-->

Saturday, 27 February 2016

NEWSLETTER, 20-II-2016

INDEX of this NEWSLETTER

INDIA

- GENERAL POLICY, INFRASTRUCTURE, COUNTRY FINANCES, etc.


1.1. 21st century will be India's: Virginia Rometty, IBM
1.2. In next 10 years, India will be the world's best opportunity: Masayoshi Son, Softbank
2.1. PM launches Start-up India movement, unveils action plan for encouraging Start-ups
2.2. Sebi works to deepen corporate, municipal bond markets
3.1. In U-turn, Centre may allow FDI in multi-brand retail
3.2. Maharashtra government targets Rs 4-lakh crore ($56,7 bn) investments
4.1. Cabinet approves formation of Joint Venture Companies with State Governments to mobilise resources for undertaking various rail infrastructure projects in the State
4.2. Govt racing to build highways: Nitin Gadkari
4.3. Nitin Gadkari unveils grand plan for logistics hubs and ports
5. EDF unit forms Rs 7,500 crore ($1,1 bn) JV with Indian group for developing wind assets


- AGRICULTURE, FISHING & RURAL DEVELOPMENT


- INDUSTRY, MANUFACTURE


INDIA & THE WORLD

* * * 


NEWSLETTER, 20-II-2016

INDIA

- GENERAL POLICY, INFRASTRUCTURE, COUNTRY FINANCES, etc.


1.1. 21st century will be India's: Virginia Rometty, IBM
Economic Times | Feb. 04, 2016

Bengaluru: IBM Chief Executive Ginni Rometty stressed on India's growing importance in the company's scheme of things and said its commitment to the country remained strong.

During a visit to Bengaluru, Rometty also spoke about the potential of IBM's critical cognitive computing system, Watson, and how it had the potential to completely disrupt and transform industries. "I've been to India many times over the years - in fact, this is my second trip in six months. This century, the 21st century, will be the Indian century - and I really believe that," said Rometty in a speech during a 'Watson in India' event in the city on Tuesday.

Rometty reached Bengaluru from Chennai, where she announced a string of steps for the company's operations in the city that were impacted by the December floods.

"I was in Chennai yesterday ... in addition to helping them with technologies that organize around disasters, we've committed to donate cloud, technology and analytics...So, the next time our operations (get impacted), we'll be able to much better intercept such a situation," she said.

Rometty, who flies to Mumbai on Wednesday for IBM's flagship customer event the THINK Forum, said that India would "be the centre of the cognitive shift".

"India will not be at the center, it will be the center of this fourth technology shift," said Rometty, referring to the evolving technology landscape globally that is increasingly being shaped by artificially intelligent systems such as Watson.

"This is the era of cognitive. It is not only disruptive, but also transformative," she said, addressing an auditorium packed with IBM executives, journalists, customers and analysts. "Today Watson has been broken up into a platform of 32 different capabilities, with 50 technologies under it that you can access."

Globally, over the past five years, IBM has made a big push to commercialize Watson, which once famously vanquished the human winners of the US game show Jeopardy. Rometty is attempting to turn Watson into a multibillion-dollar business for the company, which has over the past few years witnessed a decline in revenue from traditional technology services businesses.

In October last year, Nasscom along with IBM, launched Techstartup.in, a digital platform that will allow startups, investors and venture capitalists to network. Also, as part of its commitment to the global startup community, IBM has pledged to offer up to $120,000 of free IBM cloud credits for local qualified startups to use as they build their businesses on IBM Cloud.

"We are today mostly a software and services company. But we have to transform - in this transformation, we will emerge as a cognitive solutions and cloud platform company. And I say that because everything we do is part of that strategy," said Rometty.

She also highlighted some of the new bets and experiments that IBM is attempting with Watson, including "an ability to help Watson see".

"We want deeper engagements here in India and we want to scale expertise," she said before signing off.
"India ... what a big part you play in this story for IBM and for the world."

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


1.2. In next 10 years, India will be the world's best opportunity: Masayoshi Son, Softbank
Economic Times | Jan. 18, 2016

New Delhi: As Masayoshi Son, founder of Japanese telecom and internet giant SoftBank reinvents his 35- year-old company, India is at the centre stage of his plans. Masa, 58, known to have seen several highs and the lowest lows in his more than three-decade long career, is betting on young, local entrepreneurs as he seeks to make Softbank truly global.

Along with his lieutenant Nikesh Arora, SoftBank's president & COO, Son sat down with Sunday Times to speak about why India excites him, the huge potential of the domestic market and why local founders have an edge over their global rivals..

Startups in India have bloomed with minimal or no government help. Now that government wants to help, should we be happy or worried?

Best thing for a government to do is to eliminate obstacles like filing registrations, getting licences and so on... tedious steps slow everything down. I was amazed that the government arranged a meet where nine secretaries were on stage willing to be asked questions by startup people on how they can change the process. It was a very good move. Money is available from investors as long as you have a great business model and a talented leader. Digital India is going to help these startups with lots of opportunities.

What's been your most frustrating experience in dealing with Indian startups? How much of it had do with the government?

Snapdeal had to do a lot of registrations to bring in all the merchants.

Nikesh Arora elaborates: When you set up a national business, states have different regulations, processes, it becomes cumbersome. That needs to be rationalized. Many processes were made when there was no technology, they need to be updated. For example, acceptance of digital signatures can help immensely in doing lots of paperwork.

Since 2014, headlines have given way to caution on funding. The number of startups are growing.

Founders were getting carried away with the money they were getting. You've seen multiple cycles. In the last 18 months, what's changed?

Nikesh: The first phase of Indian startups is over. It was a lot of people pursuing the same ideas or variants of the same idea. In e-commerce, there were 500 companies. In the last year-and-a-half, there's been a shakeup. There are a few clear leaders in each segment. If someone today comes up with a taxi-hailing or car-hailing business, you'd ask how it'd be different from an Ola or Uber. 

How would an e-commerce idea be different from Snapdeal or Paytm?

There's been a degree of rationalization. Now is the question of smart investing. It's important they do it intelligently, create long-term value and a sustainable business model. That's the phase we're getting into. 

You anointed Nikesh as SoftBank president and have talked about Softbank 2.0? How would that impact your India investments?

I'm lucky and happy I found Nikesh ... I say that publicly. I've said Nikesh will be my successor. Softbank 2.0 means globalisation of Softbank. Before Nikesh we made investments as if it were my hobby. I was lucky, but luck cannot repeat unless we have an organisation and a system. That's the stage we have to go to. In the last 10 years China was a great opportunity. Next 10 years India will be the world's best opportunity. Nikesh happened to be Indian. That's a good coincidence. I wasn't looking for my successor to be Indian. But I think God is helping me, timing-wise and direction-wise. Going forward, we'll be more aggressive in making investments. The last year gave us more confidence. We now have the organisation. We now have portfolio companies that can help each other. It's a great start.

How has Nikesh changed Softbank?

He's brought in international talent. Softbank was very domestic in Japan. We acquired Sprint, but that was just one core tele-corporation. We had no professional overseas... Nikesh has already hired very smart executives. We have a team. It's great progress in the last 12 months. 

Nikesh: One great thing I've enjoyed is that our debates increase our conviction. It makes us more bullish if we both agree, it makes us both question if one of us disagrees. There have been cases where we almost did something, but one of us was not sure and we said may be it isn't a great thing to do. It is not hierarchical. It is not that we don't do it if he disagrees.
Sometimes when I disagree, we don't do it.

Son: That is exactly the case. Before Nikesh, we never had this level of heavy thinking. I made decisions on instinct. There's a growing sense that there are several naysayers since Nikesh has come in. 

Your investors have marked down SoftBank shares. Is it because of the bets you're taking?

Nikesh: Look at SoftBank's share price activity. Three things are going on. 
One is the world's general state. Since the year's beginning, Nasdaq is down about 10 per cent. 

Second is the over-weighted China and Sprint factor in SoftBank--$60 billion-plus of our value is on Ali Baba, so when China catches a cold, we also sneeze. But that does not bother us. We are very long-term bulls of Alibaba and believe that in the long term it is a real business and it's going to get bigger and bigger. 

Third is if we can turn Sprint around. Those are the factors. $2 billion or $4 billion is not enough either way to impact a company with an enterprise value of $150 billion.

But which direction is Softbank headed?

Nikesh: Directionally, look at our investment in Snapdeal -they've raised money after that at two-three times the valuation. Ola has raised money eight times higher than the valuation at which we invested. Directionally, some of these companies have done reasonably well.

What do you do when the world doesn't believe in what you strongly believe?

I don't care much about how the world sees us. I'd rather care about the substance. We're trying to make changes that are the solutions. Whenever there's an issue, I like to go deep down. Sprint is almost like a startup to me. Every night I have a conference call with my engineers, and nowadays Sprint engineers are included -starting midnight till 2am, 3am.Sprint guys tell me this is the first year that Sprint engineers worked during their Christmas holidays, not because I forced them, but because they enjoyed it. Every time we quarrel, we're very excited, focused. We had a very big disagreement eight months ago, big debate, palms on tables, yelling at each other, now we're really working together, I'm very happy. It's like war, mate. When we go to war, bonding's stronger.

There was news that you won't do early stage investing anymore? 

It was a surprise, given some of your best bets have come from such investments... We'll continue to invest, even if they are small, if it makes sense.
Nikesh: When (Son) invested in Jack Ma, as he said it was a hobby: he invested less than $20m. That investment is worth $45 billion now. We are much bigger now. If we make $10m$20m size of investments, we would have to make lots of investments. To find the next Jack Ma, you've to take it from a hobby to the point of institutionalizing it. There are not many investors like us who're willing to play the long-term -that gives us a better position. Also, by reducing intensity of our VC-activities, we're able to partner with many VCs across the world.

Masa (Son) has so many friends, they come to him and me and say would you like to invest in this company? If you are competing with them, they'd feel I don't want to invest with them.

In 2014, you were looking to invest $10 billion in India in 10 years. How much have you put in so far?

We said $10 billion in 10 years. In one year we have invested $2 billion, so we are outpacing and we would accelerate even more. Our solar investment will be big. If we do 10 gigawatts that alone is going to be $20 billion. So, in total, it'd be more than $10 billion in 10 years.

What's the rationale behind solar investment?

I knew nothing about electricity and had no interest in it. I was busy with the internet revolution. After the Japan earthquake four years ago, I cried so much because we felt responsible for the mobile network crashing. Our competitor network too crashed, but after ours', because being government-owned they were supplied more power than us. Our network (provided) less connectivity than the competitor's. I imagine less people would have died if our network was better. I was so angry with myself and I felt so guilty.

Japan is 30 per cent nuclear energy dependent, which had to be reduced, and it can't be too dependent on coal because of pollution. Renewable energy was the answer. We are the number one provider of renewable energy in Japan now. In India, there isn't enough electricity. So maybe I can support India's needs. That's how we decided to go more solar. God is so kind, he has given so much sunshine to India. India has two times more sunshine than Japan or Europe.

What are the other themes you are tracking in India?

We may venture into wind energy. We have started some efforts in Japan but solar is more drastic in cost deduction. Solar can be placed in many places. Wind is limited to locations. The mixture of wind and solar actually makes a good combination.

What was it about Jack Ma that you found different?

He himself says "I'm not good at numbers, I can't do programming. I don't use the PC much, I don't understand accounting." When in high school, his maths was one out of five -he says that in public. When a guy can say something like that, he has confidence. He has the leadership, true leadership. If he tells you to jump into water, 100 will jump. He has vision, a philosophy. Even if he doesn't know specific things, he can find enough people who know better about those things. He is the kind of guy who'll have a million people follow him. In China, that kind of capability is very powerful. I saw his leadership: the guy can make it happen. You believe in the long term strength of local entrepreneurs. Amazon and Uber have big presence in India.

Do you still believe local champion will emerge?

In the next 10-20 years, there's not much the global guy can have an advantage in, over the local champion. In fact, the local has the advantage of knowing local culture. Global guys cannot change their platform easily according to each market. They have benefit of scale but that becomes their weakness.

Will local entrepreneurs be able to execute?

They can execute as they're very smart. Local entrepreneurs have more passion than vice presidents of global companies. You have seen failure like perhaps no businessman has seen, and come out of it with a bigger success.

The moment when you fail big, what do you tell yourself? What do you tell others whom you think you have failed?

I don't make excuses. When the difficulty is big, I say I will solve. Even if everybody leaves, I'll solve...as long as I can solve, I will revive. You can fail for many reasons. But once you try to make an excuse or accuse someone else, your mind stops thinking. I don't allow myself excuses. Whatever the reason, it's my responsibility.

What is the key difference between Chinese and Indian entrepreneurs?
Entrepreneurs across different nationalities are closer to each other than they are to non-entrepreneurs of their own countries. Entrepreneurs whether Indian, Chinese, American or Japanese have a strong shine in their eyes. The shine and sparkle in their eyes is stronger than it is in other people.

Who's the better entrepreneur between Bill Gates and Steve Jobs?
Both of them are geniuses and super smart. When Gates was active in business, he was the smartest; so focused that no company can surpass Microsoft. But in Steve's case --I knew him well, we became good friends when he was struggling to turn Apple around -he then was interested in internet but not really focused on it. At the time, he had not introduced iPhone. But definitely he is the one I admire most. I started meeting him almost every month; he was so focused, he already had cancer so he knew his life was limited. So whatever he did, he did not want to waste time and focused on the one thing that could change people's lifestyle. His concentration, the strength of his eyes: very different.

Anything he told you that stays in your head?
I gave him many ideas, he said no to most. He'd say many things himself and rule them out by himself. He was a minimalist. One solution, one answer -cut out every noise and go for the best. No compromise. He told me that Softbank logo is ugly and I must change it, if I wanted to do business with him. I changed the logo (current logo) which he liked.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


2.1. PM launches Start-up India movement, unveils action plan for encouraging Start-ups
Press Information Bureau | Jan. 18, 2016

New Delhi: The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today launched the Start-up India initiative in New Delhi. The launch by the Prime Minister this evening was preceded by a day-long workshop on various aspects of entrepreneurship.

The Prime Minister visited a virtual exhibition and interacted with Start-up entrepreneurs. 10 outstanding Startup innovators shared their thoughts and experiences before the Prime Minister delivered his address. He said that when he had launched the Start-up India Initiative on 15th August, the announcement had virtually gone unnoticed, but today it had registered with people.

He said successful start-ups are usually created by those who are driven by an idea, or an urge to solve a problem that people face. He said making money is not the primary objective, but is often a by-product. He said Start-up innovators are often driven by a sense of compassion for others.

The Prime Minister said he wishes to turn the youth of India from job-seekers to job-creators. He said if a Start-up can offer employment to even five people, it would be doing a great service to the nation. He mentioned some areas where youth innovators should focus, including crop wastage, and cyber security.

The Prime Minister unveiled the highlights of the Start-up Action Plan. He said a dedicated Start-up fund worth Rs. 10,000 crore will be created for funding of Start-ups. He said Start-ups will be exempted from paying income tax on their profit for the first three years. He said the Government is working on a simple exit policy for Start-ups. He also said the Government is working towards fast-tracking of Start-up patent applications.

He announced an eighty percent exemption in patent fee for Start-up businesses, and said a self-certification based compliance system for Start-ups would be introduced for 9 labour and environment laws. He said the Atal Innovation Mission will be launched to give a boost to innovation.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


2.2. Sebi works to deepen corporate, municipal bond markets
Livemint | Feb. 08, 2016

Mumbai: The capital markets regulator is working on several proposals to strengthen the corporate and municipal bond markets in India, according to three people familiar with the development.

These steps include allowing greater flexibility in using corporate bonds as collateral to borrow and encouraging local bodies to sell bonds to the public by putting in place bankruptcy procedures, they said, requesting anonymity.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (Sebi’s) attempt to deepen the corporate and municipal bond markets will help companies and local bodies raise capital from the public, reducing their reliance on banks, which have become risk-averse because of rising bad loans.

The cost of borrowing in the bond markets has fallen faster than bank lending rates, potentially making it more attractive for companies to raise funds from the markets.

“We have created a pipeline of steps that need to be undertaken to deepen the corporate bond market and promote trading on the exchange platform,” said a Sebi official—one of the three people cited above.

