CONTENTS
january 2015
11 newSMaKerS 2014 A short list of Global Indians who made India shine overseas
11
14 Secretary MOIa Looking at the road map ahead for Pravasi Indians
18 Secretary General, FIccI Bringing in past experience to strengthen the PBD event
20
14
18
MInISter GehlOt Looking at empowering India
23 Dr nanDInI tanDOn A highly regarded venture capitalist from Silicon Valley who is looking at India closely
20
23
28
47
28 Sunny KulathaKal GOPIO’s key man in the Gulf
47 leela SaruP Fond remembrance
50 BucOlIc attractIOn Urbanites go rural
56 InveStMent PlatFOrM IOC Directors tell us what to do
50
Tourism—Telangana
IntervIew wIth Mr B.P. AchAryA, IAS, PrIncIPAl SecretAry, tourISM And culture, GovernMent of telAnGAnA StAte
Telangana: a land of rich heriTage What are the main destinations NRIs can be a part of ? you would like visitors to your Telangana is known to be one of state—the 29th state of India the places where different festivals are formed in 2014—to explore? celebrated with pomp and gaiety. The Telangana has become the 29th state art forms of the Telugu people maniof India and city of Hyderabad is its fest all-year round in the form of capital. Hyderabad, known for its herdance, drama, music and other peritage with modernity like “Ganga Jaforming arts including folk arts. Festimuna Tahjeeb” has several tourist vals such as Ganesh Chaturti, Bonalu, attractions like the Charminar, Mecca Batukamma festival coincides Masjid, Golconda Fort, Hussainsagar Navarathri festival draws huge crowds. Lake, Birla Mandir, Chowmahalla Yedupayala jatara and one of the Palace, Salar Jung Museum., Birla Tembiggest Tribal Jatara Sammakka and ple etc. Hyderabad also has a rare disSaralamma Jatara. Hyderbad being the tinction of being ranked as the 2nd best most cosmopolitan city is host to sevplace in the world to visit in year 2015 eral festivals celebrated by all the Inby the National Geographic Traveler dian communities. Telangana Tourism Mr B.P. Acharya, IAS magazine December 2014 issue. and Happening Hyderabad has a calenOther important tourist places in Telangana include, dar of events listing all the events that take place in HyWarangal from where the Kakatiyas ruled has tourist at- derabad which will be of interest to NRIs tractions such as Warangal Fort, Thousand Pillar Temple, Kakatiya Kalathoranam, Ramappa Temple, Laknavaram What kind of arts and crafts items of Telangana Lake etc. Bhongir Fort, Nagarjunsagar Dam and Yada- can be added to the tourist’s shopping cart? girigutta Temple located in Nalgonda District also attract Handicrafts have always been an integral part of Inmany tourists. Adilabad District known for its pristine na- dian art and crafts. Telangana is yet another great place for ture also has Gnana Saraswati Temple at Basar, Kuntala such crafts. The region offers many astounding arts and Waterfall and Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary. (Now Tiger Re- crafts. Hyderabad is also known as the city of Pearls and serve) Other famous temples Vemulawada Temple, Charminar/Laad Bazar are popular places to buy the faKondagattu are located in Karimnagar District which also mous bangles and pearls. Pochampally and Gadwal Sarees has Lower Maner dam (boating). Sri Sita Ramachandra are choice of tourists visiting the State. Bidri craft is yet Swamy Temple at Bhadrachalam, Medak Church Pillala another craft that serves as the pride of the Telangana reMarri (Largest Banyan Tree) at Mahabubnagar are some gion. This unique art of silver engraved on metal has alother places a tourist can visit Alampur Jogulamba Temple ways enthralled people with its lure. Banjaras or the in Mahbubnagar Dist. Which is 5th shaktipeetas of 18 well Gypsies are important tribes of Telangana. Banjara Neeknown shaktipeetahs in India. dle Crafts are some of the traditional handmade fabrics made by Banjaras in Telangana. Please let us know about the boating units develDokra Metal craft is quite popular in the tribal reoped by your department in Telangana… gions of Telangana. Dhokra or Dokra also known as bell Telangana Tourism has developed boating facilities at metal craft is a tribal metal craft widely seen in Jainoor Hussainsagar Lake, Durgam Cherevu and Mir Alam Tank Mandal, Adilabad District of Telangana. Nirmal town of in Hyderabad. Other places in the districts include, Alis- Adilabad district is known for its varied range of handiagar – Nizamabad, Maneru Dam – Karimnagar, Nagarju- crafts and famous Nirmal paintings. Telangana is famous nasagar – Nalgonda, Singur Dam – Medak and world-wide for its amazing Bronze castings. These castLaknavaram in Warangal. ings require special skills for creating incredible idols. The craftsmen study the details of the famous What are the main festivals of Telangana that Shilpashastram. In Telangana. 8
india empire | january 2015
Tourism—Telangana
Please take us through some of the touristic and cultural experiences of Telangana, including sound and light shows… The Sound and Light show at Golconda Fort, Hyderabad is a star attraction and Telangana Tourism has started yet another Sound and Light show at Warangal Fort in Warangal. Please elaborate on the divine destinations in your state… Telangana region has been ruled by many great dynasties like Sathavahanas, Chalukyas, Kakatiyas, Mughals, and the Qutubshahis. As the Mughal Empire began to disintegrate in the early 18th century, the Muslim Asafjahi dynasty established a separate state known as Hyderabad. A list of temples from Telangana region includes Chilkur Balaji Temple, also known as Visa Balaji Temple, Sanghi Temple - A temple dedicated to Lord Venkateshwara graces a promontory overlooking Sanghi Nagar, Birla Temple - A temple dedicated to Lord Venkateshwara (Lord Balaji), Beechupally (Sri Anjaneya Swamy Temple), Alampoor (one of the eighteen shaktipeetams), Basara Saraswathi Temple, a temple of Saraswati, one of the two temples in India Temple Web site, Bhadrachalam: Famous for Lord Rama Temple, Dhulikatta—20 km from Karimnagar is an important Buddhist spot visited by monks from all over the world, Dharmapuri on the banks of River Godavari, 78 km from Karimnagar, is the 15th century temple town of Dharmapuri, Manthani is an extremely ancient center for Vedic teachings. It is located on the banks of River Godavari, and at a distance of 70 kilometers from Karimnagar, Vemulawada - Rajarajeshawara Temple is located 38 km from Karimnagar, Kaleshwaram is 130 km from Karimnagar, Mecca Masjid at Hyderabad, Medak Church at Medak, Ramappa Temple at Warangal, Badrakali Temple at Warangal, Thousand Pillar Temple: Warangal, Yadagirigutta at Nalgonda Please elaborate on the Heritage spots in your state... Charminar has become a global icon of Hyderabad, listed among the most recognized structures of India. Golconda Fort, once abandoned by Qutub Shahis, is one of the most magnificent fortress complexes in India. Qutb Shahi Tombs are home to various tombs dedicated to rulers of Qutub Shahi dynasty, located at Shaikpet, near Golconda Fort. These are an example of Deccan architecture with large minarets, huge domes, delicate marble designs and multiple inner passages. Chow Mohalla Palace, Falaknuma Palace are very important heritage spots in Hyderabad. Paigah Tombs are recently discovered series of mausoleums with unique geometrical sculptures which were nowhere found in the world. These are located at Chandrayanagutta. Kakatiya Kala Thoranam is a historical arch and symbol of the Kakatiya Dynasty in Warangal district. Warangal Fort, Ramappa temple also attract heritage enthusiasts. Bhongir Fort was built in the 10th century on an isolated monolithic rock by the Western Chalukya ruler Tribhuvanamalla Vikramaditya VI and was thus named after him as Tribhuvanagiri. 10 india empire | january 2015
