Projects hit as government fails to notify rules under Land Acquisition Act

Projects hit as government fails to notify rules under Land Acquisition Act

Effective implementation of projects in accordance with the environmental compliances is the key for sustainable economic growth: C Rangarajan

Creation of common policies and taxation system essential for sustainable and inclusive regional growth – CII

“Speedy and effective implementation of the projects particularly in the infrastructure sector, with due consideration to environment is the need of the hour and also the key to achieve higher economic and inclusive growth”, emphasized Dr C Rangarajan, Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister while addressing the Conference on ‘Reviving Growth in North’, organized by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Northern Region, coinciding with its Annual Regional Meeting, here today.

“Various procedural and other bottlenecks relating to the mega infrastructure projects, key Industrial and freight Corridors etc need to be removed on priority basis to give a fillip to the growth in the region”, he added.

Dr Rangarajan further informed that “In addition to the continuation of fiscal consolidation initiatives, the basic principle of reforms must also be applied to all key sectors of the economy and all possible policy or other bottlenecks, causing delay in completion of projects should be analyzed and sorted out on top priority. This is critical to enhance India’s image as an attractive investment destination”.

“There is a need to prioritize the spending on subsidies and subsequently I hope we would be able to bring the subsidy spending down to 1.6% from current 2.2 % of the GDP. Critical sectors like food security do demand subsidies, but it can be withdrawn from other sectors like Petroleum etc to bring about a balance”, he highlighted.

Stressing on the need to improve governance, he called upon the Governments ( both state & centre) to enhance their delivery systems so that all measures actually reach the needy effecivley.

“The growth rate would be around 5.5 % in the last fiscal which would enable us to achieve our projected rate of 4.9 % for the present year. For the next year, I expect the growth rate to pick up to 5.5 – 6 % backed by sound growth in agri, services & infra sectors”, informed Dr Rangarajan.

Calling upon CII members to enhance their productivity levels, Dr Rangarajan highlighted that “The Investment rate at 30.4 % still remains sufficient, but we need to focus strongly upon the productivity and returns on investments to enhance Incremental Capital Ratio. For this, we should invest more in technology up gradation, modern infrastructure and adoption of latest mechanisms & processes to get the maximum returns of whatever Investments we have”.

Highlighting some of the sectoral issues, he stressed that “We have some constraints in Power sector due to lack of supply of coal; agri, manufacturing, infra etc which need to be sorted out immediately. Power is indeed the backbone of growth, so we need to further build on our power generation capacities in order to fuel growth. Industry can in no way run without power and without industrial growth, there can be no inclusive or equitable growth because it is industry that generates huge employment”.

On other reforms like Land Legislation and labour reforms, he shared that “There is a need to get all stakeholders together and build a consensus on these issues and only then, the government can decide further”.

A CII Report on ‘Reviving Growth in North’ was also released by Dr C Rangarajan.

Mr D K Joshi, Chief Economist, CRISIL Ltd shared that “Power, Land and labour reforms are the core of the problem for north. Various procedural bottlenecks need to be removed both at the central and state level. Issues like interest rates, fiscal policy and political stability need to be addressed at the national level, however, issues like land prices, labour and power reforms can be taken care of at State level for better results”.

“There is a need to bring flexible labour laws, bring out new technologies for coal mining and extract iron ores below earth’s crust, enhance ease of setting up new business and conversion of Agri land, and most importantly increase our power production capacities to revive the growth in the region”

Global uncertainty has taken a toll on the Indian economy with the GDP for past two years growing at sub 5 per cent per annum, much below the potential growth rate said Mr Jayant Davar, Chairman, CII NR & Co-Chairman & Managing Director, Sandhar Technologies Ltd.

Emphasizing on the reform agenda to revive and accelerate growth, he urged for expediting the setting up of notified National Manufacturing Investment Zones (NIMZs), fast tracking approvals for delayed projects, appropriate legislation for consolidation of farm holdings and implementation of the Model APMC Act in its true spirit across all states.

Mr Naoyoshi NOGUCHI, Chief Director General, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) highlighted that “There is a need to promote the entire northern region as a single entity. He emphasized on importance of having common policies and taxation system, seamless movement of people and sharing of resources like power and water to foster inclusive growth in the region. He further added that there is a need to provide better living conditions to the migrant population as well as focused initiatives on skill development for enhancing their employability.

The complex business regulatory framework is adversely impacting the Ease of Doing Business in the country said Mr Zubin J Irani, Deputy Chairman, CII Northern Region & President, Building & Industrial Systems (India), United Technologies Corporation. There is a need to review the compliance and regulatory processes to make them more simple and relevant, added Mr Irani.