An email sent to the regulator on Thursday did not elicit a response.

The regulator, in consultations with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), is trying to address the lack of adequate liquidity in the corporate bond market through the fresh set of proposals.

As part of the plan, Sebi is once again proposing to introduce Collateralized Borrowing And Lending Obligations (CBLOs) for corporate bonds.

CBLOs allow you to borrow against an underlying security in an exchange-traded market. You can borrow for up to a maximum of one year in this market. Currently, only central government  securities are eligible to be used to borrow in this market. Changing the rules to allow corporate bonds as eligible securities will boost liquidity in the market.

The plan was first proposed by Sebi in 2013, but was deferred as RBI was uncomfortable with it. The corporate bond market falls under the jurisdiction of both regulators. Sebi is now working with RBI to see if concerns related to CBLOs linked to corporate bonds can be addressed. RBI, too, has been looking at ways to deepen the corporate bond market, RBI deputy governor H.R. Khan said at a conference in New Delhi on 5 February.

“An exchange-traded repo market, on the lines of Basket Repos or CBLO like in government bonds for corporate bonds on exchanges, could encourage borrowing and lending activity in corporate bonds as there would a central counter party,” said Ajay Manglunia, head of fixed income at Edelweiss Financial Services Ltd.

“The introduction of this mechanism would deepen and widen the corporate bond market and will increase refinancing activity.”

Sebi’s Corporate Bonds and Securitization Advisory Committee is likely to submit its report on this product shortly, said the second person cited above. Meanwhile, the regulator is also trying to remove hurdles that are preventing municipal bonds from taking off. Sebi notified regulations for listing and issuance of debt securities by local bodies in July, but there have been no issuances so far.

“Issues such as addressing bankruptcy of municipalities, cap on interest rates offered by municipal bonds and auditing practices of municipalities are understood to have been discussed with the finance ministry,” said the third person.

Municipal corporations may not have accounting and auditing standards that meet regulatory stipulations, which may make potential investors uncomfortable. There is also no clear mechanism to deal with the issue of bankruptcy of a municipal body. As part of its suggestions, Sebi has suggested to the finance ministry that a chapter on bankruptcy of municipalities be introduced in the proposed bankruptcy Bill.

The government is likely to take up the bankruptcy Bill in the budget session.

“The municipal bond market is clouded by state politics. The finances of various municipalities are not as well managed as a corporate. Subscribers of tax-free bonds are very conscious of quality of credit and the quality of credit in municipal bonds is still not up to the mark. These steps will help, but the market may not take-off till the fundamental issues are addressed,” said Manglunia.

In addition, Sebi also intends to make provisions for traders in the debt segment to provide market-making services in the corporate bond market. “Sebi has sought that RBI consider enabling trading members in the debt segment of stock exchanges to borrow funds to provide market making in the corporate bond market,” said the second person cited above.

“The proposal is under examination.”

Market-makers are brokers who take the risk of holding a certain number of shares with themselves to facilitate trading, in return for compensation.

Corporates have already been bypassing the banking sector for their borrowing needs. Indian banks have lost nearly 5 percentage points in market share to the bond market over the past two years, said a 12 January report from research house Ambit Capital.

The shift of borrowings towards the bond markets, which is detrimental to bank earnings, mirrors trends in more advanced markets.

“In developed countries and emerging markets, corporate bond markets have more than ~50% share in credit off-take versus merely 23% share in India,” the Ambit report said.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


3.1. In U-turn, Centre may allow FDI in multi-brand retail
The Hindu | Amiti Sen, New Delhi, Jan. 28, 2016

In a turnaround from its earlier protectionist stance on multi-brand retail, the BJP-led government is considering opening up the sector to foreign direct investment (FDI) and is trying to get all States on board.

The Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP), in the Ministry for Commerce and Industry, is also examining the option of excluding sensitive sectors, such as grocery, from foreign investments in order to protect small retailers and mom-and-pop stores from competition.

"BJP-ruled States as well as Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have expressed interest in allowing foreign investment in multi-brand retail. We are trying to get the consent of States,” a government official said.

Existing policy
The current FDI policy already has a provision for allowing 51 per cent FDI in the multi-brand sector as the BJP did not roll back the policy decision taken by the previous UPA government.

Instead, the ruling party discouraged fresh FDI proposals by declaring its opposition to allowing foreign investment in the sector through speeches and statements arguing that it would hurt small retailers. This argument also finds prominence in the BJP’s pre-poll manifesto.

But with changing “economic realities’’, the government’s stance is also going through a change.
“In the fast-growing retail sector, there is space for both large retail stores and the smaller mom-and-pop shops. The government plans to proceed with care to ensure that small businesses are not uprooted. If it comes to that, we will not allow FDI in some sensitive sectors,” the official said.

Sensitive sectors
While the DIPP is examining if there is a case to exclude sensitive sectors, such as grocery and food, the Food Processing Ministry recently wrote to the Prime Minister’s Office making a case for allowing FDI in the sector.
“We are still holding consultations on the matter. Nothing has been decided yet,” the official said.

Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has held a round of meeting with State industry ministers to get their views on this. While getting the nod of all the States is not mandatory for allowing FDI in a sector, retailers have to get a licence from a State under the Shops and Establishments Act to open outlets.

To attract foreign investments in manufacturing, it is important to open up the multi-brand retail sector as those who manufacture would also want an easy avenue to sell their products in the country, points out Arpita Mukherjee, professor, ICRIER.

“You cannot be part of the global value chain without opening up multi-brand retail because value chain means end-to-end,” she said.


3.2. Maharashtra government targets Rs 4-lakh crore ($56,7 bn) investments
Business Standard | Feb. 09, 2016

Mumbai: Maharashtra is targeting to bag Rs 4-lakh crore in investments during the maiden Make in India (MII) week to be held in the country's financial capital from Saturday. Nearly 8,000 Indian companies and multinational companies from 68 countries are expected to participate in the Make in India event.

The Tata group, Reliance Industries, JSW, GE, Boeing and JCB, among others, are the companies participating in the event. Apart from this, 49 nations and business delegations from 68 countries would also be present at the Bandra-Kurla Complex, where the event would be held between February 13 and 18. The Make in India centre, spread over 200,000 sq mt, will also accommodate 27 halls and pavilions for 11 focus sectors, 17 state exhibitions and several for other countries.

About 190 exhibitors would showcase manufacturing prowess across defence and aerospace, automobiles and auto components, chemicals and petrochemicals, construction, food processing, infrastructure, IT & electronics, industrial equipment and machinery, pharmaceuticals, textiles and MSME sectors. Some states, including Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, will also hold investor summits.

The department of industrial policy & production is the event's nodal ministry and Maharashtra government the host state.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the government would announce policies for ports, electronics and promotion of entrepreneurship among Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. "Our focus is on the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor, the multi-modal international cargo hub and airport at Nagpur and the textile sector. If we want to march on the path of development, we have to work together in agriculture, industry and the services sectors," he added.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


4.1. Cabinet approves formation of Joint Venture Companies with State Governments to mobilise resources for undertaking various rail infrastructure projects in the State
Press Information Bureau | Feb. 04, 2016

New Delhi: The Union Cabinet under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval for allowing the Ministry of Railways to form Joint Venture Companies with the State Governments to mobilize resources for undertaking various rail infrastructure projects in States. The Joint Venture Companies would be formed with equity participation of Ministry of Railways and concerned State Governments.

Each Joint Venture (JV) would have an initial paid up capital of Rs. 100 crores based on the quantum of projects to be undertaken. The Ministry of Railways’ initial paid-up capital will be limited to Rs. 50 crore for each State. Further infusion of fund/equity for the purpose of the projects shall be done after approval of the project and its funding at the level of appropriate competent authority.

The JV can also form project-specific SPVs with equity holding by other shareholders like Banks, ports, public sector undertakings, mining companies etc. The Joint Venture exercise would ensure greater participation of State Governments in implementation of Railway Projects both in terms of financial participation as well as decision making process. This will also facilitate in faster statutory approvals and land acquisition.

Besides travelling people, various cement, steel, power plants etc. would get the necessary rail link for transportation of their raw material and finished products.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


4.2. Govt racing to build highways: Nitin Gadkari
Livemint | Feb. 12, 2016

New Delhi: The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has kick-started construction of highways, resulting in reduced pressure on bank balance sheets, road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday.
Addressing Mint journalists at Mint Conversations (a platform where a special invitee interacts with Mint staff), Gadkari added the revival of investments in infrastructure—ports, inland waterways and highways sector— alone will contribute more than 2 percentage points to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the next two years and generate five million jobs.

“There were 384 highway projects worth Rs.3.80 trillion that were stuck when we took over. Now, only seven projects worth Rs.15,000 crore are left to be resolved,” he said, adding the pace of making highways has gone up from 2km a day to 18km a day and he is hopeful of achieving a target of 21km a day.

As of end-September, the total stressed assets in the Indian banking system, including bad debts and restructured assets, stood at 14% of all advances. For state-run banks, this number was much higher at 17%.

According to the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) financial stability report released in December 2015, as of June end, while the transport sector’s share in total non-performing loans (NPAs) was 3.78%, its share in restructured advances was 14.64%.

Gadkari said the ministry is working on some of the concerns expressed by banks.

“There has been some positive movement in the roads sector. However, over-leveraging by some large firms remains a credit concern,” said Vibha Batra, senior vice-president at rating agency ICRA Ltd. “Steel and the power sectors continue to be stressed,” she said.

Outlining his vision for the roads sector, Gadkari said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given me a 400-day challenge to complete highway projects and widening of roads, which I have accepted. You will be astonished to know that in the country with 52 lakh km of road network; only 96,000km is under national highways.

Moreover, this 96,000km, which is just 2% of the road network, is catering to 40% of traffic,” he said.

After Gadkari took charge, the roads ministry has approved the construction and widening of 1.52 lakh km falling under the national highway category. The target for 2015-16 is 2 lakh km, which the government is confident of achieving by March.

The minister reiterated his position on auto fuel norms BS-VI (Bharat Stage-IV) stating that he was in talks with the petroleum minister to advance the supply of the new grade of fuel for metros such as Delhi; the target date is 1 April 2020.

“While our focus would be on bringing BS-VI fuel as early as possible, we are focusing on innovative technologies such as electric cars and are in talks with Tesla to bring their products into the Indian market as soon as possible. Electric vehicles are the future and am happy to share that firms like Mahindra have also started to invest in developing electric cars,” said Gadkari.

Disclosing his ministry’s plan for toll roads in the country, the minister said the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is going to tie up with Axis Bank Ltd and ICICI Bank Ltd for electronic tolling, where stickers are affixed to cars and the toll will be automatically deducted from the commuter’s bank account. “People in India need to understand that if they want good services, they have to pay for it.”

He added that there is a specific formula used for calculating toll taxes and that the government has no plans to waive off toll taxes. However, his ministry has sent a note to the Union cabinet on rationalizing the toll structure.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


4.3. Nitin Gadkari unveils grand plan for logistics hubs and ports
Business Standard | Feb. 17, 2016

Mumbai: Minister of Roads and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday announced policies for developing logistics hubs using 350 ring roads; development of 2,000 ports along 14,000 km of coast and introduction of e-tolling across 360 toll plazas.

Gadkari told reporters at the Make in India Week the money was not a problem in rolling out the project but issues relating to the system needed to be speedily sorted. The minister also said he hoped the finance minister would allocate Rs 65,000 crore for roads, highways, ports and shipping in the coming Budget from the present Rs 45,000 crore.

On the logistic hub, Gadkari said the objective was to reduce logistics cost (currently 18 per cent of the total). It was eight per cent in China and eight to 10 per cent in European countries. “The proposed logistic hubs will house godowns, storages, pre-cooling centres, cold storages and residential units. They will be spread over 2,000 to 3,000 acres along the 350 ring roads,” he said.

Besides, Gadkari said his ministry had firmed up plan for developing of 2,000 ports in five years. “The tenders will be issued by the end of 2016 for the Wadhavan (Maharashtra), Colachel (Tamil Nadu) and Sagar (West Bengal) ports. This apart, the ministry will spend Rs 18,000 crore on the expansion of 12 ports.”

Funds won’t be a problem, he said. Government undertakings Shipping Corporation of India, Dredging Corporation and Cochin Shipyards together posted yearly profit of Rs 6,000 crore, and would contribute. The rest would be raised from banks, financial institutions and through multiple instruments.

On the introduction of e-tolling, Gadkari said it would be introduced at 360 toll plazas on the national highways. This would help avoid manual toll payment. A company of two banks and a government undertaking has been formed for the purpose of e-toll collection.

Further, Gadkari said his ministry has taken 21 decisions to expedite the development of roads and highways across the country. “The number of stressed projects have been drastically brought down to 41 projects from 384 projects worth Rs 3.80 lakh crore in May 2014, when the BJP-led government took over. Now, only seven projects worth Rs 20,000 crore are stressed ones.”

According to Gadkari, road projects worth Rs 1.52 lakh crore would be launched after March-April.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


5. EDF unit forms Rs 7,500 crore ($1,1 bn) JV with Indian group for developing wind assets
Livemint | Feb. 11, 2016

Mumbai: Global renewable energy company EDF Energies Nouvelles, a unit of French electric utility EDF Group, on Wednesday announced a joint venture with India’s SITAC Group for developing wind assets in India, marking its foray into India’s growing clean energy sector.

Under the equal joint venture, known as SITAC Management and Development Pvt. Ltd, the two companies plan to put up 1,000 megawatts (MW) of wind projects across India with an investment of Rs.7,500 crore over the next three to five years, the companies said in a joint statement.

Under the agreement, the two companies first plan to complete four projects in Gujarat with a total installed capacity of 142 MW by the end of this calendar year through a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd, the statement said.

EDF Energies is a leading green electricity producer with 7,903 MW of gross installed capacity under wind and solar energy projects. It has operations in Europe and North America, and plans to grow its presence in emerging markets such as Brazil, South Africa and India.

SITAC, founded by Malvinder Singh, entrepreneur, has interests in real estate, infrastructure and renewable energy across Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The company has been operating wind energy assets in India since 2007.

India has a target of installing 100 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacity and 60 GW of wind power capacity by 2022.

NuPower Renewables Pvt. Ltd, which is backed by Singapore’s Accion Capital Management Pte Ltd, Goldman Sachs-backed ReNew Power Ventures Pvt. Ltd, Morgan Stanley-owned Continuum Wind Energy Ltd, JP Morgan-backed Leap Green Energy Pvt. Ltd and Welspun Renewables Ltd are the prominent wind energy producers in India.

Suzlon Energy Ltd, Gamesa Wind Turbine Pvt. Ltd, WinWinD, Inox Wind Ltd, ReGen Powertech Pvt. Ltd are the leading wind equipment makers in the country.

India’s wind energy market is expected to grow at an annual rate of 20% over the next five years, helped by the government’s initiatives, restoration of fiscal incentives, and entry of large investors attracted by the returns on investment, which is at least 14% in IRR (internal rate of return) terms, according to a 17 December report by Maybank Kim Eng Securities.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


- AGRICULTURE, FISHING & RURAL DEVELOPMENT

6.1. Pepsi, Monsanto to set up units in Maharashtra
Business Standard | Feb. 17, 2016

Mumbai: Pepsi will set up one more unit in Maharashtra to make mango and pomegranate juices, and also an orange-based citrus juice. The investment is estimated at around Rs 500 crore.

The company has not yet selected a project site. But, sources said the unit was likely to come up in underdeveloped Vidarbha or Marathwada. The company already has a facility in Nanded district.

Biotechnology giant Monsanto said it will establish a seed unit in Deulgaon Raja, Buldhana district of Vidarbha region.Both the companies disclosed their investment plans in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who chaired a meeting with the representatives of the US-India Business Council and the US Chamber of Commerce at the Make in India Week venue on the MMRDA grounds, BKC.

Fadnavis told Business Standard: “Both Pepsi and Monsanto have zeroed in on Maharashtra. They are working out further details about investments.”

Pepsi and Monsanto will soon provide details with regard to the proposed production capacity.

Pepsi’s announcement comes after Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages, Jain Irrigation and the department of agriculture and marketing of Maharashtra signed agreements last Saturday to set up a juice manufacturing facility in Vidarbha to support farmers growing oranges.