What is the potential of nature discovery in your state… Kuntala Water Falls is hidden from the noisy external world and offers you the best of nature at Adilabad. Pochara Water Falls is the deepest of all the waterfalls in Telangana. The location is very secluded and surrounded by picturesque locations and scenic environment. Rivers are the lifelines of human civilization and so are the dams built across them for irrigation and hydel power that serves as places of interest too. One such notable attraction in Adilabad district is Kadam dam. At a distance of about 13 km from Nizamabad town is the Alisagar Reservoir. This is the most famous picnic spot in the region of Nizamabad and people of all walks of life, especially kids would enjoy most in this place. Lower Manair Dam in Karimnagar is another attraction. In Hyderabad attractions include the Durgam Cheruvu, a secret lake situated close to Shilparamam craft village, at the city’s software hub, Hitech city. Ananthagiri Hills is located 10 km from Vikarabad, Ranga Reddy district, Telangana, India. The hills are the main water source for Osmansagar and Himayathsagar. Ramoji Film City is situated at around 25 Kilometers from Hyderabad. This man-made beauty is spread over 2000 acres and activities available for tourists of all ages. At Khammam, the Kinnerasani River is an important tributary of the river Godavari. The scenic beauty created by the landscape along the Kinnerasani River is a panoramic one abutted by lush green landscape. At Nalgonda, Nagarjuna Sagar Dam is considered one of largest dams built in the recent times in Asia. As the tallest masonry dam, Nagarjuna Sagar Dam is also the pride of India. The NagarjunasagarSrisailam Tiger Reserve also serves as one of the popular wildlife sanctuaries in the country. Mallela Theertham waterfall is a true gift of nature. Located in a valley, this exquisite place takes nestling at the Nallamala forest range. For wildlife aficionados, what is the scope? Nehru Zoological Park in Hyderabad is regarded as the most comprehensive place for tourists wanting to see various types of animals. Kawal wildlife sanctuary in Adilabad, Eturunagaram in Warangal, Nagarjunasagar – Srisailam Tiger reserve are some of the unexplored wildlife areas in Telangana State. What kind of adventure journeys can one under take while in Telangana? Bhuvanagiri, also known as Bhongir is located only at a distance of 48 kilometers from Hyderabad. The place, which falls on the way to the well-known temple town of Yadagirigutta, is well accessible by road and rail. It is more than 700-feet high and is sprawled over 40 acres of land. This unique rock is locally known as the ‘Eka sila’. The Telangana tourism department has taken new initiatives by launching many adventure sports here. Rock climbing in Bhongir is quite popular among people who yearn to face the thrill of living on the edge. Vikarabad is a charming place where one can derive pleasure in trekking. This place is covered with red soil, containing a mixture of rock and loose soil, therefore, it is ❐ a thrilling place for Rappelling and Rock Climbing.
cover sTory
IndIA eMPIre’S
hAll of fAMe 2014
THE NEWSMAKERS Mr Satya Nadella
A short list of men and women who have branded India overseas tremendously in the past one year —Editor
Dr Rami Ranger Dr Rami Ranger, MBE set an unprecedented record of being conferred five-on-the-trot Queens Awards for Excellence in Enterprise, in the process having managed to grow his flagship Sun Mark Ltd. manifold over the past several years. He was also voted Man of the Year at the GG2 Awards ceremony, and was presented with the trophy by Mr David Cameron, the Prime Minister of the U.K. who had also visited Dr Ranger’s company facility. Dr Ranger arrived in Britain in 1971 with just two pounds in his purse. He held down a number of important jobs before turning an entrepreneur of great success. No other man or woman in Britain has won more than three Queens Awards for Excellence. He has contributed 100,000 pounds to the Gandhi Statue Memorial Trust which will raise a statue of Mahatma Gandhi at London’s Parliament Square.
Mr Satya Nadella was named Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft in February 2014. For an Indian in the USA to be occupying this slot is an immense honour. He joined Microsoft in 1992, quickly becoming known as a leader who could span a breadth of technologies and businesses to transform some of Microsoft’s biggest product offerings. He held leadership roles in both enterprise and consumer businesses across the company, and was executive vice president of Microsoft’s Cloud and Enterprise group. In that role he led the transformation to the cloud infrastructure and services business. Before joining Microsoft, Mr Nadella was a member of the technology staff at Sun Microsystems. He earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Mangalore University.
Dr Vivek Murthy Dr Vivek Murthy, 37, was appointed US Surgeon General in December—the first person of Indian descent to become one, and the country’s youngest one thus far. Dr Murthy has been a hospitalist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and a faculty member at the Harvard Medical School. He cofounded Doctors of America in May 2009. He is the founder of TrialNetworks, a technology company launched in 2007 to help large pharmaceutical companies mange the drug test process better. He also started Visions Worldwide, a non-profit dedicated to fighting HIV / AIDS in India. Dr Murthy’s appointment was delayed for over a year in the face of strong opposition by the National Rifle Association—a powerful gun lobby. He is a staunch opponent of gun related violence.
january 2015 | india empire
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cover sTory Dr Nandini Tandon Silicon Valley-based entrepreneur and venture capitalist Dr Nandini Tandon, Founding Partner and Group CEO of Tenacity Group Inc, along with her mentor Dr.B. R.Shetty, Founding Partner and Chairman of Board for Tenacity Group Inc. and her sister, Ms Priya Tandon, Founding Partner CEO, Tenacity India Operations, are spearheading major investments in healthcare / healthcare IT and skill development space in Uttar Pradesh. In this connection, U.P. Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav signed an MoU with Tenacity in December 2014, under SVADESH (Silicon Valley and Avadh’s Development for Entrepreneurial Services for Humanity). The MoU was signed by the 3 founding partners of Tenacity and by Mr Sanjiv Saran, Principal Secretary, NRI Department, Government of U.P.
Dr Arun Majumdar Dr Arun Majumdar was appointed a US Science Envoy by the State Department in December. It caps a glittering career for the IIT, Bombay graduate who went on to do get his doctorate from UC Berkeley. Dr Majumdar is the Jay Precourt Professor at Stanford University, where he serves on the faculty of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and is a Senior Fellow of the Precourt Institute for Energy. Prior to joining Stanford, he was the Vice President for Energy at Google, where he created several energy technology initiatives and advised the company on its broader energy strategy. He continues to be a consultant to Google on energy.
