Think before you speak to Google and Facebook, Mr Modi

There are no two ways about it: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the Silicon Valley is unprecedented. No other Indian prime minister has attempted to connect with the technology industry leaders the way he is doing, and at a scale that he is planning for, and that is commendable. The Silicon Valley and companies like Google and Facebook can help India in a number of ways and it is gladdening to see Modi reaching out to technology executives like Tim Cook and Mark Zuckerberg in one-on-one meetings. It underscores his willingness to go extra mile - literally, considering he is one of the rare Indian leaders to visit the US west coast.

But even as he seeks to find out what companies like Facebook and Google can do for India and what India can do for these companies, it is also a moment when Modi will do well to be a little cautious. The early romantic days of technology companies, when their garage history was fresh and the ideas like "do no evil" underpinned their business, are long gone. Companies like Facebook, Google, Apple and Uber are thoroughbred corporations now, which have become big and in turn, no longer seem to ascribe to the unadulterated utopian ideas that once defined them.

Watch Google CEO Sundar Pichai welcome Prime Minister Modi.

For technology companies, India is a very important market. It has a population of nearly 1.3 billion, and most of the people here are yet to connect to the internet. Given that most of these technology companies do not have the kind of clout and services that they would like in China, India becomes an important part of their future growth story.

But in a bid to make sure that they carve out the turf well in their favour, technology companies have also started playing by the rules in countries like India, where the way of doing business is different from that in developed countries like the US.

The debate over net neutrality is a prime example. Just a few days ago, Facebook told US officials that net neutrality sould be upheld in the US because without it the innovation can suffer. Yet, in countries like India, Facebook has no qualms in arguing that net neutrality rules be loosened and that its internet.org, which is similar to a walled garden carved out of the internet, is the next best thing since the invention of bread.

Google, which also argues staunchly in favour of net neutrality in the US is uncharacteristically silent on the topic in India. In fact, according to emails leaked by Medianama, the company wants a more relaxed set of net neutrality rules in India compared to what it argues for in the US.

Both Google and Facebook are taking a lot of flak for their position on net neutrality in India and it is possible that Zuckerberg and Google's Sundar Pichai may lean on Modi to dilute some of this resistance.

Then there are matters related to near monopoly in the market that some of the technology companies have. Google, which has been fined several times by regulators across the world, possibly owing to its less-than perfect business practices, is under a similar sort of investigation in India. While there is no doubt that Modi is an astute politician and is likely to steer clear of extending any favours to a technology company, he will do well to remember that monopoly, even if the company is a "do no evil" Google, is never good for a country or a market.

Innovation fosters in markets and countries that are dynamic, allow equal opportunity to as many entities as possible and have a good regulatory mechanism. It is true that technology companies can help India in a big way, and in turn can benefit from the huge user base that we have. But any arrangement with the Googles and Facebooks of the world would have to happen in a way that doesn't give technology companies, which are already incredibly powerful, disproportionate influence over Indian consumers.

This is particularly important because unlike in the US or Europe, where regulatory mechanisms are strong, in India we lack government bodies that can keep an eye on technology companies, whether it is privacy we are talking about or unfair competition. It will be important for Modi to keep this in context when he sits with Zuckerberg for a meeting at Facebook's Valley office.