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IN THE HISTORY of contemporary India a number of foreigners have in their own way helped shape the country's destiny. Annie Besant, Alan Hume, C. F. Andrews are names that readily come to mind given their roles in giving a practical shape to the then fledgling Indian aspirations for self-rule. If these individuals have left their mark on the political firmament, others have in no small measure contributed to the social and economic development. To this latter set belongs Henning Holck-Larsen, a Dane who, with his friend and fellow countryman Soren Toubro, founded Larsen & Toubro nearly seven decades ago and saw it grow to become a large engineering conglomerate.

Two things stand out when we measure the Larsen legacy to the evolution of Indian industry. One, his belief in the future of Indian economy, in general, and domestic manufacturing capability, in particular, at a time when the mood among the expatriate business community was one of scepticism. The heightened social disorder, pre- and post-Partition riots, did nothing to dispel this dark mood among businessmen. As the first rays of political freedom dawned on India, Larsen's business was barely a decade old, one that he could have easily got out of had he wanted. Yet, he chose to stay on, when even two-bit planters were busy selling out to their native chief clerks and sundry hangers on, for whatever distress price their businesses could fetch. That in the decades that followed, the country did not grow as fast as its potential would have suggested is generally well accepted. But there can be no doubting that Larsen's faith in the economy stood largely vindicated, as the growth of his company into a vast engineering conglomerate would testify.

That brings us to the second legacy. His entrepreneurial career is remarkable for his intrepid spirit and one that saw him trade off the risk of losing ownership control for rapid business growth. This was the period when publicly-owned, domestic financial institutions had a stranglehold on capital, and enterprises were subjected to stringent clauses on conversion of debt to equity. It is no coincidence that L&T had over time become a company with a large financial institutional stake. Yet, so confident was Larsen of his relevance to the scheme of things in the company that he shunned the path of organic growth (in a purely financial sense) even if it meant diluting his stake in the company.

This was in marked contrast to those among the native business community who would rather not pursue growth if it meant accessing capital from public financial institutions and ceding part-control to them. This pursuit of non-organic growth saw L&T at the vanguard of a movement for technological self-reliance in key sectors such as oil refining, nuclear power generation, etc. The beneficial spin-off of this was the creation of a vast pool of technical manpower. In the end, that may well be the enduring legacy of a foreigner who chose to make India his home.

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