by admin | May 25, 2021 | Opinions
By Frank F. Islam,
Prime Minister Narendra Modi set out an ambitious agenda when he announced his administration’s Make in India programme in September 2014. The centerpiece of that programme is the National Manufacturing Policy, the purpose of which is to make India a global manufacturing hub. Its intent is to increase manufacturing’s share of the country’s GDP from 16 per cent to 25 per cent by 2022 and to create 100 million additional jobs by that year.
The policy sets out 11 areas of concentration, including focus sectors, easing of regulatory environments and acquisition of technology and development. It identifies 25 specific focus sectors, including automobiles, defence equipment and medical technology.
As Prime Minister Modi reported during the “Make in India week” in February 2016, progress had been made on the manufacturing agenda. Growth in manufacturing’s share of the GDP and employment since the introduction of the programme, however, has been quite sluggish.
That is why, in 2017, Parliament’s Standing Committee on Commerce issued a report questioning the impact and implementation of the Make in India initiative. The government’s Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion responded by citing a number of measures that had been taken. According to The Hindu newspaper, the committee stated that many of the measures were more than two years old and urged “the department to take effective steps to implement initiatives such as Make in India in a ‘more robust manner’…”
More recently, in mid-March, during a visit to India, American economist and Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman called attention to the need for India to hit manufacturing with a much bigger stick. After lauding India for its significant economic growth and becoming a better place to do business, Krugman observed: “India’s lack in the manufacturing sector could work against it, as it doesn’t have the jobs essential to sustain the projected growth in demography. You have to find jobs for people.”
As a knowledgeable Indian-American business person who participated in the India-U.S. CEO Roundtable convened during President Barack Obama’s Republic Day visit in 2015, I concur completely with the need to intensify India’s manufacturing efforts. The right way to do that, in my opinion, is to create a manufacturing strategic plan for the nation and its states.
The Make in India’s National Manufacturing Policy outlines a broad range of initiatives covering a number of diffuse and diverse areas. A policy is not a plan. It is a prescription that must be targeted to achieve the desired end goals — in this instance, manufacturing being 25 per cent of the GDP and 100 million new jobs by 2022.
A well-constructed strategic plan provides the means for that targeting. It translates policy into action with a laser-beam focus. It delivers the keys to the kingdom. It identifies:
* Key Result Areas: The few areas (3-7) in which strategic action programmes must be developed and implemented effectively and efficiently.
* Key Drivers: The critical factors or sources of competitive advantage that can be leveraged for success.
* Key Partners: The top three allies who can contribute the most to achieving the plan’s goals.
The Make in India Manufacturing Strategic Plan should be crafted by an independent commission comprised of a representative cross-section of business, academic, government and other leaders with appropriate experience and expertise. The commission can draw upon the National Manufacturing Policy and multiple other studies and position papers as inputs for the plan.
My quick review of a variety of source material suggests the following as potential items for inclusion in that plan that might have great effect for simultaneously driving GDP growth and job creation:
* Key Result Area: Infrastructure Development. India’s infrastructure problems appear consistently as the most important factor that is retarding its growth potential.
* Key Driver: Automobile Manufacturing. The National Manufacturing Policy cites automobiles as an area in which India already has a competitive advantage that can be built upon.
* Key Partner: The United States. These “indispensable partners” have just begun to scratch the surface of trade arrangements and exchanges that can be mutually beneficial.
The Make in India programme is at a pivot point. The McKinsey Global Institute in an August 2016 report titled “India’s Ascent: Five Opportunities for Growth and Transformation”, observed: “India’s appeal to potential investors will be more than just its low-cost labour: manufacturers there are building competitive businesses to tap into the large and growing local market. Further reforms and public infrastructure investments could make it easier for all types of manufacturing.”
India continues its ascent, but not as quickly as intended. A Make in India Manufacturing Strategic Plan will kick on the after-burners and accelerate that ascent. Putting the right plan in place and implementing it properly should make the sky the limit for the Indian economy and the Indian people.
(Frank F. Islam is an entrepreneur, civic and thought leader, based in Washington DC. The views expressed here are personal. He can be contacted at ffislam@verizon.net )
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Economy, Finance, News, Politics
Chennai : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday rejected the allegations of southern states, including Tamil Nadu, that the Terms of Reference (ToR) of the 15th Finance Commission were biased against them and said it would benefit states that took population control measures.
“An issue that has been raised by certain vested interests over the last few days… Baseless allegations are being made about the ToR of the 15th Finance Commission being biased to the states of a particular region,” he said after inaugurating a building of the Cancer Institute (WIA) here.
“Let me tell you our critics seem to have missed something. The Union government has suggested to the Finance Commission to consider incentivising states who have worked on population control. By this yardstick, states like Tamil Nadu, which has devoted a lot of efforts, energy and resources towards population control, would certainly benefit.”