Mr Vasan Srinivasan Mr Vasan Srinivasan has been included in the 6-member Australian Multicultural Council, an announcement made jointly by the Australia’s Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews and Parliamentary Secretary Concetta Fierravanti-Wells in December. Mr Andrews said the Council’s commitment to the Government will help build a stronger multicultural Australia. Mr Srinivasan is Chair of Confederation of Indian Australian Associations.Mr Srinivasan believes the new role is an opportunity to represent the Indian Australian community more meaningfully. The Council’s role is to offer advice to the Government to ensure all Australians have the opportunity to participate, engage and contribute to Australian life.
12 india empire | january 2015
Dr B.R. Shetty Dr Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty is CEO and MD of the Abu Dhabi-based New Medical Centre Group of companies and UAE Exchange. Dr Shetty arrived in the UAE capital in 1973 with USD 8 in his pocket and has since scripted a huge transformational story. Dr Shetty is also the Founding Partner and Chairman of the Board of the Tenacity Group Inc----a Silicon Valley based holding company. In December 2014 he announced Tenacity’s efforts to bring in American cutting edge technology and investments of one billion dollar plus in the healthcare and skill development space in to Uttar Pradesh in the presence of Akhilesh Yadav and the Mayor elect of Oakland, California, Ms.Libby Schaff, who was beamed in to Lucknow from Silicon Valley.
Dame Asha Khemka Ms Asha Khemka, DBE, was made Dame in the New Year Honours List 2014 in England in recognition of her services to education, becoming the first Indian-born in 83 years to be awarded the title. Born and raised in Sitamarhi, Bihar, Dame Asha Khemka joined the West Nottinghamshire College Group as principal and chief executive in May 2006. In Britain today, she is hailed as a leading figure in the world of education, and skills, and sits on many national educational boards and committees. Interestingly, she was married at the age of only 15, and returned to education after spending 20 years as a housewife. She was a member of British Prime Minister David Cameron’s delegation to India in February.
Mr Niraj Goel Singapore-based Mr Niraj Goel became one of top five technology billionaires in Asia after his firm, Clone Algo Technologies, was actively traded in the New York stock exchange in October 2014. His company develops artificial intelligence for algorithms used in trading foreign exchange, gold, crude oil and shares. The value asset of Mr Goel shot up to USD 12.95 billion, including his stakes in other companies. According to Mr Goel, investors are switching from traditional old economy stocks to innovation-driven social media technology stocks. The success of the New York listing gives him the confidence to propose a dual listing in London and Singapore as well. He sees Singapore as the next Silicon Valley based on strong intellectual property laws.
inTerview—moia
IntervIew wIth SecretAry, MInIStry of overSeAS IndIAn AffAIrS, Mr SunIl SonI
“We will use technology for constant dialogue with Pravasi indians” Mr Sunil Soni, Secretary, Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, speaks to India Empire’s Editor and Publisher, Sayantan Chakravarty on a range of issues concerning the Indian Diaspora and the PBD 2015
The Pravasi movement seems have got a second wind. Do you agree? Certainly a second wind in the sense that this year’s event is also linked to Mahatma Gandhi’s return to India from South Africa 100 years back. So there is lot of excitement around this particular event. And the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was anyway celebrated during the day Gandhiji returned. And it is getting a link with this PBD event in Gandhinagar this year. That has created a lot of interest. The new Government is also showing a lot of interest because of that. Because Modi Ji, when he was the CM of Gujarat, I think he has been talking of holding this event in Gandhinagar since then. So he knows this, he is very keen on PBD being promoted. He had been talking about it whenever he has gone to US and Australia. He has talked a lot about this event. So when you say it has got a second wind, I certainly agree with you. What do you think will be the major takeaways from the forthcoming PBD? As I said earlier, what we are trying to do is focus on Gandhiji’s return. And Gandhiji is the first Pravasi as we call him. He was the best Pravasi which we had so far who came back and changed the fortune and history of this country, and even transformed this country socially. So that is the message that we would like to convey. And one more thing that he did, even PM talks about it, that instead of a normal person coming from abroad, criticizing a few things in India, and going back, Gandhiji instead of criticizing started those changes which he thought were required in this country. So that is the message we like to convey to everybody. So everybody can contribute in some way or other. Somebody could come back to India and somebody 14 india empire | january 2015
Mr Sunil Soni, IAS Secretary, MOIA
could send back something to India. People can contribute, instead of complaining what India does not have. That is the major takeaway I would like to get out of this event. That is from their side, and from our side also whatever issues are there, we are trying to see that they feel comfortable about those issues. What is possible like OIC card, PIO card getting merged, we should facilitate. We should also feel, it is a two way process, it cannot be a one way
process where we want them to give something to the country, and the country cannot look after them well. So we should understand their requirements to the extent possible. We should try to meet them. Second takeaway will be that, to understand what they want, and to the extent we can accommodate their aspirations, make them feel happy about the country. You have just taken over as Secretary. What will be the key areas of focused attention for you? See there are two very important areas we need to focus upon. One is, of course, the issue of the Pravasis themselves—their issues, and having a constant sort of dialogue with them. At the moment the dialogue is kind of a broken dialogue. We meet them once a year and then it is a broken dialogue. We do one PBD, and one mini PBD in another country. So we do not have a constant sort of a dialogue with the Pravasis. But I think we need to build the system. The whole internet connectivity, this sort of system is available. So we should use the technology to be in touch with each individual Pravasi. Everybody will not be having a two way communication, but whosoever wants that, let’s have a two way communication with them. Otherwise a newsletter or so should go from our side to the Pravasis. And they should be able to upgrade their information on
the common database. So that is actually one way communication from two sides, but does not really cross each other. The second area we need to focus on is to become a facilitator for immigrants. That is not really working the way it should. I am not very happy with the way I see things working. There also our touch with the actual immigrant is missing. We are in touch with recruiting agencies, and others, but direct touch is missing. We need to facilitate it in a much better manner. India has a lot of advantage of having a lot of youth today, and the world has a requirement of people. Yesterday the PM made a statement that the world requires a lot of teachers. World requires lot of healthcare workers today. The world population is aging. For to look after the aged people, a lot of people are required, not just nurses, something even lower down than nurses. There is a huge demand for age care workers. India has a huge potential to provide that. But we should make that process a smooth process, at the same time see that the Indian workers who were abroad are not exploited. Lot of exploitation is taking place. So we have to facilitate and protect these immigrants, in the Gulf and other countries also. We need to really work out a strategy which is more proactive, facilitative as well as proactive in their protection. So these are the two focused areas, I think, we need to work on. january 2015 | india empire 15
inTerview—moia