The project would give higher value to orange growers and generate gainful employment. The project is expected to benefit 5,000 farmers, with an average landholding of two acres each. Fadnavis said US companies have evinced interest to participate in the development of 10 Smart Cities in Maharashtra and also get involved in projects related to infrastructure, food processing and agriculture projects.

“However, US companies raised their concerns about the existing system of awarding a project tender to only the lowest bidder. They were told the state government has already taken a decision to go in for the Swiss challenge system. The only condition is that the entire process should be transparent and fair,” he added.

Under the Swiss challenge, a private participant can send a project proposal and even draft contract terms for undertaking a project initiated by the government.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


6.2. Coke to set up plant in MP industrial area
Business Standard | Jan. 18, 2016

Bhopal: Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages has said it will invest Rs 750 crore in phases as the Madhya Pradesh government develops its first industrial area in public private partnership on 679 hectares in Babai village of Hoshangabad district, 72 km south of Bhopal.

The area is to be developed, operated and maintained by a private developer. The Audyogik Kendra Vikas Nigam (AKVN), Bhopal, had to call for parties a second time earlier this month because there were no takers the first time around.

The Babai-Mohasa industrial area has been carved out of a government-owned agriculture farm, to which the previous Congress government also tried to attract investment.

The farm came into existence in the 1970s to teach farmers advanced techniques. Spread across 3,251 acres, the farm incurred heavy losses, except in the initial years. In 2012, the Madhya Pradesh Cabinet decided to hand over 1,600 acres of the farm to the department of industry.

"We have invited private partners for the second time to develop the area. The area will be developed, operated and maintained by the private player for a period of 15 years. There will be no hazardous industry and there will be a zero-discharge policy. No company will be allowed to discharge effluents as the area is in the vicinity of the Narmada river," J N Vyas, managing director of AKVN, Bhopal, told Business Standard.

"Coca-Cola [Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages] has been issued a letter of intent for allotment of 44 hectares (110 acres). The company will be allocated land separately," he added.

"Recently, we have been issued a letter of intent allotting a land parcel of 110 acres. We will invest Rs 750 crore in a phased manner. In all, we have plans to set up six bottling lines," the company said.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


7.1. Foodgrain output estimated higher at 253 million tonnes
The Hindu | 16 Feb. 2016

Barring wheat and pulses, production of other crops is seen lower in 2015-16

New Delhi | February 15: Total foodgrain production during 2015-16, estimated at 253.16 million tonnes (mt), has been higher by 1.14 mt over the production of 252.02 mt during 2014-15. This is despite a setback in Kharif crops due to deficient monsoon and Rabi crops due to shortage of water in reservoirs and a relatively warmer winter.

However, the total production of rice during 2015-16 is estimated lower at 103.61 mt – down from 105.48 mt during 2014-15, while oilseeds output has been estimated to decline by 1.17 mt over last year’s production of 26.34 mt, according to the 2nd Advance Estimates for 2015-16 released by the Agriculture Ministry here on Monday.

Coarse cereal production is also estimated to be lower at 38.40 mt (42.86 mt).

Sugarcane production is also estimated to be lower by 15.95 mt at 346.39 mt compared with the same period last year, while cotton production is estimated at 30.69 million bales (of 170 kg each) against 34.81 million bales during 2014-15. Jute production is estimated at 9.89 million bales (of 180 kg each), marginally lower than 10.62 million bales produced during 2014-15.

However, wheat production is estimated higher at 93.82 mt (86.53 mt). This is also higher by 2.29 mt than its five-year average production, the Ministry said. “Total pulses production of 17.33 mt during 2015-16 is marginally higher than the previous year’s production of 17.15 mt,” the Ministry said.


7.2. India second largest fruit producer in world
Times of India | Jan. 19, 2016

New Delhi: The green revolution of the 1960s and 1970s ended chronic food deficits and while cereals still command the attention of policy makers, fruit production has surged impressively, making India the second largest global producer behind China.

Annual growth in horticulture has seen fruit production grow faster than vegetables though the latter constitute the largest segment of this sector of agriculture. The stellar performance of fruits has attracted attention of statisticians with the agriculture ministry's 'horticultural statistics at a glance 2015' noting that India was making its presence felt as the second largest producer of vegetables and fruit.

"Grapes occupy the premier position in exports with 107.3 thousand tonnes valued at Rs 1,086 crore in 2014-15. Other fruits which attained significant position in exports are banana and mango," the handbook said. Robust growth of horticulture indicates a growing demand within the country too. There is scope for further growth as while India lies second in the list of major fruit producing countries featuring China, the US, Brazil, Spain, Mexico, Italy, Indonesia, the Philippines and Turkey, its productivity lags most of these countries.

India's success in horticulture lies in small towns and districts. In 2012-13, Chittoor and Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh, Baramula in Jammu and Kashmir, Nalgonda in Telangana, Sagar and Shahdol in Madhya Pradesh, Darjeeling in West Bengal and Pune, Aurangabad, Jalgaon and Sangli in Maharashtra shone on India's fruit map.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


8.1. Govt to invest in scheme to check power wastage in farm sector
Livemint | Jan.19, 2016

New Delhi: Power minister Piyush Goyal on Monday said the government would invest in an ambitious energy-efficient irrigation scheme, which entails procuring 30 million sophisticated pump sets for farmers, the cost of which would be recovered through savings in the electricity consumed.

Officials privy to the plan said the scheme would cost about Rs.75,000 crore over the next three to four years.

“This cost could be recovered by the end of the scheme period as the 37% annual reduction in power consumption to be achieved by farmers using the new equipment will lead to a cost saving of Rs.15,000 crore a year for power distribution companies and about Rs.5,000 crore for states that subsidize electricity to farmers,” said an official at Energy Efficiency Services Ltd, (EESL). EESL is a joint venture of NTPC Ltd, India’s largest power producer, Power Finance Corp. Ltd, Rural Electrification Corp. Ltd and Powergrid Corp. of India Ltd.

Goyal described the scheme as a “self-financing” one. The central government will initially fund the scheme so that farmers do not have to pay, except for a very small amount.

At an interaction with industry in New Delhi, the minister asked officials to work with pumpset makers to finalize the financing model and asked producers to scale up operations so that competitive bids for procurement could be issued shortly.

“We intend to replace two crore pumps connected to the grid and another one crore running on diesel. The scheme could save about 46 billion kWh of power a year and help in creating 20 lakh jobs,” said Goyal. Every unit of power saved is equal to 1.3 unit of power generated, the minister added.

State government officials present at a meeting between EESL and pump makers sounded optimistic.
“We welcome the project. It would cost Rs.7,500 crore for implementation in Andhra Pradesh,” said K. Ranganatham, advisor to the energy department of the Andhra Pradesh government.

He said the state will go ahead with power sector reforms and that it had already given in-principle approval for taking over the debt of power distribution companies (discoms) under the Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (Uday) proposed by the power ministry. The state will take over about Rs.40,000 crore of debt owed by power distribution companies.

Goyal said that many farmers use pumpsets as old as about 40 years, which reduce agriculture productivity and increase the power subsidy burden of state governments.

If domestic companies are unable to come up with energy-efficient pumpsets at attractive prices, the government will not hesitate to consider imports, he added. One industry executive said it would take about a year for domestic producers to scale up operations to meet the demand.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


8.2. Bigger rural outlay to power growth: FM
The Hindu | Feb. 2, 2016

Barely three weeks ahead of Budget 2016-17, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley indicated that the government could increase budgetary allocations for rural and social schemes like the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act.

The allocation may be even higher than the ₹35,000 crore allocated in 2015-16.
“One engine to grow further, despite the global slowdown that has also impacted our exports, can be by improving the rural economy. The Centre and State governments can do this through a rural push by measures such as rural electrification, roads and irrigation,” Jaitley said on Tuesday at the MGNREGA Sammelan to mark 10 years of the scheme.

‘No spending cuts’
He also stressed that the Centre would not resort to expenditure cuts to meet the fiscal deficit targets as it affected overall economic growth. “In the recent past, there was hardly any year when a major portion of the Budget estimate for expenditure was not cut; especially in the months of November and December… growth rate was also impacted. But this will be the first year when allocation to developmental works will not be cut and more than the Budget estimate will be spent,” he stressed.

Congress attack
The Congress party, which claims the rural employment scheme as its flagship programme, had taken a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, stating that he had come around from a position of criticising the scheme to celebrating it. Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said “Unfortunately, his (Modi’s) actions of neglect speak louder than his words…the scheme has languished under the current government.”
While allaying concerns that the scheme may be scrapped, Jaitley, however, noted that schemes cannot be cast in stone and need to be reviewed. “When a government scheme runs for many years, an attitude of indifference develops towards it. A kind of indifference towards it was growing by 2013-14, when the scheme had entered its seventh and eighth years,” he said.

Jaitley noted that two consecutive years of bad monsoon had affected farm sector productivity and demand. He said the government needs to introduce as many such measures as possible to not help the people in these areas andalso boost the economy.


9.1. ‘Dirty, but not impure’
The Hindu | Feb. 12, 2016 | Bhavya Dore

Business Line Points to ponder: We need to balance the need for dams and hydro-electric power projects, canals for irrigation and the human, cultural and religious needs, says Diana Eck. Photo: Paul Noronha Diana Eck, expert on India’s rivers and global religion, speaks on the message of Swachh Bharat and the testy matter of eating beef in the country Harvard professor Diana Eck is dumbfounded. She happens to be visiting one of India’s states that prohibit the consumption and sale of beef.

“It’s astonishing that a government would pass that kind of law about what people eat,” she says at a meeting held at the Royal Bombay Yacht Club in Mumbai. “Especially in a nation as pluralistic as India... some people are vegetarian, some are non-vegetarian. I mean, this is not an area of personal life that government should be intruding on.”

Her students, she says, brush off the new laws as something that won’t really be implemented in earnestness. Is that true, she wants to know.

In town to deliver a lecture, Eck — a global authority on religion and the author of books on Banaras, India’s rivers and its geographies — is no stranger to India. She first visited the country in the 1960s and has since returned several times, including a visit in 2013 to lead a study tour of the Kumbh Mela.

The Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies refuses to be drawn into discussing the usefulness of the uniform civil code [“I’m going to leave it to all of you for now,” she laughs] or whether the air has become more polarised [“I don’t sense this, but I’ve heard this”]. But she is happy to discuss threadbare what it means to be secular, particularly in India, where the term refers to an equal treatment of all religions, rather than the western conception of religion as separate from the State. So, is that under threat?

“It may be,” she says. “People do say that.” She continues, “I think with a government that has many of its followers saying that all Indians are originally Hindu in the broadest possible way, that does place secularism under threat. Secularism isn’t non-religion because India is a very religious country in so many ways. But secularism as the equal treatment of all religions… that’s very important.”

Eck has previously received the National Humanities Medal in the US and served as president of the American Academy of Religion. She has also, since 1991, led the Pluralism Project, an initiative aimed at understanding her country’s burgeoning diversity. “And that expanding diversity is very good for a country of immigrants (except for the native people, who are themselves diverse),” she says. “The US is a newly and profoundly diverse nation in ways we notice more than in India.”

But it’s a diversity that’s increasingly under attack from the Right, led in no small measure by presidential aspirant Donald Trump. “This is just absurd, the idea that someone harks back to nativist rhetoric,” she says.

She is not entirely surprised when the topic of ‘ghar wapsi’ and the reconversion-to-Hinduism debate is raised.
“It’s not entirely new,” she says, pointing to similar episodes in the 1920s and the tensions as a result within the Indian freedom movement. On whether the State should have a role to play in this sort of thing, she is categorical, “The government really shouldn’t have a role in who should convert or reconvert… The real issue is how much coercion is levied.”

Scheduled to later deliver the Vasant J Sheth Memorial lecture on India’s sacred rivers, Eck, who has closely studied Banaras, says she found the city’s Assi Ghat “better than ever” on her current visit. “There is certainly an effort to underline the message [of the countrywide Swachh Bharat cleanliness movement],” she says. “The message is itself important. It can become too much of a slogan, I imagine; so it needs to have something behind it.”
Cleaning up the Ganga is not a new idea. Thirty years ago, one of Eck’s teachers launched an initiative to do just this. It is inexplicable why rivers — one of Eck’s areas of expertise — are so poorly looked after and massively polluted despite being considered sacred. “I think people, here and elsewhere, have a divided consciousness,” she says. “‘Yes, it’s a sacred river, [but] no, its sacredness does not diminish because we pollute it’.”

During her lecture, she is careful to emphasise that rivers need to be understood and approached holistically. “You need people on both sides,” she says, meaning those who are scientifically astute as well as those who can understand the sanctity of the river and the significance it holds. “We need to balance the need for dams and hydro-electric power projects, canals for irrigation and the human, cultural and religious needs.”

She segues into the poetic when speaking of these majestic water bodies: “the strong liquid fingers of the Ganga running through solid rocks”, the river not “simply as a site for a pleasant outing… but an integral and vital theatre of daily life”, the rivers of India as “its temples, its cathedrals”.

And, yet, the ultimate contradiction: where the divine and pristine clash against industrial effluents and clogged estuaries. “Can something be gandagi (polluting) at the same time as being pure?” she asks. “That is a religious discourse of purity. It may look dirty but it’s not impure.”


9.2. PM calls for raising awareness of crop insurance scheme
The Hindu, Jan 31, 2016 | Aditi Nigam

With rural distress looming large, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called for linking at least 50 per cent of the country’s farmers in the next two-three years with the newly announced crop insurance scheme.

In 2016’s first ‘Mann Ki Baat’ monthly radio broadcast on Sunday to the nation, Modi touched upon varying topics such as raising awareness about the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, the potential of the Start-up India scheme, popularising Khadi and the International Fleet Review to be soon held in Visakhapatnam.

He also announced that ‘Mann Ki Baat’ would soon be available on mobile phones in various regional languages as well.

“The crop insurance scheme has been made so easy with technological inputs. Now, help will be given even if something happens within 15 days of harvest,” he said, seeking public help to raise awareness about the scheme.

Modi said the biggest offer in this ‘gift’ to farmers was that the premium rate had been kept “so low”. The rate for Kharif crop has been kept at 2 per cent, while for Rabi crop it is 1.5 per cent, he said, adding “If any farmer is deprived of these benefits, will he not suffer losses?”

Start-ups
Referring to the Start-Up India scheme announced on January 16, Modi recounted that “lakhs of people registered for the programme though not everyone could participate”, saying that the programme helped in clearing the air over the general perception that start-ups meant “very sophisticated and IT-related businesses''.

“IT-related start-ups are only a small part of this scheme,” he said, adding that the possibilities, and requirements were immense, citing the example of two youths in the Northeast who were working on start-ups related to herbal and organic farming and were involved in global marketing of their produce.

Khadi goes solar In remembrance of Mahatma Gandhi’s death anniversary on January 30, the Prime Minister talked about the “emotional’ identity that Khadi held in Indian minds. He said connecting ‘charkhas’ to solar energy as part of technology upgradation had been successful in raising the production of Khadi fabric and improving its quality.

Fleet review
The Prime Minister said it was a matter of pride that India was hosting the International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam from February 4-8. “The whole world will be arriving here as our guests…. It is an attempt to synergise our military power with that of the world,” he said, adding that warships and naval ships from several countries will be docking on Indian shores.


10.1. Mother Dairy to set up food, vegetable processing plant in Ranchi
The Hindu | Feb. 11, 2016

Mother Dairy Fruit and Vegetable Pvt Ltd today announced setting up a 25,000-tonne per year integrated food and vegetable (F&V) processing plant in Ranchi at an estimated expenditure of Rs 75.65 crore.

On completion, this would be Safal’s first plant in the eastern region and its second across the country, the company said in a release.

The first phase of the project that includes a freezing line is expected to be operational by December 2016 while the pulp and concentrate processing line will be operational a year later.

Mother Dairy, a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) currently operates one F&V processing plant at Bengaluru which has a capacity of 15,000-18,000 tonnes per year.

The Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Raghubar Das, laid the foundation stone for the proposed integrated plant for food and vegetable processing to be constructed in the Nagdi Block of Ranchi by the company.

