08th March, 2010 to 14th March, 2010
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On the Occasion of World Women’s Day - Statement made by Mr. Chandrajit Banerjee, DG, CII
Delhi, March 08, 2010 The quiet revolution of gender empowerment is transforming the social, cultural and business landscape of India. With 10 lakh women elected as people’s representatives, crores of women belonging to self-help groups, and rising participation of women in the workforce, women are rapidly scaling their presence in the Indian polity and economy. In years to come, the impact of this woman-power on India’s economic growth and inclusive development will be tremendous.
There are, however, still gender gaps to be filled. The corporate sector has a vital role to play as a catalyzing agent and CII intends to drive this agenda, said Mr Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII. Top
Majority of India’s top CEOS express confidence of over 8% growth in 2010-11
Delhi, March 08, 2010 Following the Economic Survey projections of GDP growth at 8.5 % in 2010-11, a good majority of CEOs surveyed during the CII National Council Meeting held on 3 March 2010 in New Delhi showed confidence that India will grow between 8-8.5% in 2010-11. About 100 CEOs attended the CII National Council meeting. An overwhelming 92% of the CEOs predict a better outlook for the first quarter (Apr-Jun 2010) as compared to the current quarter (Jan-Mar 2010).
Over the last few days, the Finance Minister has been lauded for presenting a development-oriented Budget maintaining a finely balanced view of allocating increased outlays for priority sectors like Infrastructure and putting more money in the hands of the consumer through the restructuring of the tax slabs, while keeping efforts to reduce the fiscal deficit. Responding to the question on meeting industry expectations, 64% of the CEOs gave a thumbs-up to the Budget saying that it met their expectations.
Reducing the fiscal deficit to sustainable levels where it does not hinder growth and still is able to rein in inflation has been the tight-rope walk for the Finance Minister and wins the confidence of 64% of the respondents who believe that he would be able to achieve the target of reducing the fiscal deficit to 5.5% in 2010-11.
Close on the heels of the Annual Policy Review which will be released by RBI in April 2010, 60% of the respondents feel that that the best response by the RBI would be to maintain status quo on both CRR and Policy rate changes. This comes in the backdrop of RBI raising CRR by 75 basis points from 5.0% to 5.75%, and shifting its stance from ‘managing the crises’ to ‘managing the recovery’ in its Third Quarter Monetary Policy Review. A uniform view that emerged was that inflationary pressure is not expected to subside anytime soon, with 56% of the respondents maintaining that inflation would be in the range of 8.5-9% by end-March 2010. Top
Wipro Technologies Enters into a Strategic Partnership with The Main Street America Group
Bangalore, March 04, 2010 Wipro Technologies, the global IT services business of Wipro Limited (NYSE:WIT), today announced that it has entered into a seven year strategic agreement with The Main Street America Group, a leading provider of commercial, personal and surety insurance products exclusively, sold through independent agents to individuals, families and small businesses in 24 US states. Main Street will engage with Wipro for applications development, maintenance and quality assurance using Wipro's CMMi Level 5 quality services.
Under terms of the agreement, Wipro will supplement Main Street America's IT organization in its endeavor to support its present and future business needs. Main Street America will leverage Wipro's global delivery model to achieve faster time-to-market capabilities and reduce operating costs by utilizing economies of scale. Wipro will support Main Street America's Personal Lines business on its Main Street Station and legacy platforms. In addition, Wipro will support its Main Street Station Commercial Lines and Bond processing systems. Under the agreement, Wipro will bring Service Level improvements over the initial term of seven years.
"As The Main Street America Group continues to increase scale and productivity, we need to implement more efficient processes while reducing our operating costs," said Ronald James, Main Street America's chief information officer. "Because Wipro has more than 4,500 IT insurance professionals at its disposal, we will be able to better support specific phases of projects and maintenance/regulatory demands from our business units. Partnering with Wipro could also help us close timelines and accelerate delivery of some of our projects."
"Wipro's demonstrated capabilities to US insurers allowed us to become Main Street America's trusted IT Services provider. We look forward to supporting their future growth," said Ajoy Menon, Insurance Business unit Global Head, Wipro Technologies. "Main Street America has a strong customer service culture with its distribution force of independent insurance agents and employees. We are happy to partner with them as we are confident with our expertise and customer-oriented approach we will be able to deliver greater value and enable Main Street America to sustain its superior customer service culture." Top
India Needs Innovation Ecosystem
Delhi, March 03, 2010 In his welcome remarks delivered at “Unconference on Building India Innovation Ecosystem” at New Delhi today, Mr. Ajai Chowdhry, Chairman-CII National Committee on Technology & Innovation and Chairman & CEO,HCL Infosystems Ltd. mentioned that technology and innovation is critical to inclusive and India needs a unique ecosystem for constant sustainable growth.