He said it was not the case earlier.
Southern states have been complaining about the ToR of the Finance Commission saying their interests would be harmed in the matters of resource allocation because of their better performance on population control and economic growth.
The issues was first raised by Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, which was followed by BJP’s ally-turned-foe Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
On Tuesday, Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Issaac convened a meeting of southern Finance Ministers which was attended by representatives from Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry, in which they called the ToR a “threat to federalism”.
Modi said the Union government was committed to cooperative federalism.
“Our Mantra is ‘Sabka Sath Sabka Vikas’. Let us all work together to build new India, which would make our freedom fighters proud,” he said.
Earlier in his speech, he said the Union government had planned setting up 20 state cancer institutes and 50 tertiary care cancer centres in different parts of the country.
“Proposal can be approved for eligible institutional up to Rs 45 crore for tertiary care cancer centres and up to Rs120 crore for setting up of state cancer institutes. I am happy to note that the proposal of 15 states cancer institutes and 50 tertiary care centres have been approved so far,” he said.
Modi also said 40 new All India Institute of Medical Sciences were being set up with focus on oncology and its various aspects.
Also, eight existing institutions were being upgraded with provision of oncology services under Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY), Modi added.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Interviews
Sweden’s ambassador to India Klas Molin
By Aroonim Bhuyan,
New Delhi : When Prime Minister Narendra Modi goes on a two-day visit to Sweden next week, cooperation in the area of innovation will form a key element of his agenda, Sweden’s ambassador to India Klas Molin has said.
Speaking to IANS here, Molin said that the summit between Modi and his Swedish counterpart Stefan Lofven on April 17 will see discussions on cooperation in bilateral, regional and global issues.
“Of the global ones, of course, multilateral cooperation. You have environment and climate, trans-boundary issues of common concern where we have been gratified and heartened by India’s leadership in taking on important responsibility, assuming responsibility for some of these global issues in a very positive way,” he said.
“I think you will also hopefully see the leaders discussing and agreeing perhaps on continuing the work that was started two years ago in Mumbai where we had a joint statement outlining a plethora of issues and areas in which to cooperate.”
Lofven had visited Mumbai in 2016 to participate in the “Make in India Week”. Modi’s visit will be the first prime ministerial visit from India to Sweden in 30 years since that of Rajiv Gandhi in 1988.
Stating that innovation is a broad but specific area of cooperation between the two countries, Molin said that this was an important part of the India-Sweden joint statement that was released during Lofven’s visit.
“How do we cooperate further, how do we get our best and the brightest people together, how do we also perhaps think about funding certain areas, how do we go into areas where we can cooperate even more and develop new technologies, create employment and sustainable solutions on a number of issues,” he said.
During Modi’s visit, an India-Sweden Innovation Partnership is also expected to be launched.
“I think it is something we are discussing with the Indian side but exactly how this will look, of course, will have to be finalised,” the ambassador said.
“But I think it is a way of focusing our attention on both sides to create a platform that, in turn, can attract investments, that can attract companies to plug in.”
Stating that Sweden has signed such innovation partnerships with France and Germany, Molin said that “we will be certainly very happy to sign this with India”.
“It will be an umbrella under which there will be a number of areas of particular interest,” he said.
Molin also said that Lofven himself is “personally extremely engaged in innovation” and chairs the Swedish Innovation Council that was set up by the government.
On bilateral economic relations, the ambassador said that trade is growing on both sides “and quite impressively so”.
Though bilateral trade dipped to $1.9 billion in 2016-17 from $2.17 billion, both countries have set a lofty total trade target of $5 billion.
“I think it will be useful also to set targets that are very lofty goals,” Molin said. “Nothing wrong with that. They are not always met, but I think the ambition is most important.”
He was of the opinion that trade in services between the two countries is growing and this might even overtake trade in goods.
“But in trading goods, we have definitely seen impressive growth in the figures, I think for Swedish exports, more than 25 per cent; and India is also growing, not perhaps dramatically but growing significantly and consistently,” the ambassador said.
“If you include services, I think this is where, of course, one of India’s amazing advantages lie with the talent pool of people. There is IT services, you have back offices, you have all kinds of support services, you have software development.”
Stating that cooperation in academics and research and development is another important area of focus, Molin said that both the countries are looking to increase student exchanges between universities.
On April 17, India and Sweden will also co-host the first ever India-Nordic Summit, where, apart from Modi and Lofven, the Prime Ministers of the other four Nordic countries of Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway will also be present.
Molin said that Nordic countries are close as neighbours and cooperate very closely in a number of issues.
“But we are not a political entity in that way,” he said. “It’s not like the EU, it’s not a regional organisation in any way. It’s a convenient forum.”