“With huge production of fruits and vegetables, Jharkhand has immense potential for food processing.

Through this state-of-the-art facility we will strive to explore better opportunities for almost 50,000 farmers and their produce,” S. Nagarajan, Managing Director, MDFVPL, said as per a release issued by the company.


10.2. India to have 5% ethanol blended petrol by Sept 2016: Pradhan
The Hindu, Feb 11, 2016 | Debabrata Das

Public sector oil marketing firms will procure 120 crore litres of ethanol to reach the target of 5 per cent blending for petrol by September 2016, which is the end of the crop year 2015-16.

“Last year, we procured about 67 crore litres. But this year we will get 120 crore litres and maybe even higher.
This would help in about 5 per cent blending for petrol. For several years we were stuck at 1-2 per cent but this year we will achieve the target,” said Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Petroleum and Natural Gas, after inaugurating a national seminar on ethanol.

Pradhan said that in States such as Uttar Pradesh, the blending levels can go up to 10 per cent which would benefit the farmers.

“PSUs are in the process of increasing the storage capacity for ethanol. This year we have also started procuring bio-diesel. Out of 85 crore litres that was tendered for procurement, 4 crore litres have come in already. In the next step, we want farmers to produce ethanol from different feedstock like wheat straw, rice straw, corn straw and others,” Pradhan said.

Currently, the production cost of ethanol is ₹42 a litre. Asked whether at current crude oil prices ethanol blending makes sense, Pradhan said, “The Government policy can’t be set on spot prices. Technology drives prices down and we will see the same here.”

After discussions with the Automotive Research Association of India, it has been found that blending can be raised till 15-20 per cent for both ethanol in petrol and bio-diesel in regular diesel without a major change in existing car engines, Pradhan said.

“For agricultural water pumps, the blending can even be 100 per cent of bio-diesel,” he added.

The Minister said that International Energy Agency estimates India’s crude oil imports to rise to 550 million tonnes by 2040 and increasing use of bio-fuels will help reduce dependence on imports as well as benefit the farmers.



- INDUSTRY, MANUFACTURE


11.1. Auto Expo to feature record launches and clean vehicles
Business Standard | Feb. 02, 2016

New Delhi: As many as 650,000-700,000 visitors are expected to visit the biennial Auto Expo in Greater Noida, making it Asia’s largest auto show. Some of world’s major vehicle manufacturers will show or launch as many as 85 passenger cars, sports utility vehicles (SUVs), two-wheelers and commercial vehicles at the event, nearly twice compared to 2012 and five more than 2014.

Over 22 passenger and commercial vehicle makers and 18 two- and three-wheeler makers will take part in the Expo, which will be thrown open to the general public this Friday.

While the auto industry is upbeat about the event and is putting its best foot forward, demand in showrooms is bleak. Auto sales grew just 1.3 per cent in the April-December period on the back of multiple launch failures and continued high discount levels.

Recent rulings over diesel vehicle sales and bringing forward of stringent emission norms — both of which were business negative for vehicle makers — has defused enthusiasm to some extent. “We do not know who is making the decisions and who should we be listening to – the ministry or the courts,” a senior executive of a Mumbai-based company had said.

But with just 15 Indians in every 1,000 owning a car (compared with 40 in China and 700 in Europe) manufacturers cannot ignore the market despite the adversities. According to Ford Motor Company’s calculations, India is going to be the world’s third-biggest automobile market by 2020 with sales of seven million units per annum.

Manufacturers are driving into uncharted territories. For example, Maruti Suzuki — the country’s largest car maker — will make its entry into the compact sports utility vehicle (SUV) segment, an area which has seen robust growth in the last two years. Maruti will launch the sub-4 metre SUV Vitara Brezza that will challenge the Ford EcoSport and the Mahindra TUV3OO.

Unlike the passenger car segment where it has defended a market share of 53 per cent despite stiff competition, the company is a late entrant into the utility vehicle space. However Maruti’s focus wont deviate from the small car segment entirely as a new addition would be made with the launch of the Ignis, a compact hatchback slightly bigger than the Celerio. The Expo will be the biggest and most crucial for Tata Motors as it readies the showcase of more than two dozen products and concepts across passenger and commercial categories making it the widest display at the event.

Some recent setbacks notwithstanding, Tata Motors will unveil four new products, including two cars and two utility vehicles (UVs) in the passenger car category. These will be the Zica (hatchback), a compact sedan based on the Zica, Hexa and Nexon (both UVs).

Chrysler’s iconic SUV brand Jeep will finally mark its entry into India after a delay of nearly two years. Italian car maker Fiat, which owns Chrysler, will launch two models, the Wrangler and the Grand Cherokee at the Expo.

French car maker Renault will display new derivatives of the hugely successful, SUV-style compact car Kwid alongside an updated version of the Duster SUV. Like Maruti, Honda too will enter the compact SUV segment with the BRV, a seven-seater people carrier. However the Honda will be bigger than the Brezza and will instead compete against the Renault Duster and Hyundai Creta.

Other interesting launches at the event will be the Volkswagen Ameo (a compact sedan), Datsun Redi-Go, Mercedes-Benz S Cabriolet and GLC, a new multi-purpose vehicle from Toyota and the Mahindra XUV Aero.

The show-stopper among the two-wheeler companies will be Honda, which is going to showcase a new secret vehicle that is for the time being called NAVI. A total of six products — four refreshed and two new products — will be launched alongside four concepts, by the company, the second largest two-wheeler seller in India.

Two-wheeler market leader Hero Motocorp will also display a string of products that could include performance bikes, new scooters and clean-tech models such as electric hybrids. The company is desperate to increase its share in the burgeoning scooter segment where it has a share of 15 per cent while Honda has a lion’s share of 56 per cent.

TVS Motors will showcase its first product born out of its partnership with German giant BMW whereas Japanese companies Yamaha and Suzuki will unveil new motorcycles and scooters. Mahindra will display an electric scooter, which is already on sale in the US.

In the light of increased awareness for clean air, especially in the national capital region, alternate fuel and low emission technology such as all-electric, hybrid, fuel cell and CNG/LPG will take centre stage across almost every stall of participating companies.

Toyota Kirloskar, Maruti, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland to name a few, will be showcasing not just hybrid and electric cars and SUVs but heavy duty buses and light trucks which also run on such clean fuel technology.

With the rise in threats of terrorist attacks, the Auto Expo will have a three-layer security check. The first layer will largely comprise of traffic police while the state police on special duty will take care of the second layer.

The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) would handle the security of the innermost area of the venue. Xray baggage scanners, dog squads and woman constables would also be present.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


11.2. India to play key role in emerging market products & strategy: Jurgen Stackmann, Volkswagen
Economic Times | Feb. 05, 2016

New Delhi: After being buffeted by the diesel gate storm in the US and elsewhere, Volkswagen has flagged off a major restructuring exercise that includes decentralising the group's functions. Volkswagen's new thrust on emerging markets and regions will see India as a major gainer, says Jurgen Stackmann, board member and head of sales and marketing at Volkswagen Passenger Cars. In an interview with ET's Ketan Thakkar and Nabeel Khan, Stackmann said that with more focus on the region, India can play a role in defining the German carmaker's emerging market products and strategy.

Edited Excerpt:

2015 has been an eventful year for Volkswagen. What is the way forward?

Volkswagen globally did enjoy great first three quarters, and (then) had some trouble to keep the momentum (because of the diesel gate scandal). The same was the case in India. Michael Mayer and his team achieved 18% growth in the first three quarters, but lost some of the momentum in the fourth quarter. Overall, the year for the Indian operation was very strong. We had a good dealer meeting yesterday, they were happy with the profitability of their operation. They have quite a positive outlook for 2016, with our settlement (on diesel gate) with authorities. South America is our only concern as the market is falling. And the US is a unique case; we need to still address it.

How important is your new entry sedan Ameo?

We are counting a lot in India for Ameo, our first fully India car. I think it sends a very strong signal in many regards from Volkswagen here in India. We are a young brand. I think we are still learning, as to what the brand means for Indian customers — they love German engineering, they love German quality, and they love us for being the most accessible German premium brand. But we need to learn as to making our vehicle concept work, tailored for the customer need, without compromising on our standards. Ameo is the first clear sign that we are moving in that direction.

Do you expect India to be one of the big markets for Volkswagen?

Clearly, the potential in India is there; it is now very stable and growth outlook for 2016 is positive. We believe Indian market can reach a size of 3 million cars in due time, depending on the political stability and continued focus on economic measures. I believe India has a far bigger role to play for us in network of creating vehicles for economy markets around the globe. There is a big amount of capacity and capability in India to help us along the way. To create vehicles for customer needs that not only fits India but also other Asian markets, Africa and South America at the same time. India has a bigger role to play beyond India itself going forward.

Could India help you define future emerging market car?

India is a hub of knowledge in the network of economy market where Volkswagen actually has a weak share. Our share is very strong in Europe, China and North America; we are still somewhat struggling as a brand in regions where price levels are much lower and we have to learn to adopt in a Volkswagen way. We are not giving up our DNA; that is something we are preserving — whenever you buy a Volkswagen, you should have a concept of great quality, durability, fit and safe, that is something we should never compromise. However, we need to learn to strengthen our position in these markets and I think India and the capabilities we have in India should be a very helpful element in getting closer to our solution. But it is a network of Latin American, Indian and South African operations together that should design the concept for the future.

Can these market come together for an appropriate solution?

We have started the regionalisation move in the Volkswagen brand only two and half months ago. I believe that you need to look at combined potential to really come to a right solution and decide which is the best place to localise, best place to engineer, best place to think logically through the needs of the consumers; some of that might be in India, some of that might be in other operations, but I think, there is a clear role for India in this concept.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


12.1. Aequs acquires SiRA Group to boost its reach in Europe
Livemint | Feb. 02, 2016

Mumbai: Aequs Pvt. Ltd, a Karnataka-based aerospace component maker, has acquired European manufacturing company SiRA Group for an undisclosed amount in a bid to boost its reach in that continent and double its revenue to $100 million by the end of this financial year.

Aravind Melligeri, chairman and chief executive officer at Aequs, said that SiRA earns an annual revenue of $50 million and the acquisition will complement 
the company’s Indian aerospace manufacturing capabilities; SiRA is focussing on early product development.
The acquisition will also enhance Aequs’s proximity to its key customers in Europe, Melligeri said.

SiRA Group operates across five sites and offers expertise in the areas of precision machining, assembly, and testing of engine, landing gear and aircraft actuation components, as well as welding and fabrication of aircraft assemblies.

Key customers of SiRA Group include Dassault Aviation SA, Safran SA and United Technologies Corp.

Aerospace Systems.
Indian aerospace and defence will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 13.6% to become a $70 billion market by 2018, according to consultant Grant Thornton India Llp. “The acquisition of SiRA brings highly complementary capabilities to our global aerospace ecosystem along with opp-ortunities to expand our relationship with our key customers in Europe”, said Aequs Aerospace president Walt Sirmans. “Expanding our value chain and local and global reach in France, combined with our facilities in Texas and India, provides for significant value creation and strategic customer accessibility,” Sirmans said.

In 2015, Aequs became the first Indian aerospace manufacturing company to expand into North America when it acquired Paris-based T&K Machine.

Melligeri said that the acquisition of SiRA strengthens Aequs’s ability to deliver increasing value to its European customers with strong collaboration between its Indian and French operations.

“This is a strategic step that will significantly enhance the future growth of the SiRA operating units. Aerospace is an increasingly globalized industry and SiRA will now be better able to adapt to its major clients’ expectations with the global offering built by Aequs,” said Alain Blévin, majority shareholder and president of SiRA Group.
Aequs, founded in 1997 as an engineering services firm called QuEST Global Manufacturing based out of the US, started manufacturing aerospace and defence components in 2006.

It has a presence in the aero structures (wings, air frames, etc.), aero systems (hydraulic valve actuators, etc.) and landing-gear segments of aerospace manufacturing, and supplies to all major aerospace and aviation companies.

Last year, Melligeri said Aequs had earmarked an investment of $100 million to expand into more segments, set up factorie
s in the US and Europe and triple its manufacturing capacity to generate revenue of $200 million by 2020.
Aequs is focusing on precision machining, sheet-metal fabrication, assembly, forging and special processing for the aerospace, automotive and oil & gas industries.

The company’s customers include the likes of Airbus SAS, Robert Bosch GmbH and Eaton Corporation Plc.
The company has a special economic zone at Belagavi in Karnataka.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


12.2. Boeing will invest billions of dollars in India
HT Business | Feb. 03, 2016

New Delhi: Boeing’s investment in India will go beyond money. The US aircraft manufacturer is also looking to invest in capabilities, infrastructure, and partnerships to enable aerospace to be an economic growth engine, Dennis A Muilenburg, president and CEO, Boeing, tells HT in an interview.

Edited excerpts.

On the Make in India initiative Boeing is engaged in a long-term commitment to build aerospace capacity here in India. The Make in India strategy is important to us and it is something that we have internalised. We are building capabilities of supply chain depth here for the long run. Our intent is to invest in a way that builds talent base, supply chain and capability, which will enable aerospace to be an economic growth engine here.

Are you looking at developing the fifth generation F-series aircraft in India?

Subject to all government-to-government agreements, that is an area of future investment we are interested in. On the specific question of Super Hornet as a potential Make in India example, with the context of our ability to invest in the Super Hornet here and build and industrial capability, we see it as a catalyst to the bigger strategy. We have offered ideas in this area. Conversations are ongoing. 

We think there is a great opportunity for us to bring Super Hornet to India that will fulfill an operational need, but even more importantly think about it as a capability investment and architect it as a broad industrial investment, build up a supply chain that has industrial capability, not only to design but also to manufacture for the full lifecycle of the products. We see Super Hornet as an opportunity to do that to tie directly with the Make in India strategy.

Has there been an official offer on developing Super Hornet in India?

I would not say there is an official offer. This is a conversation we are having with interested parties right now.

How rapidly can we expect the Super Hornet manufacturing project to take off?

It could happen quite rapidly. It requires government-to-government agreement. It requires a customer here who makes a decision on projects it wants to pursue. In terms of our ability to execute the project, ramp up supply chain and skills base, that is something we can move up on fairly quickly.

What is the kind of investment that Boeing is looking at in India?

Ultimately it will be measured in billions of dollars. But it is more than money. It is investment in skills. It is investment in capabilities, infrastructure, and partnerships. When I think about Boeing investment in the future, when we look around the globe, when we look at GDP growth, we look at supply chain development, growth of the middle class... All the ingredients are present here in India. So this is one of our targeted investment areas for the long run. That is the kind of perspective that we want to bring here. The work that Prime Minister Modi is doing in the area of ease of doing business is an enabler for that. Things like Make in India, start-ups in India, skills are big proponents of all of those initiatives and as enablers for long-term investment.

What are the key hurdles you foresee?

The key here is making this big step from a buyer of technology to (developing) indigenous manufacturing capability. That is why projects like Super Hornet have the mass and critical size that can accomplish that kind of objective. This requires big investment in skills and technology. Not many countries in the world have that capability to make that big step from supply chain capability to indigenous design and manufacturing capability. We think India has that capability and that’s why we want to invest here.

What are your views on the government’s moves to make doing business easier in India?

We are very encouraged by the progress on that front. We know that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made it a focus area to be able to attract investment and make India a great place to do business. Things like modifications to offset policies, business ownership policies, things that allow us to invest and innovate, we are seeing a lot of progress there.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


12.3. Govt opens up 25% share of defence production to private firms
Livemint | Feb. 17, 2016

Mumbai: Private sector manufacturers have an opportunity to pick up a 25% share of defence production, said A.K. Gupta, secretary, department of defence production, ministry of defence, on Tuesday.

“Around 25% of the defence PSU (public sector undertaking) turnover can be off-loaded to the private sector, and the ministry has already delicensed 60-70% of the production,” he said, speaking at a session on defence at the Make in India Week convention in Mumbai. Public sector undertakings in defence sector have a cumulative turnover of about Rs.50,000 crore, he said.

According to Gupta, the government has identified 25 projects that it plans to throw open to the industry, adding that the defence ministry has also simplified export procedures and eliminated licensing bottlenecks.