You have the IDF for OIs. Do you think this institution can play a greater role insofar as overseas Indian philanthropy is concerned? Certainly yes. And that will come out from the first point that I mentioned, a constant dialogue with the Indians abroad. We can have that dialogue electronically, then they can easily step into the idea. And you will see whatever they want to contribute—I know lot of people would like to contribute to the villages that they come from. If we can build a database along with the states, about which village they come from, and in that village what is required by the state Government, if we can link the two, it can become an excellent way of using IDF meeting the requirements of the village. IDF can become the medium, the intermediary between the state Governments and the NRIs and PIOs. And also ensure that this money is well spent. We need to have a dialogue with the state Government as well, the Rural Development Ministry. And let’s see how these linkages can be built up. The OIFC has been one of the most active facilitators for overseas Indians in the past several years. What vision would you have for this body which works in a PPP model between the Government and CII? Like IDF is basically looking after philanthropic activity, OIFC is looking after industrial investments. So OIFC’s role has to be to build partnerships between industry and India, or some investor in India, and somebody abroad and try to bring in investments from that. As a PPP model between Government and CII my initial impression is that it is not working the way it should be working. I was seeing what their achievements are, they do not seem to have a solid sense of figures. They just have a lot exchanges and case studies. They do not excite me really too much. It seems to be going in a routine manner rather than some sort of mission mode work. It is time that they step up their activities a bit. But it has to be a PPP model, it can’t be brought under the Ministry certainly. Ministry would be working in its own bureaucratic manner with too many upheavels, so outsourced model has to continue. But it has to become a more active one. A new person has taken over, she is trying to revive the thing, and I am hopeful of that thing happening. The Government is recognizing the importance of the Francophone diaspora by giving it special sessions this time… What you say is absolutely correct. We also get somebody from MEA who is a good interpreter of French to English. So whatever they say, in case we can’t understand we can have an official translator to help us to understand. So it is a good session, and we should make the best of it. 16 india empire | january 2015
Will you be announcing the venue for the next PBD soon. This will help in better preparations, like it has been the case for the Gujarat PBD… I don’t think so we are ready to announce it this time. But certainly we will not be allowing the announcement to be happening late. In 2015, we will be announcing much earlier. I will like to start on the new PBD immediately after this is over. Because I do not like doing things at the last moment, it just does not seem the right way. I must tie up my sessions and speakers at least two months in advance. And then start the registrations. This is not the way we can hold international conventions, they must be announced 8 – 9 months in advance, and dates must be known. Very frank, when I was in the earlier post, in the BIS, and we have two major events, they have a calendar announced till 2022. Two years in advance the country is announced officially. Nowadays people have to plan their travels 2 to 3 months in advance, especially international travel, they have to book their hotels, travel, plan their holidays. They plan something else, so short notice is not the right way to do things. Better to give people enough notice for it. Concurrence with states is involved, it is decided at a political level. Every event we should try to ensure that we announce the next event in the last event. We should announce which are the states that are willing to do the event, and from there on announce the state. How are the themes for the plenary sessions developed? What are the main plenary sessions in the forthcoming PBD? One focus has been on Gandhiji, that has certainly been there. The second focus we have added, lots of interesting themes this time, one is basically Bharat ko jano. People should know the traditions of the country, that is on the Youth PBD side. Second is Bharat ko Mano, that is what India has done now, let us say the mission to Mars, we are doing a lot of things, and people don’t sort of know it. To give that pride of the country, should be able to give this information in a concise form to the people. This is part of the Youth PBD. Main PBD we are adding two sessions, one you mentioned is Soft Power, and the second is even more interesting, recognizing the important Indian diaspora contributors. We have divided them into 8 categories. We this have done it slightly late this time, we could do it slightly better, and honouring or giving them an opportunity to have 8 different categories of people let’s say medical profession, politics, business, or even in social work, academics, science and technology, each of these disciplines we pick up few persons. From each of these groups have one speaker and they talk about ❐ what they have done.
An inspiring business autobiography of an award winning businessman
Dr. Rami Ranger MBE, FRSA Chairman, Sun Mark Ltd.
His life story is available online from
inTerview—Ficci
IntervIew wIth dr A. dIdAr SInGh, SecretAry GenerAl, federAtIon of IndIAn chAMBer of coMMerce And InduStry
“it is the right time for diaspora to connect economically with india” Dr A. Didar Singh Secretary General, FICCI
FICCI helped the Government of India organize the first two Pravasi events in 2003 and 2004. It is now hosting the PBD for the third straight year. What is the expertise that FICCI is bringing into the event? FICCI is the one that first worked with Government to set up the two first Pravasi Bharatiya events in 2003 and 2004, and, of course, there were other organizations including CII that did them. And then the last three years— the last two years, and this coming year—FICCI is again the Partner with Government of India, the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs to do this event. What is our expertise, our expertise is basically that we are very good at organizing large events, especially national events, we do them in a large number of sectors, and we have a specialization in Pravasi Bharatiya because we have strong international connects, and expertise with being able to work with state Governments to do it. 18 india empire | january 2015
Will this be the largest PBD one has seen in recent times? Yes. Most definitely it will be the largest PBD because I think the whole tremendous hype that has been created by Prime Minister Modi on not just himself, but more India. India is suddenly the flavor of the day all across the world. We know that there are strong Pravasi populations in some of the places that Hon’ble PM has been like New York or Australia or even with neighbouring countries. There is a tremendous desire to connect back with India, to see if one can connect with the Indian economy, so there will be much more representation. I would say it would probably be two or three times the usual representation. You have past experience of dealing extensively with the Indian Diaspora. At this point in time do you see the diaspora taking a greater interest in India, es-
pecially from the point of view of opportunities to invest... I think Diaspora has always had a tremendous interest in India. There are two types of interest—one interest is the cultural interest, the connect with India as a country, as a culture, as a homeland. But the second more important interest is the economic interest. Now Indian diaspora has been improving in their economic positions around the world. In this context, both as professionals as well as private investors, the opportunities to invest around the world are reducing. There are actually two major areas that remain, or two major countries—China and India. So quite obviously now, the Indian Diaspora if it wants to expand its economic connectivity, it will look at India. We definitely see that there is a greater interest in India, particularly from the economic aspects of the connectivity that they can feel they can get with India, and we hope that they will take a greater interest in India and in the Indian economy and the opportunities that are available here. What are the other diaspora-focused events that FICCI has managed and organized in the recent past? We in FICCI are in fact the first business organization in India, may be in the world, which has actually established a committee on migration and diaspora. This is a specialized thing that we have done. And just recently (in December), we organized a major event or a major conference, an international conference on the business case for migration. That is because we believe that mobility, and particularly mobility of professionals of businesses, of inter-corporate transfer, is the major concern for business in the 21st century. Because though there is free movement of goods, services, and money, it is not the free movement of human capital. And, therefore, I believe that as a business organization we have an important role to play—flag this issue internally as well as externally to say that business must understand and business must raise its voice to be heard around the world, and specially with immigrating countries that mobility is a very important issue and needs to be looked at very seriously. So we’ve had an event in that area, and we will continue to do more activities. We also had organized last year a diaspora investment event—the GIBC— through Invest India which was extremely successful, and we intend to do more on that. Please give us an overview of FICCI’s activities in the past one year, and what have been the key focus areas… FICCI does a very large number of activities. Something like around 300 activities around the year, around the whole country, its international activities, sometimes two or three in a single day depending on foreign visitors and activities that keep happening. So this is part of our regular connect because FICCI works in some 74 sectors and we have partnerships internationally with 250 business organizations in 140 countries. It is a lot of connect we have internationally, as well as domestically as I mentioned in 74
