in our country. The wealth generated by the Tata Enterprises has not been used for private consumption, but has been put to good use in the development of the society.

Many other organisations in India have realised the importance of the concept of trusteeship and are now actively pursuing good corporate governance as well as supporting institutions for the further development of the country. As a result, all the stakeholders; the employees, the suppliers, the customers, have benefited along with the government. And of course, the shareholders (owners) also.

The shareholders are the true owners of an industrial enterprise, and they will park their monies with those companies whom they can trust. The sharemarket will hold managements accountable and will punish those in whom their trust has been misplaced. The private sector must work in the public interest.

Corporate objectives now include benefits to the community in which the organisation is located. It is very well appreciated that the enterprise cannot thrive if it stands out as a pillar of prosperity in a sea of poverty. In line with this policy, the vision of Tata Steel, for example, covers the benefits that would accrue to society in general and to the employees in particular, along with delighting the customer and ensuring a healthy system of wealth generation. It also ensures that in this fast-changing world, it is essential to remain in front with path-breaking activities.

The past, however glorious it has been, should not be taken as an insurance for the future. In the current scenario, where information technology has made redundant yesterday's leaders, it is most essential to keep on changing. Those organisations that have refused to, or could not be changed, have perished in the quagmire of 'status quo'. Organisations of tomorrow will need to be more fleet-footed, flexible, and seek out opportunities to grow rapidly as never before. In such an environment, it would be essential for the employees and their managements to secure for themselves the early-bird advantages of daring to dream and developing the high skills required for successful entrepreneurship. It is no longer an environment where the employees and the management look upon themselves as adversaries. Rather they should form a team, and the government, acting as the third party in the 'triumvirate', should lead Indian industry to the successes it is quite capable of achieving.