By and large I would agree with the summary you have provided of the "high-tech" scenario in India. Though, I would also take exception to some of the statements you have made. I have worked for a year in one of the services companies (I detest the word body-shoppers) you've mentioned. I have also worked in Bangalore for an ODC of a US technology products company. It is true to say that most of the work done in these organizations is not really technically sophisticated.

The part of your note which did not resonate well with me was this: "except a couple of very small unfunded startups, most are just trying to copy existing ideas and don't need any skills beyond pretty generic php mysql etc". - I'm not sure what kind of research would give you the necessary insight to make such a statement. For a tech guy from India who has worked globally- such a statement undermines your whole writeup.

Your next statement also disappointed me greatly "great engineers in India should be able to telecommute for the startups advertised here." Can you estimate the carbon footprint created by such a telecommute? - The Carbon Footprint generated by a single roundtrip flight between India and USA / Canada overshoots the annual footprint of an average Indian by 62%. To suggest a telecommuting option between the India and US to me is absurd and environmentally criminal.

Also, the wishlist you have given for Indian startups does exist. You just need to look for it in the right places. Such information would not come to you on the headlines of ET but is available deep in the web somewhere.

I have realized that "great" (I'm not sure how you define such a term) engineers in India like to be courted by companies as they feel that by gaining intellectual prowess they should just have to sit back and wait for companies to come to them. This is especially true if one has been working for a large US Tech MNCs. This is not really the mindset for entrepreneurship. If you are really looking to join an Indian startup as a part of the founding team- reach out to them and let them know what you can offer instead of waiting for them to add a job listing here.