sectors in the country. So lot of activity keeps happening in each of the sectors separately. Key focus areas have been basically the major business areas for FICCI. Taxation has always been a major area. We have always made a lot of reports on the whole matter of taxation, on promoting GST, on coming to a consensus to improve a single market in the country. We worked a lot on ease of doing business with state Governments, we work with the Central Government, we work with PMG --- project management group a lot to ensure that those stuck projects, there is a way of getting out, creating an online system to apply, and get inter-ministerial coordination and approvals that may be required. We have worked across the board, whether it was environment, whether it was consumer affairs, whether it was textiles, whether it was international events, commerce. FICCI is one of the few organizations in India which has actually been working on sports for over 10 years. We do a major event called TURF, we do large number of sports activities, and we are expanding in that area. Like the business of soccer, the business of other sports. We have been saying for some time now that we take out a report every year on legalizing betting, because we believe that betting leads to criminal activity which is not good for the country. And it leads to tremendous loss of revenue for the country when you do illegal betting. It is better to make it legal like in many parts of the world. So we are pushing for that. The Diaspora is receiving more and more importance from the Government, given that the PM himself has addressed the diaspora in New York and at Brisbane. Your views on this… Of course it is. The present Government and the present Prime Minister himself has a very strong connect with the diaspora. The Gujarati diaspora itself is very strong in different parts of the world. And they are in business, they are economically very strong. They want a greater connect both with Gujarat as well as this country as a whole. So definitely we see a lot of importance. Now the Minister of External Affairs has become the Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs. This is another good way to look at it not just in the context of a diaspora policy, but a foreign policy both linked and made together. So, in this we do see a greater synergy actually taking place. Do we see Invest India playing a greater role in times to come…? Of course we do. Invest India is Government’s own and main channel, main interface for promoting investments in India. It is the principal IPA. It is a national body, the national investment promotion agency as you correctly point out. And, therefore, as the Indian economy grows, as the investment itself gains traction in the country, Invest India will certainly play a much greater role. We have massively expanded Invest India. There are new activities, new work with Government in promoting investment into the ❐ country. january 2015 | india empire 19
inTerview cabineT minisTer
IntervIew wIth MInISter for SocIAl JuStIce And eMPowerMent, Mr thAwAr chAnd Gehlot
“We welcome all nris who want to join the social justice movement” Taking time out from Parliament, Cabinet Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment, Mr Thawar Chand Gehlot spoke to Editor and Publisher Sayantan Chakravarty and spelt out the challenges before him in the coming months
Please let us know about the vision of the Ministry, both short term and long term... The vision of our Ministry is to cater to scheduled castes, backward classes, handicapped class, transgender, nomads and senior citizens. If we calculate their population, it comes out to be around 70 crore. It also involves education of the children of these castes and tribes. Mainly, we look forward to providing facility of education to the children of these tribes. In order to keep the students from dropping out of school we provide both pre-metric as well as post-metric scholarships. Also, we provide financial aid for higher studies of the students. We mostly support compulsory and system education so that the children do not drop out of school because of financial crisis. Secondly, these classes are also lagging behind on the socio-economic front, which is why they have been put in these categories. To uplift these classes we need to provide them proper education, proper physical, mental and psychological facility. Keeping this in view, we provide them with proper medical services and training and accordingly provide all the necessary facilities required by them. From the financial point of view, we have set up Financial Development Corporations like Schedule caste Financial Development Corporation, Backward Classes Financial Development Corporation and so on. So, with the medium of these financial development corporations we provide them loan at 5 -6 per cent per annum. This helps them in starting their own business. We provide training to these classes and try to make them competent enough to get a job, for the same we collaborate with the states, as well as with NGOs, and make them employable. The main target groups of the Ministry include Schedule Castes/ Other Backward Classes/ Persons with Disabilities/ Senior Citizens And Victims Of Substance Abuse. What is the Ministry’s role in empowering them? People in our country are getting drawn towards sub20 india empire | january 2015
stance abuse. We have been continuously advertising about the harmful effects of liquor, drugs and other kinds of substance abuse and trying to control their spread, but we find the more we try, more people are getting into it. May be it is because of the curiosity amongst the people which later turns into an addiction. We are running many programs to control the situation. Also we provide financial aid to the NGOs, and other organizations working for the cause, and to rehabilitation centres for addicts. The rehabilitation centres conduct drives and if a person is identified as an addict of any kind of substance abuse, he is kept in the centre and given medical and psychological attention. Medication is administered to overcome the urge of substances. They are later helped to get employment and start a normal life. We try our best but I wouldn’t say that our success rate is too high. But the numbers of beneficiaries of these programmes are much lesser than ones getting addicted to intoxicated products. This condition mainly prevails in Punjab and North Eastern region. There are many prevention measures like there is a law. There are certain steps being taken to make sure that the intoxicated products are not easily available. But it is observed that various kinds of intoxicated products are smuggled from the borders that India shares with Pakistan, mainly in Punjab and Rajasthan. Not only Pakistan, but these products are also smuggled from other countries that share the border with India. The Narcotics Department has been trying to keep a check and the Home Ministry by the medium of IPC Sections of Police Department tries to prevent smuggling and the Health Ministry is trying to stop any such activity by the means of medical treatments. Our Department is running the Rehabilitation Centres, but we have great difficulty in identifying the addicts, like when we go out on a survey, even the addicts would not admit that are addicted until he/she is caught red handed and identified with the help of devices and technology. Despite this our ministry with the help of
PhotograPhs Š siPra Das
Mr Thawar Chand Gehlot Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment
Health Ministry, State Governments, Police Department and Narcotics Department tries to prevent the situation. What is the Government’s policy of outreach to the target groups through NGOs? Will NGOs play a more prominent role in coming times? It is true and there is no doubt about it that the Government Policies cannot be implemented by only the Government officials and employees. For better implementation, reaching the ground level and making most these policies, public contribution is very important. Public contribution can be by means of State Government systems like Panchayats. Municipal Corporations play their role but there are many NGOs that work for particularly this purpose only, which is why they are of great importance. These NGOs have become very significant and their need will fur-
ther grow in coming future. We do receive many complaints against some NGOs indicating that the purpose these NGOs are set up for is not being fulfilled and the money is being misused. We do keep a check on what they are doing and we ask the State Governments also to keep a tab on their activities. In case of any complaints filed against them we do investigate the matters and take necessary action against them. The Ministry works to empower the target groups through national institutes and corporations. Please tell us briefly about their role? Like I said, Ambedkar Foundation and Jagjivan Ram Foundation help in the protection planning of the people of scheduled caste. The NGOs do get associated with these organizations as they get funds as well as lots of work done is carried by their january 2015 | india empire 21
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Games events were held in Japan and Korea, and our team of 135 sportspersons had gone and out of those 3 gold medal, 14 silvers and 16 bronze medals were won. This is an example of how talented they are and how they can prove themselves in any competition. Like I said small steps lead to big changes, all Indians should support their fellow brothers and sisters by taking small steps of change so that they can better their lives and our ministry also promotes such talent and policies. Also they have support of Sports ministry. The role of our ministry becomes even more important but all departments have their role to play.
