India and US to witness deeper collaborations and partnerships: Panel

Ambassador Frank Wisner, Former US Ambassador to India and International Affairs Advisor, Patton Boggs, emphasized that President Obama’s upcoming visit was one of the defining moments in Indo-US bilateral relations both politically and economically. He was speaking at The Partnership Summit 2015 which is being organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India and the Government of Rajasthan in Jaipur from 15-17 January, 2015.

Ambassador Wisner felt that defense production and trade was a potential area of cooperation for the two countries. India’s position in trade alliances like the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Pacific Alliance (PA) would also help in forging Indo-US ties, he said.

Commenting on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plea to Indian diaspora worldwide to come back and contribute to India’s development, Mr Naushad Forbes, Vice President, CII said that maybe NRIs would not have considered this option fruitful some years ago, but today India presents a transformed environment for professionals especially in the IT and Education sectors. Tapping diaspora is a matter of opportunity and perspective and today’s India possesses it in leaps and bounds, he added.

Mr Krish Iyer, President and CEO, Walmart India, pointed out that for facilitating an enabling economic environment for investors, the role of States and their relationship with the Centre is significant and he was heartened by the initiatives of the current government like new de-licencing and deregulation measures to create a win-win situation for both countries.

Trade has a new dimension now with the resurgence of the US economy and the upcoming high-powered CEO’s delegations between India and US, remarked Ambassador S K Lambah, Former Special Envoy to the PM and Co-chair, US India Strategic dialogue. He also expressed enthusiasm while informing that there is a positive movement on civil nuclear programme, defense trade, cyber security, clean energy and sustainable practices.

Earlier in her welcome remarks, Ms Shobana Kamineni, Chairperson, CII National Committee on Public Health and Executive Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals stated that US-India trade stands at an impressive figure and there are a lot of Indian companies who have invested and are operating in various industries in the US and vice-versa. The Indian government’s focus with the aim of making India a manufacturing hub holds great promise for deeper collaborations and partnerships with the US

‘Mega-regionals’ could be the future of global trade rules: Rajeev Kher

India needs to prepare towards a higher regulatory regime as mega-regionals such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TTP) and Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) looks to set a new rules paradigm, said Commerce Secretary, Mr. Rajeev Kher. He was speaking at the Partnership Summit which is being organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in cooperation with the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the Government of Rajasthan in Jaipur from January 15-17, 2015.

Mr. Kher noted that most developing countries are not in a position to affiliate to these rules, however, there is a huge trade and economic reforms agenda in India that can be guided by the rules being negotiated in the TPP. He also stated that India’s participation in the negotiations of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) comes out from the recognition that Asia as a manufacturing hub in the world would be crucial for India’s aspirations of achieving greater linkages in the manufacturing and services value chains.

Trade ministers from Australia and Malaysia – two countries that are part of both the TPP and RCEP negotiations, also noted the lower level of ambition of the RCEP as compared to TPP. Andrew Robb, Minister of Trade and Investment, Australia said that when TPP and RCEP regions come together the benefits of seamless regulations can be shared across the whole region. Mr. Mohamed, Minister of International Trade and Industry, Malaysia said that the TPP will lead to greater value chain integration while expressing concerns that the country had over some issues like state-owned enterprises, investor-state dispute settlement and loss of sovereignty on some non-trade areas.

Global value chains (GVCs) have revolutionised not just international commerce but also trade policy making. Making this point, Harsha Vardhana Singh, former DDG of the WTO, said that mega-regionals are an indication of the change that is taking place in the world and the upgradation taking place much faster than expected. Due to the trade-investment-services-GVCs-technology nexus, higher standards will be incorporated into the mega-regional framework, including the ever-changing private standards. Giving an instance of the IT sector, he said that as soon as privacy and data transfer standards are upgraded India’s competitiveness in the sector could be eroded, unless adequate reforms in the services sector are not put in place.

Later, Ms. Gao Yan, Vice Minister of Commerce, China, said that while China is getting used to the ‘new normal’ of lower growth and higher reforms, standards are being constantly upgraded to reflect innovation driven growth. China attaches great importance to the TPP and TTIP negotiations and are open towards joining both mega-regionals, she said. Both China and India are part of the RCEP, one of the most important regional agreements in Asia, and China looks to work constructively with India towards conclusion of the agreement, she said.

