Blake Schwendiman's Blog and Blook

Chapter 13

Wednesday, 10 March 2022 – 6:00 a.m. IST

In the dim light of the pre-dawn hours in Bangalore, a small group of reporters gathered around the main entrance of the Naidu BioGenics building hoping to catch some senior officers to discuss the overnight events. Just moments after six a.m., the main doors opened and Sireesha Naidu stepped out to meet the crowd. Instantly there was a buzz of excitement.

Sireesha spoke to the group with a serious tone, “As you can see, the reports of my death are inaccurate, however we are still deeply concerned about the explosion that occurred and wish to send our condolences to the families of all those who have passed.”

The nearest reporter, a young Indian woman stepped forward and pressed, “Miss Naidu, the DNA test identified you as one of the dead. How do you explain that?”

Sireesha stepped up, ensuring that she could be heard and seen by all. Many of the reporting crews had been caught off guard and were still struggling to pull their gear together and position themselves. Sireesha waited a moment for the chaos to subside, then began.

“As I have been explaining for months now, all of the DNA identification techniques developed at Q-Gen are fundamentally flawed,” she answered. She paused to ensure that her statement was clearly received before continuing.

“As many of you know, I am a former employee of Q-Morrow Technologies and helped to spin off the Q-Gen company that has formerly been the leader in biotechnology research and development. However, their dominance is drawing to an end. As a company they have become too large and too encumbered by political worries to maintain their leadership.”

A second reporter spoke up, “Miss Naidu, if the Q-Gen DNA tests failed on the body that was reportedly yours, how can we be certain about the identities of any of the bodies found after the explosion?”

Sireesha could not have asked for a better segue. She had learned to respect the press. Whether good or bad, the press had certainly influenced the growth of her company.

She continued, “All of the bodies will be retested using the latest DNA identification technologies that we have developed here at Naidu BioGenics. We will use the technology that we developed here in India and show the world that India is no longer an outsourcing country. India is now a leader in technical and biotechnical research and development.”

Sireesha paused. Several cameras flashed. She turned slightly to face another group of reporters. She continued, “As we enter this post-American era, it is clear that all of Asia is poised to become the new New World. We at the Naidu companies expect to ensure that India will lead Asia to this end.”

The best part of speaking to the Indian press in Sireesha’s opinion was that the press was always looking to provide evidence of India’s emergence as a dominant world power. Most of India’s population was exhausted from the western perspective of India as a fundamentally backward and third-world country. Sireesha was sure that she never fully answered the question she had been asked, but it made no difference. She had given the press a story – American technology had failed and Indian technology was about to succeed.

She waved to the press as she turned. Some additional questions were volleyed from the group, but she made it clear that the press conference had ended.