medium. All the steps that we take for the betterment of the scheduled caste are supported by them financially as well as practically. All our national institutes and corporations work similarly like providing vocational training for different businesses and providing them financial support. These institutes also check on economic, educational and social development and try to remove if there are any atrocities happening. All these institutes have different purposes and play different roles in the programs that have been initiated by us. Small steps lead to big changes. These institutes help us to manage the policies that we have for the protection of the scheduled castes. Public health, sanitation, conservancy and solid waste management are the key areas when it comes to improving the life of target groups. You must be working closely with other ministries in this regard? As I said, my department would benefit population of 70 crores which includes but are not limited to senior citizens, scheduled castes, backward castes, kinnars, drug addicts and beggars. Social security is also very important, there are old people who have money and house but stay alone, and they have servants to look after them but servants often commit crimes for the sake of money. And such economic, social and educational problems are prevalent across social strata. Hence providing security to these people and guarding their interests becomes extremely important, and Modi ji wants all people should be protected and especially for people fighting drug abuse all people should come together to give their support to them. All people of our nation also have a responsibility towards handicapped people as we have a culture of “live and let live” philosophy and are based on principles of “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”. So for people who feel excluded from family and society we should try to include them socially and culturally in mainstream. We have a responsibility towards such people as all these also have talents and if we give our support they’ll be able to do their bit for national development. Handicapped people are also not behind normal people in any area. Recently our Blind cricked team defeated Pakistan to win the world cup trophy. Prior to this, two Asian 22 india empire | january 2015
What steps are being taken to safeguard the interest of weaker sections of society, including the handicapped and mentally retarded? Unfortunately, in our country either from birth or from later a lot of people become mentally or physically handicapped either due to illness or malnutrition. Some people are mentally retarded while others are deaf, dumb, lame or have other physical handicaps. To prevent these we should either take precaution in pre–natal stage, like we have vaccines to prevent polio and have enough facilities to provide medical facilities on time during illness. As most of the problems arise from malnutrition, nutritious food should be provided to children from initial stage. We should take these measures early on to prevent handicaps but even if people are handicapped our Ministry runs clinics and care homes on district levels. Although, we do not have them in all the district but we do have them in 1/3rd of the districts and we also have their branches in state level and central level. These branches provide mental and physical treatment, hearing aid for the deaf, prosthetics for hand and leg handicaps. NRIs who wish to be a part of this change? Everyone believes that “Necessity is the mother of invention”, we do feel this kind of requirement. If someone wants to support and be a part of the change, the Government is surely view that favourably. This is the reason why the Government has introduced FDI in various different fields, the reach as well as the percentage of the same has also increased over time. All the NRIs who wish to be associated with our activities, they can either get affiliated with some NGO or get involved in their activities. They can also directly get involved with the Government in form of partnership or by providing assistance. Also, if any NRI comes up with a proposal of adding to our means, we do welcome that and will continue to do that in future. Our country has a huge problem of beggars. Are there some steps being taken to eradicate beggary or divert them in some organizations? Our ministry has tried to identify these people and remove them from a life of beggary. Mainly this work is done by state Government but even central Government lends their full support to the cause. But like I mentioned, that in case of drug-addict rehabilitation programme it is very difficult to recognize addicts, and put them in camps ❐ to train them.
Key indian diaspora inTerview—dr nandini Tandon
IntervIew wIth dr nAndInI tAndon, foundInG PArtner And GrouP ceo of tenAcIty GrouP Inc.
“We are committed to take Silicon Valley’s signature entrepreneurship to U.P.” Dr Nandini Tandon, Silicon Valley-based entrepreneur and venture capitalist and Founding Partner and Group CEO of Tenacity Group Inc, spoke to India Empire’s Editor Sayantan Chakravarty. Dr Tandon along with her mentor Dr.B. R.Shetty, Founding Partner and Chairman of Board for Tenacity Group Inc. and her sister, Ms Priya Tandon, Founding Partner CEO, Tenacity India Operations, are spearheading major investments in healthcare / healthcare IT and skill development space in Uttar Pradesh
(L-R): Founding Partners of Tenacity, Ms Priya Tandon, Dr Nandini Tandon, Dr B.R. Shetty along with U.P. Chief Minister Mr Akhilesh Yadav, Advisor NRI Department Mr Madhukar Jetley and Mr Sanjiv Saran, Principal Secretary, IID and NRI Affairs With the Modi Government pitching for investments into India very aggressively, what are the changes that you are seeing in investor confidence in the USA, the country where you are based? Investor’s interest in India with Modi Government in the saddle for the past six-plus months has definitely been
positive. Investor confidence on the other hand is cautiously waiting for dust to settle and concrete scaffolding to be in place that will be investor friendly and will provide stable development focused ecosystem. You are a Silicon Valley-based Investor in the life january 2015 | india empire 23
Key indian diaspora inTerview—dr nandini Tandon
Dr. B.R. Shetty, H.E Sheikh Al Nayhan, Dr R. Califf, and Dr Nandini Tandon sciences and healthcare / healthcare IT space. At this point in time what related projects are you doing in India? My mentor Dr.B.R.Shetty of Abu Dhabi, Priya my sister and myself are founding partners of Silicon Valley based Tenacity Group Inc., with Dr.Shetty as the Chairman of the Board, Priya heading India operations and myself as Group CEO. Tenacity is focusing on investments in the USA-UAE-India corridor. The 3 founding partners of Tenacity signed MoU with Hon. Akhilesh Yadav’s UP government focusing on Health, Health/IT and entrepreneurship/skill development, with investment of billion dollar plus in to UP, recently on December 21st. Hon.CM Akhilesh also inaugurated launch of Tenacity’s SVADESH “Silicon Valley and Avadh’s Development for Entrepreneurial Services for Humanity” while Hon. Mayor-elect of Oakland, Libby Schaaf, was beamed live in to Lucknow from California, using Silicon Valley’s technology of TeleVital. Why are you doing this? My Mother Mrs. Bimal Tandon and my Tenacity partner Dr. B.R. Shetty, have the same passion, to contribute significantly to our common country of birth India and also to our respective adopted lands, USA in the case of our family and UAE for Dr. Shetty. Priya and I are inspired by their passionate commitment to the cause of repaying back to our roots. Hence, we at Tenacity are committed to engage in those endeavors that will allow us to make available quality healthcare at affordable cost, with strong sustainability integrated in to systems that we build. 24 india empire | january 2015