According to figures provided by the External Affairs Ministry, India’s trade with the Nordic countries totaled around $5.3 billion in 2016-17, with cumulative foreign direct investment in India at $2.5 billion.
“The Nordic countries have globally recognised strengths in clean technologies, environmental solutions, port modernisation, food processing, health, agriculture infrastructure, skill development and innovation which are also the focus areas of India’s development,” a ministry statement said. These complementarities and the unique strengths of India and the Nordic countries hold the potential to further boost trade and investment from both sides.
Apart from his meeting with Lofven, Modi will also hold bilateral meetings with the leaders of the other four Nordic countries on the sidelines of the summit.
(Aroonim Bhuyan can be contacted at aroonim.b@ians.in)
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Economy, News, Politics
New Delhi : Noting that India will be a key driver of global energy demand in the next quarter century, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday called for “responsible” pricing in the hydrocarbons market so as to balance the interests of oil and gas producers and consumers.
Inaugurating the 16th International Energy Forum (IEF) ministerial here, being held in India after a gap of 22 years, Modi said that a massive transformation has been underway in the energy market with consumption growth shifting from the developed world to the emerging and developing economies.
“The world has seen prices on a roller coaster for much too long. We need responsible prices to balance the interests of both producer and consumer,” Modi said.
The Prime Minister said energy demand in India is projected to grow at 4.5 per cent in the next 25 years, while gas demand was expected to triple.
“We need a transparent and flexible market…there has to be a mutually supportive relationship between producers and consumers. Efforts at artificially distorting prices are self-defeating as history has shown us,” he said.
“Let us build a global consensus on responsible pricing which will serve both producer and consumer. In a period of global uncertainty, India needs energy security,” Modi added.
He pointed to the transformation in the energy market with the Shale Revolution in the US that would soon make America the largest oil producer, the move by oil companies to invest more in renewables and the use of technology like the “internet of things (IoTs), artificial intelligence, robotic process, automation, machine learning and 3D printing” by the industry.
In view of these changes, “India provides a perfect setting for discussing the future of the energy section”, Modi said.
Hosted by India, and co-hosted by China and Korea, IEF16 aims to focus on how global shifts, transition policies and new technologies influence market stability and future investment in the energy sector around the theme of “The Future of Energy Security”.
Among ministers from overseas attending the meeting this year are those from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iran, Qatar, Nigeria, Japan, China, Russia and the US.
Saudi Arabian Petroleum Minister Khalid Al-Falih in his address called for creating “an enabling environment along the entire value chain” as fossil fuels “will be there for some time to come”.
Noting that the future supply situation of energy sources, particularly of oil, is “not reasssuring”, he said the producers in the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) “remain committed to the long-term market”.
“Saudi Arabia and Russia are discussing extending the cooperation and monitoring of the market to extend stability,” he said referring to the crude output cuts agreed in 2017 between OPEC and Russia in a move to stop the slide in oil prices that had fallen to around $25 a barrel two years ago. Crude currently is averaging around $70 a barrel.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Business, Corporate, Corporate finance, Corporate Governance, Economy, Finance, Investing, Medium Enterprise, News, Politics, SMEs
New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday hailed the union government scheme of Mudra Yojana for giving substantial impetus to the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector and said it is crucial for the country’s transformation.
Launched in 2015, the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) was introduced to cater to entrepreneurs who were either in their early stage or require lesser funds in order to get their business running.
As the scheme completed three years of its launch on Sunday, Modi tweeted his delight and said that his government was undertaking a series of steps and reforms to facilitate further growth in the sector.
“Through Mudra Yojana, the MSME sector is receiving a substantial impetus. MSME is a sector that is crucial for India’s transformation and our government is undertaking a series of steps and reforms to facilitate further growth in the sector,” Modi said.
He said the Mudra Yojana was furthering a spirit of enterprise and self-reliance among youth and women. The scheme was launched for providing loans upto Rs 10 lakh to the non-corporate, non-farm small and micro enterprises.
“A substantial number of Mudra beneficiaries are women and youngsters from the Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Class communities, which is extremely heartening,” he said.
He said the PMMY was launched to give wings to the aspirations of citizens and harness the entrepreneurial energy among youth.
“…I am delighted to see how Mudra Yojana has brought prosperity in the lives of many.”
The Prime Minister also took the opportunity to invite the beneficiaries of the scheme to share their success stories and said he would meet some of them at his official residence on April 11.
“Dear friends on social media, do share with me success stories of Mudra Yojana that you know about. I would love to meet some of the friends from the world of social media who share these stories,” he said.
“…I look forward to a special programme!… It would be wonderful to speak to them and personally hear about their journeys,” he said.
—IANS