The CII Conference, themed on ‘Reviving Growth in North’ focused on the critical reforms to revive growth and the role of good governance in promoting inclusive growth. This conference also included two panel discussions on ‘Fostering Inclusive Growth through Good Governance’ and Industry CEOs of the Region on ‘Reviving the Growth in North’. Eminent speakers from the industry and the government including Mr Arun Maira, Member, Planning Commission, Mr Manish Sisodia, Founding Member, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Ms Chhavi Rajawat, Director, Bharatiya Mahila Bank & Sarpanch, Soda Village, Rajasthan, Mr Deep Kapuria, Chairman, Hi-Tech Group of Companies, Mr Vijay K Thadani, CEO, NIIT Ltd and Mr Malvinder M Singh, Executive Chairman, Fortis Healthcare Ltd shared their perspective at the conference.

Republic of Congo, Uganda call for greater Indian investments

Indian companies investing in the Republic of Congo will gain access to a larger regional market in Africa. The Republic of Congo is strategically located in the heart of Africa. Stating this in his address in the plenary session on ‘Industrialisation in Africa: Role of Indian Private Sector’ on Day 2 of the three-day 10th CII-EXIM BANK Conclave on India Africa Project Partnership being organised in New Delhi, Mr Isidore Mvouba, Senor Minister, Charge of Industry, Republic of Congo said that the Indian private sector could play a key part in the African country’s march to become an emerging economy by year 2025.

Mr Mvouba said that Government of India and Indian industry have already participated in his country’s rural electrification, urban transportation, and food quality control projects and in industries like cement, pharmaceuticals, etc. He said that Indian companies could partner the Republic of Congo government in converting the country’s comparative advantage in different sectors into competitive strengths. He highlighted agriculture and agro-processing, mining, oil, building and construction, tourism, hotels, and financial services as areas where Indian investments could make a big difference.

Mr Mvouba said that the President of the Republic of Congo, Mr Denis Sassou Nguesso, will make a state visit to India later this year. Republic of Congo is the ‘Focus Country’ at the Conclave.

Ms Maria Kiwanuka, Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Uganda, saidthe key challenge for India and Africa lies in leveraging the learnings from the past to engage in value-added activities. Ms Kiwanuka said that Uganda enjoys a stable political and macro-economic environment that is extremely conducive for investments. She pointed out that Uganda has been one of the fastest growing economies in the world in the last 20 years. The country has made significant oil discoveries and has huge reserves of non-oil minerals like cobalt, uranium, graphite, etc.

Ms Kiwanuka said the Ugandan government is focused on using the proceeds from the oil industry to finance the country’s infrastructure development. She added that the country seeks Indian expertise and investments to convert the “black gold lying in the sub-soil into green gold”. She also said that Indian private sector could play a catalytic role in Uganda’s agriculture sector and agri-business industry.

Mr Manoj Kohli, Managing Director, Bharti Enterprises, cited three key challenges that meet Indian investors in India, namely, physical infrastructure bottlenecks, local currency volatility, and shortage of skilled manpower. Companies that efficiently deal with these challenges have immense business opportunities in Africa, he said.

Mr Kenichi Ayukawa, Managing Director and CEO, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, said in his address that India has the capability to offer low-cost transport mobility solutions to Africa. He pointed out that the passenger car manufacturing industry contributes to the growth of other sectors like insurance.

Referring to Indian passenger vehicle exports to Africa, Mr Ayukawa expressed hope that African countries will offer a level playing field to Indian exports. Currently, Indian auto exporting firms encounter high and differential duty rates in Africa. He urged Africa to promote the market for new cars and rely less on used car imports.

Mr Sanjay Kirloskar, Chairman & Managing Director, Kirloskar Brothers Ltd, said that Indian companies operating in Africa would do well to engage in the training of local human resources. A trained local workforce is key to Africa’s sustained industrialisation. He also pointed out that Indian AAA technologies have great relevance in Africa’s industrial sector.

Earlier, Mr Rajat Gupta, Director, McKinsey & Co, while sharing the highlights of the CII-McKinsey Report on “Joining hands to unlock Africa’s potential – A new Indian industry-led approach to Africa”, said that the Indian private sector will profit from adopting a solutions partner approach in Africa. Stating that in the coming years Africa will become the second fastest growing region in the world after emerging Asia, Mr Gupta said that Indian companies could focus on new opportunities in the top 30 cities in Africa. Africa could also be a base for Indian companies that are globalising their operations.

Indian investments account for 6.5% of total FDI inflows into Africa, and India-Africa bilateral trade accounts for 6% of Africa’s total trade. Mr Gupta that Indian companies could tap estimated $150 billion worth of business opportunities in Africa by year 2025.

Mr Noel N Tata, Chairman, CII Africa Committee and Managing Director, Tata International Ltd, moderated the session.