At president Obama's inauguration with Norman Mineta Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation and Congressman Mike Honda of California Secondly, just like mobile phones have leapfrogged and rapidly replaced land-lines, similarly Tenacity’s priority is to reach the resource challenged and remotest villages utilizing next generation of medicine which takes healthcare to the patients and allows better education to ensure proactive and holistic healthcare. Tenacity will leverage its partner, Silicon Valley’s company TeleVital’s telemedicine to serve the masses in a responsible manner. Thirdly, we place high premium on job creation and to
From left Dr. Villardo, President of Palo Alto Medical Foundation, Dr. Nandini Tandon, Vice Chairman, El Camino Hospital Board, Ms. Tomi Ryba, CEO of El Camino Hospital, and Ms. Priya Tandon, CEO India Operations, Tenacity Group Inc on San Francisco Mayor's delegation to India. Health delegation was co-chaired by Tandon sisters empowering women so that a critical mass of this and next generation can collectively contribute to society at large. Tenacity is committed to taking Silicon Valley’s signature entrepreneurship and skill/professional development to UP. You are the proud recipient of the very first UP NRI Card from the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, along with your sister Ms Priya Tandon. What does it mean to you personally? Priya, myself and our entire family is highly honored and deeply touched by CM Akhilesh Yadav ji and his team’s very thoughtful gesture of welcoming us back to UP with a serious commitment from the CM to give every support to UP NRIs to return home and reconnect with and invest in their roots. You are currently the Vice Chairman of the Board of El Camino Hospital, Silicon Valley. We understand it is number one amongst top 30 most technologically advanced hospitals in the world. Kindly elaborate? I am very proud that El Camino Hospital, "The Hospital of Silicon Valley," has consistently leveraged its location to access latest, state of the art, cutting edge and proven healthcare technologies to better serve its patients. Earlier this year Top Master’s in Healthcare Administration chose ECH as number one amongst 30 most technologically advanced hospitals across the world. Additionally Popular Science magazine said "The new El Camino Hos-
With Mrs and Senator Warner, Co-chair of the US-India caucus, at their home
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Key indian diaspora inTerview—dr nandini Tandon
U.P. Chief Minister Mr Akhilesh Yadav giving the first and second UP NRI cards to Ms Priya Tandon and Dr Nandini Tandon on the day of the lauch of the UP NRI website on November 30, 2014
Mrs Bimal Tandon with USA’s Vice President Walter Mondale and family; she shares a common dream with Dr. B.R. Shetty of paying back to India
Dr. Nandini Tandon is the Vice Chair of El Camino Hospital, Silicon Valley, the most technologically advanced hospital in the world
pital in Silicon Valley is the most technologically advanced in the world." ECH’s has the first Women’s Hospital in Northern California, Genomic Medicine Institute, Behavioral Health Services, Cancer Center, Emergency Services, Neurosciences, Norma Melchor Heart & Vascular Institute, Nuclear Medicine, Orthopedic Services, Rehabilitation Services, Stroke Center etc. amongst its vast array of specialty and services offered. Especially for Indians the South Asian Heart Center at ECH is very pertinent as it focuses specifically on coronary artery disease, an epidemic among South Asians occurring
at a rate four times higher than the general population. I am also very proud of ECH’s staff, management, leadership, board and volunteers that are outstanding and ensure that latest technology is coupled with thoughtful caring.
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You were a delegate of President Obama’s US State Department’s Global Entrepreneurship Program to Turkey. For someone who has interned at the White House, this recognition and acknowledgement of your talent must be hugely satisfying. Global Entrepreneurship Program grew from an ini-
tiative of President Obama into a core program at US State Department and was guided by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to promote entrepreneurship as a key pillar of economic development among developing countries. The Turkey experience was an exceptional one. I was doubly honored to be invited, one being chosen from the very talented pool of American entrepreneurs and second being the only Indian American on the delegation. President Obama’s focus on entrepreneurship for creating jobs definitely inspired me to double our efforts under Tenacity to take entrepreneurship for job creation to UP. You are on multiple boards, 14 for profit and more than that on not for profit boards, spread across various continents, what has been your experience like? I feel truly fortunate to be associated with exceptionally talented and gifted individuals across a wide array of very prestigious boards. Often being the only woman and only Indian American on the board has given me a valuable perspective that I am looking forward to bring to my investments in India. What are your views on the Pravasi movement that the Indian Government has undertaken? Pravasi movement is a very value-add platform to celebrate the connectivity of non-resident Indians with their roots, on emotional, cultural and on other planes. It also allows the 30 million plus Indian diaspora spread across the globe to network and find common areas of interests, both professional and personal. PBD provides a for um for NRIs to efficiently learn about opportunities in different Indian States and how they can engage and invest. It is also is an opportunity for the government to learn about the issues of the global diaspora and how it can better address them. This is a win-win platform for both the Government and the large Indian global diaspora. What are your views on the Pravasi movement that the Indian Government has undertaken? Do you see this movement bringing in concrete, tangible results on the ground, or there is scope for restructuring the engagement process with the Indian Diaspora? I think the Pravasi Movement is now poised for the great leap forward. Prime Minister Modi’s direct interaction with the diaspora is already showing results on the ground. I understand that the diaspora’s interest in India is now renewed, and there is a new energy and momentum on the ground. The restructuring of the engagement process has already begun—we understand that at the PBD the sessions and programmes have been well thought out and would interest the diaspora to keep coming back for this flagship event. We are also very pleased that India’s foreign minister is also the one looking at overseas Indian affairs. She brings in a wealth of experi❐ ence, and a special feminine touch, to her job.