An “Unconferncing on Building India Innovation Ecosystem” was held with the support of Planning Commission. The main idea behind the unconference was to discuss on creating an India focused Innovation Ecosystem by identifying the existing enablers, inferring the gaps and identifying specific goals to address key challenges of our country where innovation can play a major role. Mr Arun Maira, Member - Planning Commission was the moderator of the event and gave an overview about the entire concept. Mr. Sam Pitroda advisor to the Prime Minister of India on Infrastructure & Information called for an innovation culture that promotes breaking of processes. Prof. Samir K Brahmachari, Secretary - DSIR, and DG-CSIR shared his valuable thoughts on the above theme.
Prof. Rishikesha Krishnan, IIM Bangalore was the rapporteur and gave interesting visual representation of the overview of the existing Innovation ecosystems & gaps. The interaction concluded with the feedback from the participants and consolidation by the moderator. The effort of CII was lauded in organizing such a dynamic exciting event where participants could voice theirs ideas and opinion on their take on Innovation Ecosystem.
All participants agreed that more similar interactive sessions will help in achieving the desired innovative ecosystem that our strongly needs. Top
Industrial Technology and Innovation Mission launched
Delhi, March 03, 2010 In order to make India a global hub of excellence in cross disciplinary higher education of as well as in Industrial R&D in the 21st century through Industry-Academia collaborations, CII and all IITs have formed CII-IIT Council today.
Directors of 13 IITs and key industry captains of CII National Council are the members of this newly constituted council.
In the first meeting of the Council, three very important initiatives have been launched. The first initiative is to come out with a yearly compendium of IIT-Industry successful collaborative projects and celebrate the same in a yearly convention to provide necessary recognition and rewards to inspire others.
The second initiative that was launched was Industrial Technology & Innovation Mission for design and development of new products and solutions. This mission will involve creation of a pool of willing industry (with a special emphasis on MSMEs) who will invest in product development, future technologies, technologies to overcome national and global challenges.
The council has also decided to develop a roadmap for 21st Century Innovation University being contemplated by the Government of India.
Mr. Ajai Chowdhry, Chairman-CII National Committee on Technology and innovation and Chairman & CEO,HCL Infosystems Ltd. Chaired the first meeting of the council.
All the members felt that this initiative will provide necessary thrust for India to leapfrog towards innovation driven Economy. Top
No roll back on excise, customs for petro products, MAT will also stay : Revenue Secy
Delhi, March 03, 2010 Despite pressures for rolling back excise and customs increase on petroleum products, the government is unlikely to shake and rates announced for excise and customs for petroleum products including 18% MAT in Budget proposals for 2010-11 will stay as such, indicated Revenue Secretary, Mr. Sunil Mitra.
Delivering his keynote address at ASSOCHAM organized Post Budget Seminar here today in which Chairman CBEC Mr. V Sridhar and Chairman CBDT, Mr. S S N Moorthy had also participated, Mr. Mitra clarified that effective corporate tax is around 22% and Finance Minister rewarded common man and industry with lot of consumption as well as savings power, no roll back could be possible on issues listed above.
Fiscal consolidation and growth would continue to be top priority of the Finance Minister for which revenue generation is one of the objectives of the Finance Ministry and through raise in excise and customs on petroleum products including crude, the government would have to generate Rs.26,000 crore in fiscal 2010-11, pointed out the Revenue Secretary. This will be possible only with no tinkering in excise and customs duties proposal announced for petroleum sector for Budget 2010-11, said Mr. Mitra.
He explained that hike in excise and customs duties would not fuel inflation in the long run and on the contrary the raise in these two duties would be absorbed because food inflation is mainly on account of supply side constraints. Mr. Mitra, however, admitted that inflation could marginally go up in the short term on account of upwardly increase in customs and excise.
Referring to the issue of MAT, the Revenue Secretary pointed out that the government not only relaxed surcharge on corporate tax but also substantially raise income-tax rebate for common man, the impact of which would be that consumers would have greater purchasing power and would be able to save also.
