Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology

The fifth step in his roadmap is the development of the chemical industry, which, to be honest, Vijay has not started. Hence, he did not even inquire about it with the ministers. Fortunately, it is not too late, as the reason for Vijay’s meeting with the directors of various institutes today is to address this issue.

-

The sixth step in his roadmap was determining whether the nation had a culture of innovation.

"Raghavendra, do you think the society of our empire today has a culture of innovation?"

Raghavendra nodded in understanding but soon shook his head. "Your Majesty, I do not have a definitive answer for this question, as it can be seen from different perspectives."

"Oh? Go on."

"If we’re talking about the culture of innovation in various universities, colleges, and research institutes, then yes, the culture naturally exists and is even quite strong. However," Raghavendra paused, looking at Vijay with a hint of worry, "Your Majesty, I am not too sure that this culture of innovation exists among the general population.

I believe that the average citizen is simply going along with the changes in society and has not yet fully adapted to them."

Vijay nodded in understanding. He was neither surprised nor worried by this information. What he needed was not for the whole of Bharat to have a culture of innovation but for the most educated and influential group to possess it. Because Bharatiya society was structured from top to bottom—where the behaviours, ideologies, and characteristics of the upper class trickled down to the lower classes.

Vijay believed that, in time, even the common citizen would understand the importance of innovation. He then reluctantly ticked the checkbox, considering this step to be primarily completed.

-

The seventh step in the roadmap is the establishment of proper financial institutions.

"How is the financial support and what policies are in place for the development of industry in the empire?"

Rajesh wanted to speak, but Jagannath Mohan was the first to answer. "Your Majesty, due to our booming exports, the finances of the empire have been in a breakout stage. For this reason, the Bank of Bharat has started receiving deposits from various private individuals wanting to form their own banks.

With the increased number of banks, the options for entrepreneurs to secure loans have been expanding, and policy support is also being provided to new entrepreneurs engaged in the industrial sector."

Rajesh continued, "Not only that, Your Majesty, but from the side of our ministry, we have also provided many short-term, low-interest loans to promising entrepreneurs, helping them in their endeavours. So far, we have supported 1,200 entrepreneurs in the empire."

Vijay was very satisfied, but despite this data, he knew that he had only been half successful because the stock market, a powerful tool for business growth and a key driver for economic expansion, had not yet been established. The reason for this delay was that Vijay wanted to complete the privatization of state-owned factories first.

After sufficient experience had been accumulated in the banks, he planned to establish the stock market.

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The eighth step in the roadmap is a skilled population.

"Do we have enough skilled labour capable of working at high levels of industrial production?"

Raghavendra knew the question was for him, but he took a moment to understand it fully. "You mean people capable of operating advanced V3 machine tools and following standardization protocols, isn’t that correct, Your Majesty?"

"Yes," Vijay replied. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"Then we have no shortage of this labour. Every quarter, we have thousands of students graduating from colleges and universities. Although these students may not immediately qualify for high-level employment, they are absolutely capable of working as skilled labour, having undergone courses in literacy, arithmetic, military training, and other compulsory subjects."

Hearing this, Vijay immediately ticked off the checklist.

-

For the rest of the steps, Vijay did not have to enquire as he knew the answer himself.

The ninth step in the roadmap is a supportive government structure, which has already been established in the Bharatiya Empire in the form of a separate department under the Ministry of Trade, Commerce, and Industry.

The tenth step in the roadmap is an adequate and large enough market. Fortunately, Bharat has a vast population of 190 million, providing a sufficient market for the initial stages of the industrial revolution. Additionally, Vijay aims to gain full control over the economies of Southeast Asian countries, which will further expand the market by the time the industrial revolution begins.

The eleventh and final step of the roadmap is the establishment of legal intellectual property institutions that guarantee the rights of innovators. Vijay quickly ticked off this step on the checklist, as this requirement has already been met after his latest reorganization.

"Overall, the Bharatiya Empire is right on the edge of the Industrial Revolution, with the only things holding it back being the steam engine, the chemical industry, and some supporting financial institutions." A happy smile appeared on Vijay’s face; he could hardly wait for the day.

"Alright, except Raghavendra Bhatt, the rest of you can return to your work. I will call for you when the time comes."

The ministers got up, did a Namaskara and left.

-----

Vijay and Raghavendra Bhatt were the only two people left in the office room. Raghavendra had no idea why His Majesty had asked him to stay back, but he waited nonetheless.

Vijay, bringing out a set of documents from his cupboard, rang the bill on his table.

*Ding!*

Within moments, Ganesh entered the office, waiting for instructions.

"Bring in the directors."

Raghavendra Bhatt was curious about whom His Majesty had invited, as he had no idea what His Majesty was planning.

Fortunately, his curiosity was answered a few minutes later when the Director of the Bharatiya Academy of Military Sciences, Hey Ram; the Director of the Bharatiya Academy of Civilian Sciences, Gambhir; and the Director of the BIT University Hoysala, Ramesh Hosaraju, entered the office. However, that was not all.

A very familiar face caught him by surprise as it entered the office: it was Badradri Ramanujan.

"When did Ramanujan become a director?" Raghavendra was surprised because Ramanujan, the best mathematician currently in the nation, had always been left alone at the Bharatiya Academy of Sciences due to his poor social skills. Although he knew that Ramanujan’s mathematical attainments were the best in the empire, he was certain that his managerial experience and talent were next to nothing.

Vijay noticed the doubt on Raghavendra’s face, so he chose to clear up the confusion. "Badradri Ramanujan is the director of the new Nalanda Institute of Fundamental Sciences, He was chosen for his outstanding achievements in mathematics, not for his managerial experience."

Raghavendra immediately understood the underlying meaning of His Majesty’s words: ’He is a figurehead of Nalanda, and without such a figurehead, the arrogant scientists capable of going to Nalanda would not be able to be controlled.’ Raghavendra couldn’t help but admire the Emperor a little.

Vijay’s gaze lingered on Hey Ram for a split second, a strange expression crossing his face, as he was aware of the project Hey Ram and Naveen Bhatt, the mechanical prodigy, were working on together. However, he chose not to intervene, believing it was best to let them continue as far as they could in their obviously misguided direction.

"Hey Ram, how is little Balram, and how is your wife, Umashree? Are they doing well?"

Hey Ram immediately became happy upon hearing the question. "By God’s grace, they are both doing very well, Your Majesty."

"That’s good," Vijay replied with a smile on his face.

Noticing that everyone had settled down, Vijay did not continue his small talk. "I have two main strategic goals for all of you, and my requirement is to complete the assigned tasks by the end of the year."

Everyone quickly took out pen and paper, ready to note down the orders.

"First, since we have produced version 3 of all the five main Hydraulic machine tools, I have come up with ideas to produce more machine tools using the existing ones."

Vijay handed over a file to Hey Ram, which was then shared with his colleagues. "The names of these new machine tools are Planer, shapers, slotters, gear-cutting machines, cylindrical grinders, punch presses, surface grinders, broaching machines, and wire drawing machines.

"Now, I don’t know exactly how these machines should be manufactured, but I have provided you with a general principle about their usage scenarios. I need your respective institutes to start the research on these machine tools."

Hey Ram, reading the principles of each machine tool, constantly gained ideas in his mind about how such a tool could be manufactured. However, considering his current project, in which he had invested quite a lot of his personal time and effort, he felt a little pained.

"Your Majesty, this..." He was reluctant to change the project halfway.

To be continued...

P.S. The split is awkward fuk fuk fuk fuk fuk