Many articles are being written about how and why IBM lasted as long as it did — a hundred years as an MNC of the US and as an extraordinary pioneer in computer research. The company has, reportedly celebrated the event worldwide with many charity acts. My purpose, however, is to pay tribute to this unbeatable S&T cornucopia — remember Deep Blue beating Grand Masters in Chess and “Jeopardy” the near Turing Machine — stemming from my association with its products and services.

Many star performers such as Microsoft, Apple, Google and Facebook may have appeared since then in the technology  firmament and beaten IBM's market valuations many times, but none evokes IBM's nostalgia.

Reorganise Defence production

  It may be recalled that the Chinese aggression in 1962 brought in its wake a cosy relationship between a weakened Nehru regime in India and the Pentagon in the US. The latter was not only supplying arms and ammunition, but a whole small arms ammunition facility to Varangoan in Maharashtra. It was also willing to offer its expertise in management, built on the personal reputation of , Robert McNamara, who was US Secretary of State for Defence in 1961-1968. Arthur D. Little was appointed to make recommendations to the Ministry of Defence, to restructure Defence production in India. One of its recommendations was about the need for a computer to calculate quickly the materials required for an arsenal build-up. It is amusing to recall that what looked so formidable to programme on an IBM 1401 machine then, can be accomplished today by a schoolboy well versed in spread-sheets on a laptop.

 It so happened that Pandit Nehru took a look at the demo piece brought to Pragathi Maidan in 1963. He was immediately presented with a portrait of himself printed on IBM 1403 with alphanumeric characters. After the expo, IBM offered the machine on lease to the Ministry of Defence (MoD). MoD realised the potential of a computer and orders were placed.

Grand entry of IBM

Of course, MoD did not know how to use the machine in its own offices. Almost all the offices in the headquarters, including the military, were offered the computer, but due to lack of knowledge of the computer even as a concept, the offer was turned down. However, the then Director-General, Ordnance Factories (DGOF), S. J. Sahaney, had the temerity to came forward to house it in his office at Calcutta. That, I believe, was the grand entry of the first IBM computer into India, soon to be followed by a system for the Tatas.

The IBM warhorse at DGOF worked non-stop 24x7 for over 15 years. Attempts by the DGOF to keep pace with the growing technological prowess of IBM, when it brought out its epoch-making “compatible” Mainframe 360 and 370 systems after years of research, were thwarted by policy wonks in the Department of Electronics, who were rooting for mainframes made by Russia.

The Public Accounts Committee looked askance at the import of computers from America, while George Fernandes as Industries Minister in 1977 drove IBM and Coca-Cola out of India. Soon, this petulant act no longer mattered as the existing computing world was turned upside down with the game-changing IBM PCs.  Those who have dealt with IBM at any point of time will but agree with The Economist's  observation that the “secret of Big Blue's longevity has less to do with machines or software than with strong customer relationship”.

 (The author is former Member, Ordnance Factories Board.)

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