Therefore, 3% raise in Minimum Alternate Tax should be taken by the industry in right spirits as it would marginally increase their tax burden, said Mr. Mitra calling upon industry not to seek it’s reduction and on the contrary helped the government move on the path of higher growth trajectory as well as ensure for it prudent fiscal consolidation policies.
In his remarks, CBDT Chairman, Mr. S S N Morthy disclosed that until recently the Finance Ministry disbursed worth Rs.42,000 crores of income-tax refunds to eligible taxpayers in ongoing fiscal as against refund benefits of Rs.28,000 crore for entire preceding fiscal. He assured that it would further expedite the process for faster clearances of refund dues in future by creating a Special Monitoring Cell in the CBDT to avoid public criticism.
He further said more than 50% hike has been noticed in the refund benefits to taxpayers until today for fiscal 2009-10 and it would be the attempt of the Finance Ministry to clear off eligible refunds as soon as possible so that there is hardly any public criticism.
According to Mr. Moorthy, the Central Board of Direct Taxes as suggested by ASSOCHAM would create a special Monitoring Cell in the board so that refund benefits are not delayed and tax compliance increase as per Budget estimates for 2010-11 for an amount of Rs.4,30,000 crore.
In his welcome remarks, ASSOCHAM Vice President & Member of Parliament, Mr. Rajkumar Dhoot urged the government to reconsider increase in Minimum Alternate Tax to a ceiling of 18% and urged the government to bring it down 15% since industry was anticipating that MAT would be reduced to levels of 10%. He complimented the Finance Ministry for presenting a balanced budget which would integrate a sound balance between growth on one side and consumption and savings on the other.
Speaking on the occasion, ASSOCHAM Committee Chairman on Indirect Tax, Mr. Nihal Kothari urged the government to exempt real estate sector from levy of service tax since real estate is subjected to stamp duties and therefore it faces the challenge of double taxation.
Mr. Rahul Garg, ASSOCHAM Committees on Indirect Tax Co-Chairman sought norms for reporting of agriculture income which was endorsed by Mr. D S Rawat, Secretary General ASSOCHAM who also spoke on the occasion. Top
Fire Fighting Enterprises Appoints Vishwajeet Thakar as India Manager
Mumbai, March 03, 2010 Fire Fighting Enterprises (FFE) has appointed Vishwajeet Thakar as its new India Manager. A subsidiary of Halma p.l.c., FFE is the world's largest independent manufacturer of infrared optical beam smoke detectors. The company is committed to developing the Indian fire safety market and has already had many successes in installations across the country, from cinemas to power stations. Vishwajeet's appointment will help to secure the company's reputation in India.
Based at Halma's Mumbai hub office, Vishwajeet will work to increase awareness of FFE's beam detectors and vibration switches across India. He will cement relationships with existing customers while also working to identify new customers and market opportunities. By gaining an understanding of end-user requirements he will be able to provide valuable input into developing new products based on the needs of the Indian market.
Vishwajeet has over 15 years' experience in technical sales, most recently as a product manager with System Application International, a UAE-based diversified engineering group. Prior to that he held business development management positions with a number of leading international and Indian companies, including Digihome Solutions and Schneider Electric. He holds a Masters Degree in Management Science, a Diploma in Business Management and a BSc in Science, all from the University of Pune. Top
Exports growth will need to accelerate to 18-20% for the next 15 years
Delhi, March 02, 2010 Indian manufacturing has seen an impressive annual growth rate of around 6.8 percent over the last 10 years (1999-2009) making India one of the best performing manufacturing economies in the world. Manufacturing contributes ~15 percent of India’s GDP, ~50 percent of exports and ~12 percent of the workforce and has a multiplier effect in generating indirect employment. It is in this context, that the CII - BCG Report on Indian manufacturing addresses some key questions - What should be the growth aspirations of the manufacturing sector in the country given that India needs to generate nearly 220 million new jobs in next 15 years? How can India enhance competitiveness of its manufacturing sector? What are the impediments to achieving this aspiration? This CII – BCG report examines these questions, in the context of the major forces that are shaping global and Indian manufacturing industries.
To meet these challenges, the report sets out an aspirational, growth rate of about 11% p.a. over the next 15 years which will make India the fourth largest manufacturing economy in the world by 2025 (current ranking of 13th) and generate between 50-90 mn additional jobs by 2025.