Last month, the defence ministry had approved key policy changes to give priority to locally-made defence equipment and fund private sector research and development in defence. The Defence Acquisition Council had approved changes to Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) to introduce a new category called Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured (IDDM) equipment. Under the new category, it will be mandatory for 40% of the content to be sourced locally.

DAC also revised the so-called defence offset clause, which will now be applied to contracts of more than Rs.2,000 crore instead of current Rs.300 crore, thereby removing a hurdle to foreign firms eyeing the Indian market.

Currently, the DPP requires that any foreign arms manufacturer securing an order worth more than Rs.300 crore from India to source components worth 30% of the value of the order from India.

The offsets opportunity is expected to be worth $15 billion in the next 10-15 years, assuming that several proposed purchases are completed on time, according to consulting firm KPMG.

A new defence procurement policy, or DPP, that will give priority to the indigenously made defence products and boost the Make in India initiative will be ready by April, defence minister Manohar Parrikar said Monday.

For more than 15 years, India has tried to draw the private sector into defence production. But domestic defence manufacturing is still dominated by the defence public sector undertakings and the Ordnance Factories Board, which together have an 80-90% share.

Local manufacturing of defence equipment is at the heart of the Make in India programme too, but India continues to import nearly 60% of its defence equipment.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


13.1. We make in India for the world: Oracle CEO Safra Catz
Economic Times | Feb. 11, 2016

Mumbai: Emphasising that India is a great source of intellectual capital for the company, Safra Catz, global co-CEO of Oracle Corporation announced a further expansion of the India operations. On her maiden visit to the country post her elevation as the CEO, Catz said that close to 40,000 of the Oracle's global employee base of 1,30,000 people are stationed in India. "We have nine regional development centres and over a week or so, we will announce an expansion" said Catz.

She was speaking at the Nasscom India Leadership Forum, which kicked off in Mumbai on Wednesday. Catz said that the reason behind the company's focus on the country was the strong developer skill set. "Our entire product lines are done out of here, India is our front office...it is from where were we serve the world," she said.

Catz who shared the CEO's position at Oracle along with Mark Hurd focused a significant part of her address on the future of the technology which lies in cloud. "Moving to the cloud is the single largest opportunity we have to face it in our careers," she said. Catz equated the disruption being caused by cloud to the one caused by the Internet at the turn of the century.

By moving to the cloud Customers have the opportunity to acquire what they need quickly, pay for what they use, scale up quickly in case of peak demand, turn capex into opex and change their mind and do different things at the same time, she said. "Move in the Y2K brought them here (customers) and this (cloud) should carry them into the future, she said.

Though Catz didn't spell out the India expansion plans she said that it is an unbelievable source of intellectual capital. "The technology knowledge is so deep and we are making it in India for the world." Catz also called Prime Minister Narendra Modi's make in India and Digital India project not just ambitious but also inclusive.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


13.2. Apple to set up first technology development centre outside the US in Hyderabad
Economic Times | Feb. 16, 2016

New Delhi: Apple will build its first technology development centre outside the US in Hyderabad with an investment of $25 million (Rs 170 crore), likely employing about 4,500 people, a senior Telangana state government official said.

Apple's centre will occupy 250,000 square feet in Tishman Speyer's WaveRock facility in the city's IT corridor and is set to start in the latter half of this year.

"This is correct. MoU will be signed after some approvals come," Jayesh Ranjan, IT secretary of Telangana, told ETwhile confirming the details of Apple's investment. "They're (Apple) waiting for the SEZ approval (for the area) to come, which is expected to be given in a couple of days."

Apple, based in Cupertino, California, did not respond to queries seeking confirmation. The company has been in talks with real estate firm Tishman Speyer for a longterm lease of about 250,000 sqft, ET reported last month, citing people familiar with the matter.

Apple follows Google and Microsoft, which have said they will invest in the state. Google plans to open South Asia's biggest campus and its only facility outside the US in Hyderabad in the next few years chief executive officer Sundar Pichai announced in December. Microsoft also plans to expand operations in the state.

The rising importance of India as a market for Apple marks a sea change from a couple of years ago.
The US smartphone maker's move comes on the heels of applying for a single-brand retail licence that will enable it to open its stores in India.

The government has eased foreign investment rules for singlebrand retailing and relaxed local procurement conditions for hightech companies. At present, Apple sells iPhones, iPads, Macs and other products through third-party resellers.

India is the world's fastest-growing smartphone market, having surpassed the US in 2015, making a strong case for Apple to set up stores in the country and reap the benefits of a large software development resource pool.

The South Asian nation is becoming an important market for Apple, where its iPhones have immense brand recall and massive aspirational value, especially among the youth. Apple CEO Tim Cook recognised the growth potential in the country after the company's India revenue growth surpassed that of developed markets.

Revenue in India surged 38 per cent in the October-December period, exceeding the 11 per cent growth in overall emerging markets and 14 per cent in Greater China, Apple's second-largest market after the US.

Apple's iPhone sales volumes grew 76 per cent in India compared with 45 per cent in Korea, the Middle East and Africa, 20 per cent in several western European countries and 18 per cent in mainland China in the quarter.

The company posted its best quarterly sales in India with volumes crossing 800,000 units in the three months ended December, when sales in developed markets faltered.

"During hard times like now, it provides an opportunity to invest in newer markets such as India where there are long-term prospects," Cook said.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


14.1. Make In India: With investments pouring in, India logs into hi-tech manufacturing
Economic Times | Feb. 16, 2016

New Delhi: Neither Thailand nor Vietnam were on the radar of hightech manufacturers even a decade ago.
Today Thailand is the world's largest producer of hard disks and Vietnam boasts of Asia's most modern fabs or chip-making factories. For much longer than that India has been trying to attract high-tech manufacturers, without success.

What passed off as sophisticated plants at best produced low- to midrange mobile phones, computers or plastic casings; they were essentially assembly line operations with parts procured from factories in China, Taiwan and put together in India — like flat screen TVs, laptops, desktop computers and so on.

"India was always a software story, high-tech manufacturing was never a priority," says Amar Babu, chief operating officer, Lenovo Asia-Pacific and chairman Lenovo India.

Industry experts point out India never had the 'ecosystem' of component makers — chip makers, or specialists making displays for medical equipment, TVs or smartphones. Road and port connectivity was poor. Global and local manufacturers grumbled that sometimes parts from ports took two months to reach their factories.

There was too much paper work and too many bureaucratic bottlenecks. Importing smartphones, medical equipment and smart TVs was far easier than trying to make in India.
That seems to be changing, thanks to the government acting as a catalyst, kindling hope that high-tech gadgets will be made in India. "Technology is seen as an enabler for governance and better life," says Babu.

And about time too. The market for electronics promises to be $400 billion by 2020. Without local supply India will be importing three-fourths of that, easily exceeding oil imports in value.

With a market of more than a billion consumers with increasing purchasing power, local manufacturing is a compelling idea. The 'Make In India' drive, which has identified hitech electronics as a focus sector, has contributed to changing sentiment and attracting investments.

Lenovo, the $46-billion Chinese gadget-maker already has two factories in India. Others, including global giants such as GE, Siemens, HTC, Toshiba, and Boeing, are lining up to set up factories in India. Even local players like Micromax which till 2012, imported phones they sold in India are now preparing to produce locally.

Rajesh Agarwal, cofounder, Micromax sees this wave as the third phase of high-tech manufacturing. The first is assembly line, where factories here assemble imported components.

Second is CKD kits being imported and sold in India. "Now, in the third phase we are moving to local sourcing of components as the components ecosystem is getting ready," says Agarwal. A Japanese and South Korean consortium is setting up a fab in Madhya Pradesh at an investment of $1.2 billion. Foxconn, which makes iPhones for Apple, plans to set up seven factories in India, two are ready at Sriperumbudur near Chennai and Sri City in Andhra Pradesh. Foxconn assembles Xiaomi's Redmi 2 Prime smartphone at its Sri City plant.

The government has looked at the pain points and is providing solutions. "In the next two years more components will be locally available. And in five years (Micromax) will be 100% made in India," says Agarwal.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


14.2. Indian, Israeli firms join hands for defence
Business Standard | Feb. 15, 2016
New Delhi: About 25 Indian and 100 Israeli firms will come together later this month for a unique business seminar on defence and security in Israel. The seminar, organised jointly by SIBAT, the Israeli defence ministry, the International Defence Cooperation Directorate and Ficci will take place on February 21-25, and will mainly focus on increasing collaborations and JVs between the MSME ministry on both sides.

The seminar will highlight the huge potential to cooperate under PM Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative and will deal with the new expected defence procurement procedure 2016, with a special focus on JVs between industries in Israel and India. More than 500 business-to-business meetings are expected to take place during the seminar.

Both countries’ defence establishments and industries have been partnering for many years in various areas. This will be the fourth joint seminar for SIBAT and Ficci in recent years. Another seminar, dedicated to armoured vehicles, is expected to take place in Chennai later this year.

SIBAT director, Brigadier-General (Retired) Mishel Ben Baruch, who will be the keynote speaker at the seminar, said: “In recent years, we have witnessed a growing cooperation between Indian and Israeli defence companies. This cooperation demonstrates the warm relations between our two countries... SIBAT, as the directorate responsible for assisting Israeli defence companies abroad, is very satisfied and proud to witness this collaboration.”

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


15.1. India's Silicon state signs 147 projects for Rs 1.33 lakh crore ($19,6 bn)
Business Standard | Feb. 05, 2016

Bengaluru: Karnataka signed 147 projects with a commitment to invest Rs 1.33 lakh crore in the two-day Invest Karnataka event across energy, pharma, information technology & biotechnology, agriculture, infrastructure and tourism. This is in addition to Rs 1.75 lakh crore worth of projects approved by the state over the past year, which combined, would generate nearly 700,000 jobs.

In order to ensure that the MoUs and interest showed by investors is realised and turned into actual investments, Karnataka has appointed an official to follow up on projects where investments are above Rs 200 crore. Moreover, the state will aim to have all projects approved by high-power committees and single-window committees before May 15.
"Mobilising investments is a continuous process, it is not a process that can be done in two days. But we are confident with the amazing response that there should not be any doubt that Karnataka will be the key destination in India for investments," said R V Deshpande, industries minister with the government of Karnataka.
Karnataka received maximum investment proposals in the energy sector, at over Rs 1 lakh crore. The government said most of these projects were in the renewable energy and particularly in the waste, solar and wind energy sectors. The second-biggest sector to receive investments was the steel sector, with proposals for investments of Rs 38,000 crore and the promise to employ 6,000 people.

Apart from the claimed Rs 3-lakh investment proposals in Karnataka, the state will also receive Rs 1 lakh crore over two years for the development of 4,000 km of national highways in the state. Further, Rs 200 crore will be invested in ports and Rs 500 crore will be given by Centre to set up a 1.3-million tonne urea plant.

The Karnataka government will also set up a public-private partnership company called Karnataka Invest where industrialists will advise the government and will function as an ambassador to attract global investments.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


15.2. US Apparel brand Urban Factory enters India on its own
Economic Times | Feb. 10, 2016

Bengaluru: United States-based apparel brand Urban Factory has entered India on its own and plans to open stores in Bengaluru and Hyderabad by the middle of this year.

"All styles that come in India are delayed by a season. Unfortunately, fashion comes to India in the end," said Madhuri Lakkapragada, founder of Urban Factory. "This is the gap that we want to address by bringing current customised styles in India," she said.

India had last year liberalised norms for foreign direct investment in single-brand retail, allowing brands such as Urban Factory to set up stores in the country. Urban Factory is a women's apparel brand which focuses on professional and casual fashion. The brand plans to launch men's clothing and accessories as well in the next six months.

The company plans to open its first mono brand store in Hyderabad Forum Mall in May and in Bengaluru by June. The one-year-old company plans to sell through multi-brand stores as well by April.

According to a CII BCG report, India's retail market has the potential to grow from $630 billion in 2015 to $1,100-1,200 billion in 2020 on the back of rising income levels and increased urbanisation.

"Retail sector will reap the benefits of a large, young population adding to the workforce, 70% increase in income levels, nuclearisation of families and increasing urbanisation," the report said.

Global brands such as H&M, GAP and Aeropostale have recently entered India, which is also seeing a surge in foreign players entering the country using the online channel.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.



- SERVICES (IT, R&D, Tourism, Healthcare, etc.)


16.1. Amazon pumps Rs1,696 crore ($250 million) into Indian unit
Livemint | Jan. 25, 2016

Bengaluru: Amazon.com Inc., the world’s largest online retailer, has infused an additional Rs.1,696 crore into its Indian unit, arming it with more ammunition in its battle with local rivals Flipkart and Snapdeal to become the country’s largest e-commerce firm.

The latest infusion, which came in December, is the single largest tranche of funds received by Amazon Seller Services Pvt. Ltd, the Indian unit of Amazon, since 2014, according to documents filed with the Registrar of Companies.

Amazon India has now received Rs.5,699 crore since July 2014, when Jeff Bezos, co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Amazon, promised to invest $2 billion in India over time, the documents show.

In comparison, rivals Flipkart Ltd and Snapdeal (Jasper Infotech Pvt. Ltd) have raised $2.1 billion and $1.3 billion, respectively, from investors in that period.

Since launching in India in June 2013, Amazon has applied its mantra of low product prices, wide product selection, and fast and reliable delivery to gain popularity with shoppers.

Among e-commerce companies, Amazon spent the most on advertising and marketing its brand last year. It’s also investing hundreds of crores of rupees on building its supply chain network.

The logistics footprint of Amazon India grew three times to more than 2,100 cities and towns in 2015 and the company added eight warehouses last year, increasing its count to 21. It has the most warehouses and largest storage space among e-commerce firms in India, ahead of Flipkart, which has 17.

The spending has worked well so far. Last year, Amazon gained market share from Flipkart and Snapdeal.
In the June quarter, Amazon’s sales—net of discounts, product returns and taxes—surged more than 300% compared with the year-ago period, Mint reported on 15 August. Then, in the September quarter, the company witnessed a 500% year-on-year growth in volume and the number of active customers jumped 230% over the year-ago period, Amazon said.

These numbers are far higher than those reported by Flipkart and Snadpeal. While these two companies are still significantly bigger than Amazon, the US-based online retailer is catching up rapidly.

“We are very pleased with the growth momentum we are witnessing in India. At the end of Q3 2015 (July-September), we saw an approximate 500% year-on-year growth in volume, and in Q4 2015 (October-December) we sold more than we did in all of 2014. We are committed to investing aggressively with a long-term horizon and transform the way India buys and sells,” an Amazon India spokesperson said in an emailed response to queries from Mint.

India is of importance to Amazon, especially given its failure to conquer China, which is dominated by Alibaba (Alibaba Group Holding Ltd). Alibaba is also strengthening its footprint in India by investing in Snapdeal and Paytm (One97 Communications Pvt. Ltd).

India’s e-commerce market is likely to grow to $100 billion by April 2020, according to a Goldman Sachs report in October.

“Amazon has been saying that India is going to be their biggest market opportunity outside the US,” said Arvind Singhal, chairman and managing director of Technopak, a retail consultancy. “This is because, in China, they are way behind Alibaba. In India, Amazon has not only been putting money in advertising and discounting, but also investing a lot on building a physical infrastructure, including fulfilment centres, which will give them a competitive advantage over everybody else.”

Amazon’s rivals are not sitting idle.
Earlier this month, Flipkart named co-founder Binny Bansal as its new CEO, replacing Sachin Bansal, in a move that it claimed would strengthen its management bandwidth as it seeks to combat Amazon India and kick off preparations for an expected initial public offering over the next few years.

Snapdeal, on the other hand, has strengthened its senior management team and even entered the logistics business by buying a large stake in specialty logistics firm GoJavas to improve its speed of order deliveries.
The three-way battle for dominance of the e-commerce market may intensify.

“If Amazon infuses a lot of capital, it means Flipkart will have to remain on its toes. When a company becomes large, it tends to become more confident, thinking that they have clear market leadership,” said Abhishek Goyal, co-founder of Tracxn, a start-up tracker. “But if somebody like Amazon is inching close, it will prompt all local businesses to fight very hard and that will bring the best out of everybody.” He added, “The bad part is if you get into the mad rush of giving discounts instead of focusing on customer satisfaction, you can never have enough money to fund discounts.”