Earlier, Mr. Sunil Kant Munjal, Chairman, Hero Corporate Services Ltd., said that India needs to keep a realistic eye on the WTO-plus regimes that have emerged due to the impasse in the WTO Doha Round and the changing reality of how trade and investments are conducted across the world. He said that through the RCEP, India has the opportunity to proactively engage in the mega-regional rule-making exercise, while preparations need to begin for the kind of changes that will be required to equip the policy framework and business capability to work in a ‘high standard’ world trading system.

The US and EU began negotiations on the TTIP in 2013, and negotiations between the US and eleven other nations across the Pacific are at an advanced stage under the TPP with a growing membership each year. It is interesting to note that none of the large emerging economies, including India, Brazil and China are part of the US-centric mega-regionals. Instead, India and China are part of the ASEAN-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that was launched among the ASEAN members and its FTA partners towards the end of 2012.

India is one of the most liberal countries in terms of FDI: Amitabh Kant

According to Mr. Amitabh Kant, Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, India is one of the most liberal countries in terms of its FDI regime as over 90% of the proposals fall under the automatic route. Mr. Kant was addressing a session on “Make in India: Offering a New Partnership Opportunity to Industry” at The Partnership Summit 2015 organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) and the Government of Rajasthan in Jaipur during 15-17 January 2015.

(L-R) Dr Surinder Kapur, Chairman, Sona Koyo Steering Systems Ltd & member of the Apex Committee on CSM; Mr Amitabh Kant, Secretary, DIPP, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India; Ms Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Commerce and Industry, Government of India; and Prof Shoji Shiba, Chief Advisor, Champions for Societal Manufacturing at the Partnership Summit, CII, Birla Auditorium, Jaipur on 15 January, 2015.

According to Mr. Kant, job creation is a major challenge in India given its demographics. He pointed out that growth in India was largely driven by the services sector and India and not through manufacturing. He felt that India now needed to adopt a policy of manufacturing led growth in order to create the quantum of jobs required for India’s growth.

He pointed out that one of the key features of the Make in India campaign was to make India an easier place to do business.  It is in this context that several laws, rules and regulations had been simplified. The use of technology was being promoted to make compliance easier. The new e-biz platform, he pointed out, was created for just that purpose.

Mr. Kant highlighted that as a part of this initiative the FDI regime had been liberalized and FDI restrictions on several sectors such as railways, defense and construction had been relaxed.

According to Mr. Kant, another major feature of the Make in India campaign is the focus on infrastructure development. In this context, Mr. Kant spoke about the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor and pointed out that by 2017, it is expected that goods from Delhi would be able to reach Mumbai and loaded onto ships in a matter of 14 hours instead of 14 days at present. Similarly, several other corridors being developed in different parts of India should help link industrial centers inland to ports.

In his address, Mr, Martin Hamilton-Smith, Minister for Investment and Trade, Government of South Australia stated that his state was ready to support the Make in India campaign. He stated that South Australia was a major center for high value added manufacturing such as robotics and industrial automation which could help make manufacturing processes more efficient.

Mr. William Danvers, Deputy Secretary General, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and Mr. Li Yong, Director General, United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) both highlighted the need for India to address issues such as infrastructure and regulatory bottlenecks so as to attract greater investment into the manufacturing sector. These, they stated, included reforms in areas such as labour regulations, land acquisition, tax policies among others.

In her address, Ms. Patricia Hewitt, Chair, UK-India Business Council stated that UK companies are already manufacturing in India – some for several years now. She pointed out that UK was the largest G-20 investor in India if one were to consider portfolio investment and FDI together. India, in turn, was one of the largest investors in the UK and Tata Steel had emerged as the country’s largest employer. Ms. Hewitt stated that the UK could extend support to India in areas such as smart cities, re-juvenation of older cities, embedded services in manufacturing among others.

Rajasthan has stood the test of time and is poised to become a leading economy within India: Vasundhara Raje

We are committed to making Rajasthan a business-friendly State and have taken several steps in that direction, said Vasundhara Raje, Chief Minister of Rajasthan at a Special Plenary Session at The Partnership Summit in Jaipur on January 16, 2015. The Partnership Summit is jointly organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Government of India, and the Government of Rajasthan.

Partnership Summit 2015
Ms Vasundhara Raje, Chief Minister, Government of Rajasthan addressing at the inaugural session of the Partnership Summit 2015 on 15 January, 2015 at Jaipur.