The aspirations have several critical implications. Gross fixed assets will need to increase by Rs. 55 - 80 lakh crores by 2025. Exports growth will need to accelerate to 18-20% from the 11% seen in the last decade. India’s labour productivity will need to increase substantially and close the growing gap with China. Finally, India will have to produce many more ‘world beaters’ from the manufacturing sector with 3-4 fold increase in the number of Indian manufacturing companies with annual revenue in excess of $1 billion from 25 today to 70 - 80 in 2025, and 4-5 firms with annual revenue in excess of $100 billion.
To achieve this aspiration, the report proposes a “House of Manufacturing” as a roadmap with three key pillars:
Developing Strong Enabling Infrastructure: Manufacturing sector cannot achieve its aspirations if India does not build a strong enabling infrastructure. The report outlines the three important components of this enabling infrastructure and the challenges in each (1) world class physical infrastructure that drives higher efficiency, with focus on better execution of infrastructure projects (2) strong human capital to ensure that manufacturing companies have access to high quality talent, specifically increasing focus on ‘employabiliy’ of the educated workforce beyond just an increase in number of qualified personnel and (3) simplified government procedures and policies and reduction of transaction costs and indirect taxes that will improve the ‘ease of doing business’
Exploring New Avenues of Growth : To achieve this level of growth, the Indian manufacturing sector will have to go beyond ‘business as usual’ and exploit new avenues for growth that are being created today. The report identifies and discuses three such high growth opportunities (1) rapid globalisation of supply chains and migration of manufacturing capacity to developing countries, opening up a large export opportunity (2) sustainable development and emergence of “Green Technologies”, creating opportunities in green products and services, as well as opportunities and threats from carbon costs and (3) India’s changing income demographics and opportunities among the “Next Billion” consumers segment, a global market of ~ $ 950 Bn where Indian companies can have a natural advantage since a substantial part of this segment is in India
Driving Higher Productivity and Competitiveness: Productivity is a key driver of cost competitiveness. Given increased volatility in factor costs, shifting demand patterns and a more aware and educated labour force, Indian manufacturing will require a new wave of productivity improvement. The report identifies and describes three powerful levers of productivity enhancement (1) exploiting the power of clusters, which drive more competitive economics because of increased supply chain responsiveness, decreased time-to-market, superior access to talent, and lower logistics costs (2) leadership in innovation and new technologies, through higher R&D spend and effectiveness, and especially leveraging India’s traditional areas of strength such as IT and software and (3) More flexible manufacturing and lean 2.0 practices to drive down costs and improve productivity through a strong shared aspiration, engagement model and capability building across levels and an underlying cultural transformation.
Government policy has played and needs to continue to play a crucial role in achieving India’s manufacturing aspirations. In the report, four policy themes have been identified and discussed: (i) Focus on Export-led Growth - India has a lower share of global manufacturing trade than many other RDEs and manufacturing exports are a smaller share of its GDP. Should India change its current policy framework and become much more aggressive in promoting export led-growth of the manufacturing sector? (ii) Balancing scale and depth across industries - While India’s manufacturing has grown its scale driven by the growth of consumer demand in many sectors, it has not built desired ‘depth’ of value addition and capability in several critical industries. Depth is important for multiple reasons – retaining control over critical industries, capturing greater share of value along the chain and reducing vulnerability to global shocks. Should Government policy focus more on building ‘depth’ in Indian manufacturing going forward? (iii) Labour Policy for Manufacturing Industry - India has strong labour laws protecting worker rights. However, these same rights are seen to constrain the growth of large scale manufacturing and also introduce rigidity in the labour market. If India has to achieve its growth aspirations, it is critical the policy interventions be made in labour laws be revised to facilitate higher scale, productivity and flexibility while protecting worker rights. (iv) Driving the right 'industrial structure' for India - India is a large country, with dispersed population and large number of stakeholders. It faces many issues in developing its industrial infrastructure ranging from acquisition of land to growing aspirations of the local population to have a share in the benefits development. What should be the right industrial structure for India going forward that balances the benefits of building large scale operations with many advantages of having small scale and dispersed entrepreneurial businesses that give greater stake to local population?
Indian manufacturing has the potential to be the driving force in India’s economic development over the next two decades. Success, however, will require strong commitment, careful planning and willingness to make bold moves on part of both the Government and industry to break the constraints and exploit the opportunities. The report lays out a comprehensive roadmap to achieve the ambitious aspirations it sets out for the country. Top