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


16.2. Amazon Web Services builds 5 data centres in Mumbai
Economic Times | Feb. 05, 2016

Mumbai: Amazon's cloud service arm Amazon Web Services has built its data centres in around 5 locations in Mumbai, as it looks to tap on the growing potential of the Indian e-tailing and cloud computing space, said sources privy to the development.

The move comes at a time when Amazon's closest rival in India, Flipkart, has already started moving its data centres in-house, while Microsoft has brought online three cloud data centres in Mumbai, Pune and Chennai to improve the performance of Azure services for Indian customers. IBM is also looking to build its data centres in India.

EThad reported last year that India's biggest e-commerce company Flipkart, which is valued at more than $15 billion, started moving its data centres in-house to build its own network of India's largest server farms, that may be opened up in future for use by other online companies, potentially moving towards a model pioneered by Amazon in the global markets.

"The company has built its data centres in around 5 locations in Mumbai as India's cloud computing space has become extremely important for Amazon," said a source close to the developments.

The data centre was initially scheduled to start in December last year, but due to some delays from the company's side, the new facility will now be operational by end of this month, the source said.

According to industry experts, global companies with customers in India can use AWS's infrastructure to build their businesses and run their applications in the cloud. This move will also help AWS to securely store the companies data in India with single-digit latency said an industry expert.

Amazon already has a sizable customer base in India, including several offline and online retailers, including Future Group, Jubilant Foodworks and Paytm, that are currently being served mainly out of their data centres located in Singapore.

The bandwidth required to run this data centre is taken from one of the top telecom operators in India, said one person close to the development without naming the company. The cloud services market in India is expected to reach $1.9 billion by 2018, as per Gartner estimates.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


17.1. How India powers GE's global innovation
Livemint | Jan. 20, 2016

New Delhi: The General Electric Co., or GE, appears to be living up to its legacy of invention and innovation.

For the last couple of years, senior executives of the firm, which was formed following the merger of Edison General Electric Co. (founded by Thomas Alva Edison, the inventor of the light bulb) and Thomson-Houston Co. more than 120 years ago, have been engrossed in transforming the industrial powerhouse into a digital industrial firm—one with expertise across industries like aviation, energy, healthcare and transportation, and powered by software-defined machines and solutions that are connected, responsive and predictive.

“We’re the only company that will have the machines, analytics and operating systems... That’s how we’ll play the Industrial Internet,” said Jeffrey Immelt, chairman and chief executive of GE, while addressing investors and analysts at New York’s 30 Rockefeller Plaza on 16 December 2015. GE’s main offices are located at 30 Rockefeller Plaza at the Rockefeller Center.

Much of the digital innovation that Immelt spoke of during his speech is flowing from efforts of engineers and scientists who are housed at the company’s global research centres (GRCs)—a very important one being the John F. Welch Technology Center, Bengaluru, GE’s biggest GRC outside the US.

JFWTC alone houses more than 4,000 engineers and scientists and has filed over 1,000 patent applications. It works closely with the other nine GRCs, which are located in countries such as the US, Germany, China and Brazil, and together form the GE Global Research network, according to Munesh Makhija, managing director of GE India Technology Center and the chief technology officer of GE India, who likens the digital transformation at GE to “a kind of mind and machine confluence”.

“Our mission is really to build the smarts and the analytics that help customers who use these machines to be more predictive and productive,” Makhija said.

He expects the India unit to develop about 100 new applications just in analytics in 2016.

GE had an installed base of 10 million sensors and collected 50 million data elements, according to its 2014 annual report.

The numbers would have only increased last year.

GE’s entire innovation, Makhija pointed out, revolves around three pillars: digital or the Industrial Internet of Things, learnings from GE Store that he described as “a pooling of intelligence from all units within GE”, and “constraint-driven or reverse innovation (one that is likely to be used first in the developing world before spreading to the industrialized world)”.

Consider this. GE, which has traditionally been selling flow meters to oil and gas companies, decided to update its flow meter technology to multiphase ones that lend themselves to continuous monitoring or metering.
Flow meters measure the flow rate of a liquid or gas moving through a pipe.

The upgraded flow meters that are fitted with sensors “give oil companies a digital snapshot of what each well is producing, and thus helps them decide what they want to do with low oil-yielding wells”, said Sukla Chandra, general manager, GE Global Research at Bengaluru.

GE India has simulated an entire oilfield at the JFWTC campus for this purpose.

The upgraded (three-phase) flow meter and multiple sensors measure and read the quantity of oil (non-flammable), water and air (to substitute natural gas) that is pumped in the tanks. Even if the oil wells are in different locations, GE’s cloud-based big data and analytics platform, Predix, allows a  firm to share that digital data across oilfields.

“This is the digital or the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) part of the solution,” said Makhija.

Some of the sensors that are being used in the upgraded flow meter have “actually been tried in other applications”. For example, a sensor that was developed for GE Motors to find faults in their big-sized motors is now being used in the flow meter. “This is part of the GE Store concept: using the learnings from one unit in a different one,” Makhija said.

Mariasundaram Antony, general manager of India Engineering operations at GE Power, corroborated how the wind analytics applications, which his unit developed, were “taken and applied to the train-and-rail industry to look for wind patterns along rail networks. The work is being done out of our India unit to cater more to countries like the US, Canada and South Africa where the gusts of wind are much stronger that say in a country like India”.
Healthcare is another innovation area for GE. For instance, there are many babies that are born with high levels of bilirubin in blood—a condition known as baby jaundice.

“The condition is not hard to treat,” Makhija explained. People in smaller towns and villages in countries like India typically use sunlight which, in many cases, does cure the jaundice but also creates some complications due to exposure to the sun’s rays. Phototherapy, which uses compact fluorescent lamps (CFL), has traditionally been used to treat this condition.

But even where GE donated this equipment to primary care units, they were not being used. When the company executives investigated the reason, they were faced with multiple issues, such as cost, and the fact that these machines need power and a fan to cool the CFLs, according to Shyam Prasad Rajan, chief technology officer at GE Healthcare India.

Besides, primary care units in the country also face dust problems “and we found that the fans were being affected by the dust which, in turn, was causing the bulb to fuse sooner because they would overheat”, Rajan said.

It’s here that the GE Store concept helped. Since GE has an LED (light emitting diode) lighting unit, executives from that unit suggested LED bulbs could be used instead of CFLs to solve the problem. “LED phototherapy has become the global standard to treat babies now,” Rajan said.

Similarly, ultrasound technology (that uses high-frequency sound waves to examine human organs) and X-ray technologies from GE’s healthcare unit are being used in GE factories to inspect industrial equipment, forgings, castings and pipelines.

According to Vinay Jammu, technology leader at GE Global Research, “Each invention further fuels innovation and application across our industrial sectors with people, services, technology and scale.”

S. Raghunath, professor of Corporate Strategy and Policy at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, believes that “it has not been very difficult for GE to attain this transformation as the performance management system in GE has always focused on efficiency, productivity and innovation”.

This, however, also entails the retraining of engineers in the digital way of life.

“Initially GE did face issues as most of its engineering and computing talent understood technologies from the last generation. However, its recruitment practices over the past couple of years have undergone a change, and it has been able to attract talent with commensurate knowledge and experience relating to software development and data analytics. It has also been able to attract partners to further its digital transformation goals,” said Raghunath.

According to a 21-December blog by Greg Gorbach, vice-president (information-driven manufacturing) at ARC Advisory Group Inc., a growing number of “...engineers will finally begin to understand why the potential for digital transformation with IIoT/I4.0 (Industrial Internet of Things/Industry 4.0) is not the same as what they have been doing with SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) and automation systems for 30 years...Naturally, these engineers recognize and relate to device connectivity and control aspects of IIoT, but software, scalability, analytics, and the possibility to reinvent business processes are what will really drive the uptake of technology and the coming digital transformation”.

Gorbach, in the blog, also argues that terms like the Industrial Internet of Things, Industrial Internet, or Internet of Everything “aren’t ideal because they put people in mind of some limited technology and network-focused aspect of the new industrial paradigm”.

Digital Transformation, on the other hand, works because it “reflects what ARC hears from end users who tell us that they can no longer continue to run their business with old technologies, processes, and business models, that things must change, even though they don’t know where to start”.

Incidentally, GE competes with firms like Siemens AG, which also boasts of an innovator and inventor Ernst Werner Siemens as its founder. Siemens, which has similar lines of businesses, has been touting terms like Digital Transformation and Industrial Internet of Things.

GE’s competitors also include Emerson Electric Co., the ABB Group, Honeywell International Inc. and Schneider Electric SE.
IIoT, acknowledges Gorbach, provides manufacturers with “a huge first mover advantage both for condition monitoring/uptime and obtaining operating data to improve the product design”.

But how to measure the return on investment (RoI) from digital initiatives? “The way to measure RoI on digital investment is to carefully consider the question as to whether replacing bits for atoms is having a business impact. Has the transformation enhanced the customer’s operating performance and has it guaranteed outcomes can be a good measure,” said Raghunath.

“Business divisions in GE have not been averse to digital investment, as customer engagement has become far more complex than before. Customers expect solution development that requires integration of technology, analytics and connectivity from GE with the client’s database. The practice of crowdsourcing for innovation has helped GE to select, fund and build new products and strengthen relationships with suppliers, as they experiment with product launches”, Raghunath added.

Makhija agreed “the whole digital transformation is all about outcomes ultimately, and not about just the technology”. “It’s a kind of journey. That’s how we learn and that’s how we kind of build our own credibility in this space,” he said.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


17.2. Intel to invest Rs 1,100 cr in Bengaluru campus
Business Standard | Feb. 03, 2016

Bengaluru: Karnataka has cleared a proposal by chipmaker Intel Corp to invest Rs 1,100 crore in an eight acre facility in Bengaluru, which could generate 3,000 jobs in the tech city.

Intel has presence in Bengaluru building new fabless chips and contributing to semiconductor programmes for the company. The firm already employs 7,000 professionals in the city. Intel’s investment proposal was cleared by Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah. The government has also cleared four information technology projects worth Rs 3,000 crore, which could generate 40,000 jobs.

Intel has invested $2 billion in India so far. Additionally, Intel Capital, which manages investment for the US chipmaker, has made strategic investments in firms to help stimulate technological innovation in India, the company said on its website in line with a $250-million funding commitment for the country, the company said on its website.

Velankani Electronics is investing Rs 1,130 crore to set up an electronic products factory on the outskirts of Bengaluru, which would generate jobs for 2,400 people.

Similarly, Saltire Developers is setting up an IT park and Hical Technologies is setting up an engineering services centre near Bengaluru.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


18.1. New airlines take off, but yet to soar
The Hindu, Jan. 18, 2016 | Anand Kalyanaraman; Seetharaman

Indian aviation went from strength to strength in 2015, attracting many new players. Three new airlines — Vistara, Air Pegasus and Trujet — took off last year. With this, five new players now compete for passenger patronage in the domestic skies. These players have taken off, but they have a long way to reach cruising altitude and challenge the well-entrenched larger carriers.

Buoyed by low fuel costs, which enabled fare cuts, air passenger traffic in the country grew at over 20 per cent last year, amongst the fastest in the world. A rapidly growing market translated into gains for almost all airlines, including the new ones.

For regional player Air Costa, which started flying in late 2013, traffic grew a robust 30 per cent plus year-on-year in the January-November 2015 period. AirAsia India, which began operations in June 2014, flew nearly thrice the number of passengers between June and November 2015 than it did a year ago.

From just 15,000 passengers in January 2015 when it was launched, Vistara — the Tata-Singapore Airlines joint venture — increased traffic nearly nine-fold to 1.36 lakh in November.

The newest carriers in the air, regional players Air Pegasus and Trujet, which started flying in mid-2015, have also notched up good passenger growth in the first few months of their operations. Impressive as it is, the growth of the new airlines comes primarily on the back of a low base. And despite the scorching pace, they remain minor players in a market dominated by the old boys — IndiGo, Jet Airways, Air India, SpiceJet and GoAir, in that order.

Sure, many of the new players, such as Air Asia and Vistara, have increased their market share. Even so, the combined market share of all the five new players in November 2015 was just 5.4 per cent. This was less than the 8.2 per cent share of GoAir, the smallest among the older players.

Market leader IndiGo continues to entrench its position — it grew traffic more than 40 per cent year-on-year in the January-Novemberperiod on a high base. In fact, it carried more than half the additional passenger traffic during the period.

No surprise then that its market share shot up to nearly 37 per cent, up from 31 per cent a year ago.

SpiceJet was the only airline to see passenger traffic shrink last year. That was due to its near-crash-landing in late 2014. But with the change in management, the airline has regained some of the lost ground.

Lower than average passenger growth saw Air India and GoAir cede some market share, while Jet Airways gained marginally last year.

Most airlines, old and new, have ambitious capacity expansion plans for 2016. This may make it difficult for the younger players to increase market share.

That, however, doesn’t seem to perturb them. Says Mittu Chandilya, CEO and MD, AirAsia India: “It’s exciting times. The promising load factors that we’ve seen allow us to now add more capacity in our existing network.

We currently operate six aircraft and fly to 10 destinations. We are working towards increasing our connectivity and adding a few more Tier-II destinations.”

Amber Dubey, Partner and Head – Aerospace and Defence, at global consultancy KPMG, feels that “aviation being a volume game, one does not anticipate more than four strong pan-India carriers eventually.”


18.2. Marriott launches its first dual branded hotel in India
Livemint | Jan. 29, 2016

Bengaluru: Marriott International Inc., the Bethesda, Maryland-based luxury lodging service provider, opened its first dual branded property—Courtyard and Fairfield—in Bengaluru with an investment of around Rs.300 crore.
The new 336-room hotel (under both brands) will take Marriott’s total in the country to 31 hotels, operated under various brands.

Global luxury hotels have increased their focus on the Indian market on account of growing demand coming in from tier II and III cities. According to a September 2015 report released by HVS Global Hospitality Services, a hospitality consulting firm, demand for hotels is set to increase in 2016 as occupancy rates were over 60% for the first time when compared to the previous five years.

Marriott is now looking to take its dual branded strategy forward with some of its upcoming projects in the country.

Craig S. Smith, president and managing director of Marriott International (Asia Pacific), said the dual-branded strategy helps save on operational and construction costs and gives customers two different experiences.

Savings on construction is almost 20%, according to Ashish Jakhanwala, managing director and CEO, Samhi Hotels Pvt Ltd, a hotel asset company that specialises in development, acquisition and ownership of branded hotels.

Marriott operates and franchises hotels and licenses vacation ownership resorts under 19 brands.
Marriott will look to add 1,200 rooms to its already operational 8,000 plus rooms in India, Rajeev Menon, chief operating officer (Asia Pacific excluding China), said.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


19.1. 2 years on, markets still hypo about herbal diabetes drug
The Hindu, Feb. 5, 2016 | M Somasekhar

A ‘Developed in India’ herbal-based drug to control diabetes is showing promise.
The drug intends to provide relief for the diabetic in terms of reducing the painful insulin injections, avoid impact on vital organs, improve immunity, provide anti-oxidants and bring down the overall cost of controlling the lifestyle disease, which is on the rise in the country. Among several claimed anti-diabetic herbal solution, BGR-34 is the first scientifically validated one.

In its development, two CSIR laboratories — The Central Institute of Medicinal & Aromatic Plants (CIMAP) and the National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI), both from Lucknow — have played a significant part. Now, a private company, AIMIL Pharmaceuticals, which obtained the technology, is marketing it cost-effective price across the country.

The drug BGR-34 (Blood Glucose Regulator) combines the positive medicinal effects of six plants mentioned in Ayurveda. The CSIR labs screened 500 herbs and selected these plants with anti-diabetic properties. All the required trials and regulatory procedures were completed, said SP Shrivastava, Business Director of the Delhi-based AIMIL Pharmaceuticals.

Though the drug was launched on February 22, 2014 by Vice-President Hamid Ansari, it has become a challenging task to market the drug, convincing both medical practitioners and patients. “We feel the scientific validation, the quality controlled production and the affordable pricing (₹5 per tablet) and the good control of glucose levels in the users will eventually help in the acceptance of the drug,” Shrivastava told BusinessLine.