With a view to encouraging investments into the State, the Chief Minister spoke of a slew of measures undertaken in areas such as policy, infrastructure, labour among others. She said the State Government is committed to simplifying and rationalizing regulations and laws, and especially mentioned the Rajasthan Investment Promotion Scheme launched in 2014, and the reforms in the Labour Laws, as measures that would boost investments. In fact Rajasthan’s reforming Labour Laws is seen as  a step worth emulating by other States also. As testimony to the State’s attractiveness as an investment destination, the Chief Minister spoke of JCB, Saint Gobain and Honda as three multinationals which have huge investments in the State. Moreover, the Koreans have also expressed interest in investing in the State, and Rajasthan will soon engage with the Bombay Stock Exchange to set up a Centre to impart training in financial skills. The Minister emphasized that partnership between the Central Government, the State Governments and industry will be critically important to accelerate India’s growth and development.

Earlier, Minister for Industries, Government of Rajasthan, Gajendra Singh Khimsar spoke of the locational and other advantages that the State offers such as abundant land; proximity to India’s capital; the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor passing through the State; abundant labour; ample power; diversity of products – textiles, cement, glass, agro-based products, leather goods and geographical and cultural richness which offers huge tourism potential. He mentioned that the State has already initiated several reforms in laws and regulations and is working on a new industrial policy to further facilitate investments. He said that with the CM emphasizing skill development, Rajasthan will be one of the few states to offer abundant skilled labour, good infrastructure and regulations and laws that promote Ease of Doing Business. He mentioned the Rajasthan Solar Policy and the announcement of building 20,000 kms of mega highways that will be like a shot in the arm to boost industry.

(L-R) Shri C S Rajan, Chief Secretary, Govt. of Rajasthan; Shri Gajendra Singh Khimsar, Minister for Industries, Government of Rajasthan; Mr Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII; Mr Sumit Mazumder, President Designate, CII and Chairman and Managing Director, TIL Limited; Ms Vasundhara Raje, Chief Minister, Government of Rajasthan; Shri Suresh Prabhu, Minister for Railways and India’s G20 Sherpa, Government of India; Ms Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Commerce and Industry, Government of India; Mr Nikola Gruevski, Prime Minister of Macedonia; Shri Amitabh Kant, Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India and Mr Ajay S Shriram, President,CII and Chairman & Senior Managing Director, DCM Shriram Ltd at the inaugural session of the Partnership Summit 2015 on 15 January, 2015 at Jaipur.

Elaborating on investment opportunities in Rajasthan, Veenu Gupta, Prinicpal Secretary – Industries, Government of Rajasthan said Rajasthan offers the basics required for industrial development – infrastructure, labour, land, educational institutions which produce quality manpower. She mentioned how RIICO encourages investments and provides industrial infrastructure, especially for sector-specific industrial areas such as IT Parks. Rajasthan, she said, is the first state to have a country-specific zone (Japan) with more countries evincing interest in this. Among sectors with good investment potential, she mentioned automotive; ceramic and glass; IT; ESDM; Solar; Defence; Urban Centres and Tourism. She mentioned that the State Government is looking at PPP as an excellent model to realize the potential that Rajasthan offers.

Mr Amitabh Kant, Secretary, DIPP, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, said that the key challenge for India today is to find ways to accelerate India’s growth rate to 9/10 per cent over an extended period of time, which can be achieved with the active participation of States. He praised Rajasthan saying it is a State focused on reforms and enhancing ease of doing business and said that amongst Indian States, Rajasthan has taken the lead in terms of reforms and delivering on its commitments. He said that Rajasthan offers tremendous potential, and will be the solar capital of India, urging investors to focus on Rajasthan if they wanted to create wealth.

Sharing their experiences as investors in the State were Vipin Sondhi, Chairman, CII National Committee on National Goods and Engineering and MD and CEO, JCB India Ltd and B. Santhanam, Chairman, CII Task Force on GTC 100, President- Flat Glass, South Asia, Malaysia, Egypt and MD, Saint Gobain Glass India Ltd who vouched for the efficient and transparent systems and the industry-friendly policies that the State offers to investors.

Earlier in his welcome address, Mr. Sumit Mazumder, President – Designate, CII stated that the state of Rajasthan had immense potential for investors. Rajasthan accounts for 10.4% of the country’s geographical area, but only 5.7% of the population. It is the eighth largest state economy in the country, and accounts for around 4.4% of the country’s GDP in 2012-13.