The 30-year-old company with a turnover of ₹120 crore had earlier got technology transfer from the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) for the drug Lukoskin, which is effective in the treatment of Leukoderma, a skin disease and marketed it. It has two manufacturing units — one in Delhi and the other at Solan in Himachal Pradesh.

The company has developed a candidate drug for the treatment of primary kidney disease. Uncontrolled diabetes is the primary cause for the problem. It needs necessary trial and regulatory approvals, he said. The developers claim that BGR-34 is as efficient in lowering blood glucose as Metformin, the frontline drug in the management of diabetes.

Nod from Ministry
According to AKS Rawat of NBRI, “While modern diabetes drugs are known for side-effects and toxicity, BGR-34 works by controlling blood sugar and limiting the harmful effects of other drugs”.
The drug has been approved by AYUSH, the Ministry for Traditional Indian medicines.


19.2. Bharat Biotech unveils Zika vaccine candidates
Livemint | Feb. 04, 2016

New Delhi: Bharat Biotech International Pvt. Ltd on Wednesday unveiled two vaccine candidates to protect humans against the outbreak of the mosquito-borne Zika virus that may cause birth defects when pregnant women are infected. The virus has already spread to 22 countries.

Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech claimed it is probably the first in the world to file for a global patent for Zika vaccine candidates which it calls Zikavac. The candidate, though, may take years for trials to be complete, before making it to the final vaccine stage.

The two candidates include an inactivated vaccine that has reached the stage of pre-clinical testing in animals, and a recombinant vaccine. “Currently, our efforts are towards scale-up and characterization of the vaccine product. Our interest in Zika virus, an obscure virus when we started the project a year ago, was that the clinical features at an early stage of infection are indistinguishable from that of dengue and chikungunya,” said the company in a press release.

“The first thing is to be prepared for the worst,” said Krishna Ella, chairman of vaccine maker Bharat Biotech, adding the company hopes to announce the arrival of Zikavac to the world as early as possible.

“Considering that women of childbearing age and pregnant women are the prime target group for the Zika virus vaccine, we consider safety as the overriding factor in development of a new vaccine for this virus,” said Sumathy K., director, research and development at Bharat Biotech. “The vaccine methods developed early on, before the devastating consequences of the epidemic in Brazil came to light provided us a push to accelerate vaccine development,” she added.

The World Health Organization on Monday declared that the recent observed increase in clusters of microcephaly and other neurological abnormalities reported in Latin America which is affected by Zika virus, constitute a public health emergency of international concern.

 “In the absence of knowledge on viral pathogenesis and immune correlates required for protection, an early start in vaccine development has nevertheless provided a fair advantage to face the eventuality of an epidemic outbreak in the region,” Sumathy added.

Companies across the world are racing to develop vaccines against Zika virus, including French pharmaceutical company Sanofi SA, NewLink Genetic Corp. in the US, and Australian company Sementis Ltd. which is working in collaboration with University of South Australia.

Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccine division of drugmaker Sanofi, on Tuesday launched a vaccine research and development project aimed at preventing infections from the virus.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


20. 4G phone shipments cross 3G's for 1st time
Business Standard | Feb. 17, 2016

New Delhi: Online sales of smartphones surged more than 150 per cent in the December quarter to 37.3 per cent of overall sales in India. Some 25.6 million smartphones were shipped during the quarter, up 15.4 per cent from 22.2 million units in the same period last year, according to a report by International Data Corporation (IDC).
India’s top smartphone brand Samsung holds 26.8 per cent market share, up 4.8 per cent year-on-year.

Micromax held the second spot. Its share declined to 14.1 per cent from 18 per cent a year ago. “The vendor (Micromax) is facing tremendous competition from both home-grown and China-based vendors at different price points under Rs 13,000 ($200),” IDC wrote in its report.

Chinese firm Lenovo toppled Indian maker Intex from the third spot during the quarter. Lenovo holds 11.6 per cent share of the market, followed by Intex, 9.4 per cent. Lava held on to the fifth spot, with no change in share. Fourth-generation-(4G)-enabled smartphone shipments stood at 13.9 million units, accounting for more than half of the market in the December quarter. Fourth generation (4G) is a mobile communications standard intended to replace 3G (third generation), allowing wireless internet access at a much higher speed.

Third generation (3G) is a mobile communications standard that allows mobile phones, computers, and other portable electronic devices to access the internet wirelessly. “Fourth-generation smartphone shipments surpassed 3G volumes for the first time, primarily led by Samsung and Lenovo. They together accounted for more than half of 4G volumes,” said Karthik J, senior market analyst, client devices, IDC. Chinese smartphone vendors gained significant market share in India last year. These vendors together hold over 22 per cent of the market compared with 15 per cent in December 2014. “As the smartphone market in China begins to slow, most vendors are looking for avenues to leverage India’s potential. The internet negates the need for distribution,” Karthik J added.

Overall, the smartphone sales stood at 103.6 million units in 2015 — crossing the 100-million mark for the first time.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.



INDIA & THE WORLD

21.1. India one of the fastest growth areas for Ericsson globally: Paolo Colella
Business Standard | Feb. 15, 2016

New Delhi: Make in India might have been the reason for the recent announcement from Sweden headquartered Ericsson. The firm on Sunday announced the setting up of its second manufacturing plant in Pune. Paolo Colella, managing director, Ericsson India, says he believes that India has been central in the company's growth road map. In an interview with Hrishikesh Joshi, he talks about the firm's expansion in India, contribution to its global revenues and the road ahead.

Excerpts.

What is the role of India in Ericsson's road map?
We established our India operations way back in 1903. We are India's significant partner in developing telecom infrastructure and now part of its cellular revolution as well. We set up our first factory in Jaipur.

Ericsson has manufactured more than 400,000 base stations for India through our factory in Jaipur.
We are now setting up a new plant in Chakan which will be operational by third quarter of this year. Ericsson has invested $15 million in this plant. This will also cater to the Asia-Pacific region and Africa. In future, this will be our global manufacturing hub.

Since this facility is catering to global markets as well, how much will you export from India ?

It's difficult to predict, as of now. But, it will serve the southeast Asia and Africa markets, depending market conditions. Volumes in India will definitely determine the growth as well. India is one of the important markets where we have a complete set up, including sales, support, and now centre for global manufacturing. We can go beyond service providers.

India has become the top third contributor with six per cent contribution to your overall net sales, what is working for Ericsson here?

India as a country itself is a strong growth driver for Ericsson. Growing economy and the 1.3 billion people are driving volumes.

Besides that, we are at the beginning of investment cycle and building mobile broadband infrastructure. Also, fourth generation (4G) is a big area of investment. We will generate wave of modernisation in India. It will bring change in operational support system (OSS) and business support systems (BSS) space. The six per cent will be fuelled by a big way of transformation.

How are you planning to continue and grow your share in the country?

We are not in a hurry to increase market share. But we are looking for stability and stable volumes. We are looking at moderate growth. It is much more dependent on the export volumes which will shift from year to year. This will basically provide stability to manufacturing. The global volatile market conditions will play an important role.

What kind of growth are you expecting from the targeted areas in India. What is the kind of timeline?

4G will generate more opportunities for us in India. 4G will come with a strong intellectual property (IP) backbone. Mobile, radio broadband, IP, microwave backhaul. It will help us to bring new business models as we shift from voice to data. The monetisation logic becomes much more sophisticated. India is one of the fastest growth area for Ericsson globally. TV and media is also very important area for us.

We have made significant investments for this we have a very strong offering in video space. It will need a high speed to mobile Internet. We have created solutions for various sectors like automotive, shipping and telecom. In India, we are very keen on smart city project.

How are you transforming to become an ICT player?

From early 2000, we have shifted completely as a company. Earlier, the business was based 75 per cent on hardware and 25 per cent software. We have flipped that now. Today, we are more of a 75 per cent software and services company. However, we are still banking on telecom infrastructure but we have developed service workforce that is close to 90,000 people globally. In recent years, we have developed managed services business as well. We have grown from 43,000 people in 2003 to more than 100,000 people now. All our growth has happened in software and services space in last 12 years.

With this move, your competition landscape is also changing and becoming bigger. How are you gearing up to tackle it?

Landscape has become more articulate and it’s not based on traditional level. It is not only about competition, but setting up large ecosystem of players. We are actively engaged with our global partners like CISCO and Intel. We are working with major industry players to create an ecosystem. That is the way we engaging competition.

What kind of role can Ericsson play in govt's Digital India agenda?

For Digital India, we are involved in developing fibre optic infrastructure.
High speed internet mobile connectivity will give India boost for development. Smartphones will be the main device through which population of India will access internet. We are already associated with all the major Indian telecom service providers. We are intensifying our efforts to be a part of Digital India.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


21.2. India will continue to be one of the fastest-growing economies: Unilever CEO Paul Polman
Economic Times | Feb. 08, 2016

New Delhi: India is one of the fastest-growing economies and will continue to remain so, says Unilever BSE 0.05 % CEO Paul Polman. India is increasingly taking to the global stage and everyone is realising that its active participation is needed for the world to progress, he says.

Edited excerpts:

How do you see India as a market and how do you rate the Narendra Modi government's performance?

Well, now, we are in India — the country we visit once, if not twice, in a year because of the importance it has to the overall Unilever universe. India is a very exciting market and, currently, one of the fastest-growing markets in the world and, I think, in the foreseeable future, all indications are that it will stay (as one). One of the major strengths is its enormous population.

You have a growing population, which nowadays is an exception if you come from the parts of the world like Europe, where I come from. Then another thing we are seeing is the unlocking of the more inclusive society.

The Swachh Bharat, Make in India programmes, the Smart City programme. Obviously, they will require a lot of work; obviously we cannot expect miracles tomorrow. But the pillars have been put in place that will result in a better India for everybody. So if it is a better India for everybody, we all will also prosper.

You are in a very exciting period of time. India is increasingly taking to the global stage. Your government showed responsibility — took up Sustainable Development Goals in September last year. And, increasingly, everybody is realising that the world can only progress if India takes an active part. And if India itself is successful, we are proud to be in HUL to be an integral part of it. And as far as the Modi government is concerned, well it's the same thing. People talk about what you have done in 100 days when you become a CEO.

What I have realised is that it is very difficult to be in politics these days. I think from a private sector point of view, we need to play an active part in derisking the political process and be a part of the discussion. I think what you see in India is (it is) in the right direction and it is our responsibility to help accelerate that.

How is India different from last year?

India has clearly stepped up its game. From a global perspective, India keeps performing, whether it's 6-8% growth, whichever way one looks at it, it is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. The changes made by the government (are) being noticed by the world. With such a complex, diverse country and 1.2 billion or more population, it's not easy, so I have this huge respect for the work being done. The seeds have been planted and the plants are starting to grow. It will take some time, but there is momentum.

I am confident of the government. But, more than the government, I am confident of the people in the country who are aware of the changes that are happening. Poor people are getting educated and there is financial inclusion. So, I do not worry about HUL, there are good people here. We attract good talent. I am more concerned about how India develops.~

From your perch in Unilever, London, are you pessimistic about a global recovery?

I'm saying that I am a realistic optimist. I have always liked to be an optimist because I believe we need to work on a better future for everybody. The fact that last year, the world signed the  Sustainable Development Goals and a fairly good start from the COP 21 agreement make me optimistic because at the end of the day, everybody thought, including the Press, that this is not possible. Nobody is going to agree among 90 countries, and at the end of the day, they agreed something quite substantial.

So now it's implementation time. There is no doubt that we have a hard time creating jobs, there is no doubt that geopolitical conflicts are on the rise, not on the decline, the issues of refugee crisis is distracting Europe from the longer-term thing... Then you have the Brexit issue that might disrupt Europe. Europe itself is in some areas moving apart. You have different political directions there. So the whole bloc is not addressing its long-term competitiveness. In America, you are in the midst of an election, which gets all the attention and the politics has come a little bit to a standstill. America's role in the world is changing as well, whether we like it or not.

Then we have the Middle East, where we have a hard time finding a solution where people are suffering. Then because of the slower growth in China, as well as significantly lower oil prices that we see, there are many countries that are under pressure, (countries) which were not under pressure before. The challenge you have here is, I think, climate change. India will be very much affected and you have had two seasons of back-to-back bad monsoons where the rural community has not had the best of luck.

And that is not by coincidence. You have your water tables dropping. Water is becoming more salty, less drinkable. You have air pollution. Half of the most polluted cities in the top 20, not even the top 30, are in India.

So whatever way you look at it, the answer becomes obvious that it is better to do something about it. India has discovered that as well. So this is an opportunity for India to really make that transformation. And the world is willing to help.

We have had issues in India due to deflation, rural market slowdown, two years of bad monsoon. Are you happy with the kind of growth you are having?

I look at it on a long-term basis. I look at my seven years. At HUL, we have doubled the business. We have grown at over 12%. This is my eighth year as CEO, but if a country has zero percent growth one year, I actually like that because it wakes them up. We need to work a little harder. In the last 7-8 years, we have outgrown our markets.

We need to work a little harder for that when there are headwinds. So we introduced more brands. That is also the case here. We might buy some brands. We step up our innovation pace. We focus more on execution and, in fact, the answer is we do all of that. Every year, our innovation pipeline has got stronger. We rolled these innovations out to more countries. So we have to set the bar higher. Consumers use more new brands now than in any time in history of Unilever. So you have to do all these things. There is no doubt that you have to do all these things to get the same results than perhaps 10 years ago, but that's fine.

You were among the first to criticise short-termism among shareholders. Today, people like Larry Fink of BlackRock are taking this up and he has written to Fortune 500 CEOs saying: Don't focus on short term. Is there a change in thinking?

Larry works very closely with us. We have created a group of people that is working on what we call capitalism for the long term. We have now brought together about $24 trillion worth of capital on the management, Larry being one of the biggest ones with BlackRock. We are working on trying to change the system so that it changes people's behaviour. You cannot blame people individually for the short-termism. Short-termism comes from the requirement of incentive systems.

For example, if you are a fund manager and you need to beat the market and your salary depends on how well you beat it every quarter, you are going to move the money as if it is a poker play to beat these indexes on a quarterly basis. So, your incentive system influences you. If you are a CEO and your board tells you all the time to deliver and deliver, or your shareholder calls you every day and tells you your share price has to go up, else I will put my money here or there.

If a CEO gets enormous compensation by having the share price go up in the short term, then he starts to behave that way. So we said we need to put a group together under the leadership of McKinsey's Dominic Barton and Mark Wiseman from Canada Pension Plan. Mark and Dominic took up this initiative and wrote two articles in Harvard Business Review that you can see mentions Unilever, and we put a group together of 10 people, myself included, to see how you can go to make these markets function for the long term.

So what does this group do?

We meet a few times and look at what are the things we need to do. For example, we are looking at how we can change the compensation systems around CEOs to make them more long-term focused. There are shareholder services like ISS and others that influence them. We work with these boards so that we see what is the fiduciary duty for the boards.

There is a misunderstanding that has crept into many markets that the fiduciary duty of the board is only to shareholders and often that is interpreted as short-term shareholders. That is not true. It is to ensure long-term viability of the company.

Are you trying to rope Indian CEOs into the capitalism group?

I had a wonderful breakfast in Delhi last Tuesday with these wonderful 20 CEOs from Indian companies that all belong to the World Business Council For Sustainable Development. And that is the major organisation of companies that want to move the world forward. Companies like ICICI, Tatas, Birlas, Mahindras, I do not want to mention them all where the CEOs are leading India in the right direction. Through this business council, we have to share best ideas and practices on how we can accelerate that.

The World Business Council will have its annual meeting in Chennai in October this year. This will give us an opportunity to enrol other people there. The PM will probably be there. So that will get the right attention.

There is this great debate about inequality. What do you think about it? Is it the biggest issue of our times?

The biggest issue is not poverty, it is exclusion. So poverty is relative. Inequality will always be there. Because we all are different. But what you want is equal opportunity. Then there are some basics that you want as well. The right to a job, right to food, right to education, equal rights to women and men. There is no religion that says it has to be different, I haven't found any. Equal opportunity for everyone is the most important thing. And we have started to realise that the world is better if we all have equal opportunities and solve these issues instead of some of us living behind barbed fences.

How much of this is caused by the financial market policies of the developed countries? Because you had asset-price inflation but you did not have good wage growth and you have consumer price deflation. Now the issue you are raising is different from what you are analysing. 

The issue that is happening with the financial industry is, because of the Basel agreement, the capital balance the banks need to keep has become so stringent that the banks don't lend anymore. So the original function of banks was forgotten by the banks themselves — which was to help the economy, not be the economy. So that was the crisis of 2007-08 in one sentence. That is why financing has not flown through. And that is the real issue right now.

The cost of capital in India is too high. People say how can I invest in green energy when the capital cost is so high. We need to find blended financial mechanisms. Why we have these disparities is what the economists call the tragedy of the commons. Where one benefit goes to some but the cost to the others. So how do you make a value chain work.

That's why when we were working on the USLP (Unilever Sustainable Living Plan), we said instead of shared value or CSR (corporate social responsibility), we take responsibility of the total value chain. If you don't do that, you cannot solve it. If you do it, you find opportunities that are enormous.

One of the topics at Davos was the fourth industrial revolution and its impact on employment, inequality, etc. What do you think?

Currently, there are 200 million people in the world unemployed. I personally think there are 2.5 billion more that are in the marginal jobs. So, if you see, 200 million is a ridiculous number. The world needs to create 40 million jobs a year because of the population growth, etc. India, by the way, needs to create 15 million jobs a year. So, in India, you might create 5-6 million jobs a year probably. So it is difficult with our industrial revolution. Because, in India, you are in the second part of the revolution.

Think about the wealth of robotics, driverless cars, and people-less checkout counters in supermarkets. You can see it is enormous job destruction. Some people say it will be around 1.8 billion. Now people should not be deprived of technology. For example, if drones could deliver drugs during a heart attack, hard to argue that it is not right. You can make financial inclusions and automatic bank transfers. Some of the jobs are very dangerous, people lose their lives, but they are now automated. Alzheimer's is a big problem and if you can get implants... so you should not stop advancement.

The industrial revolution gives us a lot of solutions to lift people out of poverty, so we will embrace it but at the same time we have to think how can we use it so that it is inclusive. For example, you cannot solve the issue of employment if you do not solve the problem of food security and issue of smallholder farmers. For that, you have to solve the issues of land rights and sustainable farming. You have to solve the issue of youth, otherwise we cut down money more fast. So, it becomes a value chain issue.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


22. International auto-part firms eye India
Business Standard | Feb. 08, 2016

New Delhi: The growth potential in the under-served Indian automobile market and the consequent demand for auto components has drawn a lot of interest from foreign manufacturers who are attending the Auto ExpoComponent Show in the capital. The four-day show begins Saturday.

A total of 600 international component firms are showing a range of automobile components and solutions to tap into the rising domestic market, especially the passenger vehicle segment.

In the last edition of the Component Show in 2014, 450 foreign exhibitors had participated. The total number of exhibitors, including domestic ones, has grown to 1,500 now against 1,200 in the previous edition.

Vinnie Mehta, director-general of Automotive Component Manufacturers Association, a local body, said there was rising interest in international manufacturers to understand trends in India.

Bajaj entry-level bike
Bajaj Auto on Friday launched a new variant of its entry-level motorcycle CT100 priced at Rs 30,990 (ex-showroom Delhi).
The new variant, CT100B, delivers a fuel economy of 99.1 kmpl (kilometre per litre) and comes with a two year warranty, the company said in a statement.

79,000 visit Auto Expo
A total of 79,000 visitors came to the Auto Expo as it opened to the public on Friday. The first day of last Expo in 2014 had seen 75,000 visitors. The Expo ends on Tuesday. Siam (Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers) expects a total footfall of 700,000 at the Expo against 560,000 a year ago.

The Expo at Pragati Maidan has eight dedicated international pavilions — China, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Canada, the UK, France and Germany. The French and South Korean pavilions are an addition over the last Expo.

A representative of the South Korean delegation said there was keenness among industry players to work with the Indian automobile industry. A total of 11 South Korean players are displaying components, especially electronic auto components, where the dependence on imports is significantly high.

Manufacturers from the UK are participating under the aegis of SMMF, the British counterpart of ACMA, to explore opportunities in Indian automotive manufacturing. British companies want to invest in India, put up manufacturing facilities for electric cars and also collaborate in R&D for efficient fuel solutions.

Arvind Balaji, ACMA president and joint managing director of component maker Lucas-TVS, said, “This is the second year when the Component Show is being organised separately from the Motor Show. It has given us more space and attracts focused visitors. We have had a record 1,500 participations this time. This shows that India is a market of the future. Everybody wants to establish a position in the country.” The rising focus of international players means greater competition for quality and market share for the domestic players, many of which have a tie up with foreign companies.

Another highlight of the show is the Innovation Pavilion, spread over 100 square metres, and created to draw attention to the latest innovations which auto component companies have indigenously designed, developed, tested and validated in India. Companies such as Sona Koyo, Lucas-TVS and Brakes India showcased their innovations. ACMA has chosen ‘Make Quality & Technology in India’ as its theme this year. The component industry also made efforts to raise awareness about counterfeit products being sold in the replacement market through its ‘Asli-Naqli’ pavilion.

The $38.5-billion component industry gets almost 30 per cent of its revenue from exports. The Automotive Mission Plan (AMP 2026), unveiled by the government last year, has set a target of a turnover of $223 billion by 2026 for the auto components sector, backed by strong exports ranging between $80-100 billion, from the current $11.2 billion.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


23. Solar alliance will ease tech transfer, pool funds: Hollande
The Hindu, 25 Jan. 2016 | Our Bureau

“If nations creating petroleum can come together, I wondered why nations where the sun shines for more than 300 days in a year cannot join hands. There are 122 nations like that, and the French President helped me in this initiative,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi here today.

He and French President Francois Hollande on Monday laid the foundation stone for the headquarters of the International Solar Alliance.

Hollande said the Alliance will help pool resources of nations, expand the market for solar energy to bring down investment costs and ease the transfer of technology to developing countries.

“France had to be on your side in the fight against global warming. Through ISA, France would like to share all the expertise that can be shared. The French Development Agency will contribute €300 million over the next five years to support solar energy,” he said.

Prime Minister Modi, whose brainchild is the ISA, called for striking a balance between preserving the environment and development.

“For the past one year the world has been deliberating on how to combat global warming and energy has become an integral part of a nation’s development journey. On the one hand you have the worry about global warming and saving the environment, on the other to fulfil the needs of mankind — but without energy it is impossible,” said Modi.

Independent institution
Talking about the ISA, he said that the alliance intends to bring together 122 nations that have more than 300 days of sunlight in a year.
Modi said that while the headquarters of the ISA is in India, it will be an independent global institution.
Apart from providing land for the ISA headquarters, India is also contributing ₹100 crore ($15 million) to the corpus of the organisation. The ISA aims to mobilise $1 trillion by 2030 for the development of solar power and make it affordable for developing nations.


24.1. Chinese investors bet big on India, internet giants pour funds into digital startups
Times of India | Jan. 27, 2016

New Delhi: The drought is turning into a deluge. For years, Chinese investment in India remained a trickle — $1.2 billion between 2000 and September 2015, which was only 0.47% of the total foreign direct investment inflow. While China became India's largest trading partner in 2008, investment flow from the country remained hostage to national security concerns.

That looks set to change significantly given the spate of announcements in the last few weeks. Wanda, China's largest commercial real estate developer, announced investment worth $10 billion in Haryana. SAIC Motor, China's largest carmaker, proposes to buy GM's Gujarat facility. About 100 small and medium Chinese enterprises have promised investments worth $1 billion.

In the startup space, Chinese companies are no more restricted to proposals, but have been making aggressive and widespread investments. The new year began with China's online travel company Ctrip picking up a strategic stake in Makemytrip and Baidu unveiling discussions with multiple Indian internet startups for investments. This comes in the backdrop of Alibaba's high profile investments in Snapdeal and Paytm last year. Another Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings started investing when it took a wager on Bangalore-based healthcare startup Practo last year.

"Chinese internet companies have recognized the big potential in India's digital startups where there are similarities in learning curves and experiences," Frank Hancock, managing director, advisory, Barclays said.
He pointed out that the broader FDI investments have pivoted towards the east with Japan competing with the US and the UK among the top three sources of capital. "In that context, the incremental Chinese private investments are important from a signaling perspective," Hancock said.

A recent Credit Suisse report highlighted that India's internet and e-commerce journey bears close similarity with that of China, with a lag of 8-10 years. "The presence of such investors on the boards of investee companies enables access to insightful market advice and winning business models," said Anup Vikal, CFO, Snapdeal, which has attracted investments from Alibaba, Taiwan's Foxconn and Japanese telecoms & internet giant Softbank.

Besides the strategic investors, Hillhouse Capital, one of the largest China-based investment funds, picked up a stake in online classifieds player Cardekho last year, and took positions in the domestic public markets.

More significant, though little known, are the investments by State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), a fully-owned subsidiary of People's Bank of China, in some of India's pedigree large cap stocks.

SAFE, entrusted with managing China's estimated $3.5 trillion foreign reserves, started taking positions in Indian public equities at least two quarters back, several top bankers in Mumbai said in recent conversations.

Between January 1, 2015 and January 22 this year, investors from Asia chose 48 Indian startups to provide financial backing. The 22 companies, from countries including Japan, China, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia, participated in funding rounds worth $3.4 billion in this period. Chinese companies Alibaba, Tencent, Ctrip, Didi Kuaidi, Hillhouse Capital and Tybourne (Hong Kong) were significant investors.

Most of China's cash reserves are said to be invested in dollar and euro denominated assets though it has started taking risk exposures in other geographies as well. While Chinese investor interest around Indian internet startups has gathered momentum, it is yet to translate into other sectors which the dragon has eyed for some years now.

Take, for instance, Fosun, arguably, the largest Chinese private conglomerate and the most active overseas acquirer. Fosun -- with interests spanning from pharma to real estate to internet -- started scouting for investments in India more than two years ago but hasn't struck any deals yet.

This is where some bankers forsee "the mutual dislike" between Indian and Chinese businesses, which are rooted in cultural differences and historical prejudices. "Private businesses in the two countries vary vastly, and love to look down upon each other," a senior banker said on condition of anonymity. Then there are whispers about India preferring neutral money from Japan and Canada to build its infrastructure.

Still, there isn't much doubt that China, and broadly the east, is becoming a large source of capital for new-age Indian entrepreneurs. "So far the US internet companies have had a lock on the India market. However, about a year ago, the Chinese internet conglomerates started to stitch things together in India with strategic bets.

Their approach is very long-term which bodes well for Indian startups who were dependent on very few deep-pocketed funds for writing the larger cheques," says Avnish Bajaj, MD at Matrix Partners India, an active investor in early stage tech companies like Quikr, Practo and Ola among others.

Hancock of Barclays said he would expect Chinese investors to top up their US counterparts. "I would see large Chinese private investments in the country's internet leaders which are already vetted by US venture capital and private equity funds," he explained, suggesting a slightly cautious Chinese action in a sector where Japan's SoftBank has become a prolific investor.

Outside the digital economy, bankers said, Japan has clearly signaled its intent for aggressive investments in infrastructure as it wants India to be a geopolitical counterweight to China. They, however, are counting on Chinese investments into Indian healthcare and real estate gathering steam. Mainland China's biggest property developer Wanda's fresh proposal of $10 billion investment in Haryana follows earlier announced joint ventures with Anil Ambani's Reliance Group to develop integrated townships in Navi Mumbai and Hyderabad.

As China joins Japan, Taiwan and South Korea to pump FDI into India, much depends on how its private businesses muscle up in the face of a slump after an extended economic miracle.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


24.2. India-UAE to ink 16 pacts; investment, oil and IT top agenda
Economic Times | Feb. 09, 2016

New Delhi: United Arab Emirates leader and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan is set to arrive in India on Wednesday along with seven ministers on a visit that is expected to witness signing of a landmark civil nuclear cooperation pact among agreements across sectors including a deal on security and information sharing to combat terrorists.

On his maiden visit to India in official capacity, Zayed Al Nahyan, chief architect of the UAE's counter-terror partnerships including that with India, also hopes to push bilateral trade and investments.

"India and the UAE hope to sign 16 agreements during the visit of Abu Dabhi crown prince. This includes a pact on civil nuclear cooperation involving power stations and setting up research and development centres," the UAE's envoy to India Ahmed AR Albanna told media persons, referring to the upcoming visit of the crown prince within six months of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's trip to the Gulf nation.

The UAE leader is scheduled to visit the country for three days, but he may extend the trip to attend the first day of the 'Make in India Week' in Mumbai on Saturday where business leaders from his country are among the participants.

On Friday, a business delegation of about a hundred people is expected to participate in the India-UAE economic symposium in Mumbai.

The nuclear cooperation agreement to be signed with the UAE will be India's first with any West Asian nation.
The UAE has civil nuclear pacts with France and South Korea, both of which have nuclear cooperation agreements with India as well.

The remaining 15 pacts will cover security cooperation and information sharing in the light of bilateral counterterror partnership; industrial cooperation, aerospace, finance, renewable energy, IT, cyber security and investments among other areas.

Albanna said that the joint statement that will be released after Modi-Al Nahyan meeting will deal with details on the counter-terror partnership. "This visit in many ways will reinforce the vision that was put in place by Modi's visit to the UAE last August and will uplift ties to strategic cooperation and strategic coordination on all regional issues and other major global issues," he said.

The UAE has deported a number of ISI-backed terror operatives and Islamic State (IS) radicalised youth to Delhi. Its leader's visit comes in the backdrop of the UAE handing over three Indian IS sympathisers to India last month, taking the total number of radicalised youth deported by the country since last year to a dozen.

The UAE has set up two centres with the radical and extremist groups and individuals.
The country had come out in India's support within hours of the Pathankot attack and even suggested that the terror strike should be investigated, in what was seen as an indirect reference to Pakistan. The UAE envoy said that his country supports peace process between any two countries and that it would be glad to further India-Pakistan peace process if need be.

Last year, during Prime Minister Modi's visit to both Abu Dabhi and Dubai, India and the UAE had announced a comprehensive counter-terror partnership that called for delinking terror from religion and denounced state-sponsored terrorism in an indirect message to Pakistan, the strong ties between Pakistan and the UAE notwithstanding.

The ministers expected to accompany the crown prince include the minister of state for foreign affairs, the minister of interior affairs (brother of the crown prince), the minister of energy, the minister of economy, the minister of labour, the minister of state for renewable energy and minister of state for India.

Besides security matters, the key objective of the visit is to strengthen economic and investment ties. The UAE has identified key sectors including railways, housing, ports, roads and renewable energy (mainly solar) for investments in India as part of the $75-billion investment fund announced during PM Modi's August 2015 trip by the Abu Dabhi Investment Authority. The authority and the Indian government held a brainstorming session in Delhi last week on investment proposals. Albanna said that government-funded private players from his country are also expected to make investment commitments in India this week. India is the UAE's biggest trading partner, with the figure touching $ 60 billion last year.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


25. Top Indian IT firms join US President Barack Obama's US$ 4 billion 'Computer Science for All' education plan
IBEF | February 01, 2016

Washington: Major Indian Information Technology (IT) firms like Wipro Limited, Infosys Limited and Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) have joined US President Mr Barack Obama’s education plan called ’Computer Science for All’ by pledging millions of dollars in donations and grants for training teachers.

President Mr Barack Obama recently announced the initiative to impart basic computer science skill to all children across schools in the country.

According to a statement issued by White House, Infosys has pledged a US$ 1 million in donation, while TCS is providing support in the form of grants to teachers in 27 US cities. Wipro plans to tie up with Michigan State University in a multi-year project involving more than one hundred school teachers to nurture excellence in science and mathematics across several US cities starting with public school systems of Chicago. Infosys and TCS's pledge is part of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) effort to collaborate with the private sector to support high school computer science (CS) teachers. This collaboration will provide opportunities for as many as 2,000 middle- and high-school teachers to deepen their understanding of computer science.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.


* * * 
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)