Dr Tandon with the first ever lady speaker of the House in the USA, Ms Nancy Pelosi at President Obama’s inaugural celebrations in Washington D.C. in 2012
With Mrs Nelson Mandela
With President of Chile, Ms Michelle Bachelette, at Nelson Mandela’s board gathering
Dr Tandon with the USA Ambassador at the Turkish President’s official residence in May 2012 january 2015 | india empire 27
diaspora—gulF
Sunny Kulathakal Every once in a while an individual is born, who by his sheer energy and enthusiasm, shakes up the world and influences thousands of others to wake up, take note and act. Sunny Kulathakal is one such individual. After serving the nation’s leading publications as a journalist and an author, he went on from India to the Middle East and set about co-ordinating activities to help the less fortunate of the NRI and PIO community tide through hard times and benefit from a collaborative awareness of opportunities and solutions. Walking the talk, he uses his acres of land back home in Bangalore and his flagship venture Sunliz Publications, to pursue nature friendly initiatives and employment generating projects. A vibrant personality brimming with positive energy, Sunny and his wife Elizabeth have nurtured Sunliz Publications to the status of an iconic publishing house across the whole of the Middle East
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A catalyst for the community and a champion comprehensive and gave an overview of all businesses in for humanity Bahrain including in-depth coverage of who needed to be When Sunny Kulathakal first came to the Gulf in 1977, contacted in each organization. he was already an established media professional and was on deputation to do an assignment for a leading publication A vibrant childhood and a self made man of the time, The Illustrated Weekly of India. The emerging Sunny’s childhood was an eventful array of incidents Gulf boom had many people back home wondering of how which spoke of the man in the making. Leadership was inlife was, in this much spoken-of new grained into his DNA and visible to all land of wealth and opportunity. But like when way back as a 15 year old, he beQUICK FACTS any growing economy, there were grim came a working committee member of realities to every success story. Sunny Balajanasakyam focussed on identifying ● EXECUTIVE VICE was a first hand witness to the condiand nurturing future leaders. In fact he PRESIDENT GOPIO tions of expatriates who though relater succeeded none other than the cur● MANAGING spected in their homeland, lived and rent Kerala Chief Minister, Mr. Oomworked in challenging circumstances men Chandy, as its President. EDITOR, SUNLIZ during their Gulf tenures. This caused In 1962, as a 17-year-old, Sunny PUBLICATIONS, Sunny to stay back after his assignment wanted to host a reception for former BAHRAIN and join the expatriate community in Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in ● AUTHOR creating better lifestyles and opportuniMaramon, Kerala. But Mrs Gandhi was ties for them through an exercise of netin the middle of a heated election cam● JOURNALIST working and collaboration. Sunny is also paign and the Congress candidate ● ACTIVIST an accomplished author. His Malayalam Raveendra Varma wouldn’t allow it. work on the vices that grip modern soSunny persisted and threatened to block ● AGRICULTURIST ciety was an eye opener and a shocking the former PM’s motorcade all by himrevelation of the grimy underbelly of self, by standing in the middle of the society that needs correction right from the roots. He also road. Varma had to relent. Impressed by his teenage exuhas to his credit a biography of Martin Luther King, whose berance, C.M. Stephen, former Union Minister, who was in commitment to uplift the downtrodden was a source of in- the entourage, introduced him to Mrs Gandhi. spiration for Sunny. His later works, like the epic book After completing post-graduation in Economics from ‘Kalpadukal’ (Footprints) comprises interviews published St Berchmans’ College, Changanacherry, Kerala, Sunny in various newspapers. joined the editorial team of a leading Malayalam daily. But The power of knowing who’s who Sunny played a key role in making the Indian diaspora in the Gulf a tightly knit family. His exhaustive Gulf Who’s Who, a directory of Gulf business leaders and Indian expatriates, helps thousands of people with the right contact information for their specific needs, like employment, housing, business etc. The vast amount of data contained therein is also a celebration of the great Indian success story in the Middle East. This pioneering idea by Sunny took a lot of hardwork and determination as he had to work on it even in the absence of telephone directories. After the first Gulf Who’s Who Directory was published in 1978, which was a collector’s item, Sunny launched Gulf Who’s Who, Bahrain, which was more
Sunny Kulathakal greeting the Honourable Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi
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diaspora—gulF
Mr & Mrs Sunny Kulathakal receiving Trinidad prime Minister Hon. Kamala Prasad Bissesseur. GOPIO Life Member Mr. Mridul Patak (Centre) can also be seen
Sunny Kulathakal with Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and other leading businessmen of Bahrain
the restless soul in him sought greener pastures and the penchant for social work took him to the YMCA where he had an eventful stint as Secretary. In fact it was the YMCA stint that brought Sunny to Bangalore, when he first came to the city he would later call his home in India, in 1967 for a training program.
Origin (GOPIO). In that capacity, he is actively involved in improving the lot of expatriates, not just from the Gulf but the world over.
The family Sunny and his better-half Elizabeth have three children. A daughter Bindu the The second coming youngest and two sons Biju and In 1984, when English language Binu, the elder ones . Bindu is marpublications were banned in the ried to Aditya (Apu) and they are Emirates, Sunny moved back to Bansettled in London with their only GOPIO needs selfless galore and established Sunliz Publison Abhay . Binu and wife Ranjani and enlightened leaders, cations there. But the changing times have two children Maya and Pranav who understand the and the opening up of the Middle and they are settled in the US. Biju East through a host liberalisation iniis also settled in the US with his depth of the problems of tiatives, brought Sunny back to his wife Lauren and the only son – NRIs and PIOs. It should home away from home, Bahrain. newly born - Sidhartha and this has fulfill the full potential of Crown Prince and the First enabled Sunny and Elizabeth to go its name by having active Deputy Prime Minister Prince on a world tour of sorts whenever Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalthey long to visit their children and presence in most of the ifa lauded the work of Sunny and grandchildren. countries. GOPIO should Elizabeth Kulathakal in producing Just like their relationship, Suny not morph into a regional the Gulf Who’s Who Directory for and Elizabeth consider their venture organization. Regional the past 35 years. He particularly apSunliz Publication, as a perfect partpreciated the part carrying internership that complements each othrivalries and tensions views of nearly 200 top dignitaries ers strengths and helps bring out the have to be fully ironed out. regarding VISION 2030 of Bahrain. best of each others abilities. ElizaPersons with dubious He urged Sunny to update the Dibeth takes care of coordinating the reputations should be rectory with views from more peodata and inputs for the Directory ple so that the whole world would while Sunny concentrates on getting eliminated from GOPIO know that Bahrain is doing its best information, editing and marketing. to help its citizens with long term The detail and information that goes programs like VISION 2030. In a into each publication which has been grand evening meeting during a top hailed as a life saver for many Arabs, level visit, External Affairs Minister H. E. Sheikh Khalid NRI’s, speaks of the care and concern that the Kulathakals Al Khalifa told at a huge public meeting in Bahrain that nurture their publication with. At heart a Central TravanMr. Sunny’s ‘lovely book’ had served the Kingdom of core farmer, Sunny’s dream project is to build a top class Bahrain very well for the past several years. health resort on his 33 acres farm land near Bangalore’s inToday, based in Bahrain, Sunny is the Executive Vice ternational airport, to cater to the needs of global health ❐ President of the Global Organization of People of Indian tourists.
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uttar Pradesh–An unlimited Potential Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state in the country with a 200 million consumer base is contributing almost 8 percent to India’s GDP. Uttar Pradesh has been known as the most important state for deciding the political future of the Country. The State known for being a strong agrarian economy has progressed in Industrialization under the young and dynamic leadership of the Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav. He wants to chart a success story on the pillars of socio-economic development of the state with the right balance between Industrialization and human development. In the last decade the State has evolved across sectors by providing growth-focused conducive economic environment. Hon’ble Chief Minister has geared up the Government machinery to make the State the “next Growth Frontier” by creating an investor friendly environment for sustainable economic growth. The State has prioritized sectors which are essential for its evolution to the next level. The Delhi Investors conclave organized by the Government of Uttar Pradesh where investments worth Rs 54,000 crore were committed by the Industry is a testimony of the trust in the leadership of Hon’ble Chief Minister. Government spending on Infrastructure development in Uttar Pradesh on multiple flagship projects such as Metro rail in multiple cities, 6 Lane Lucknow-Agra Expressway Highway, Trans Ganga Project, Integrated townships, Leather parks, IT city, Agro Parks is evidence that the Government is aggressively focusing on progress as the foremost agenda of the State. It is imperative to mention here that the 2 most important industrial corridors, the DMIC and ADKIC meet in Uttar Pradesh and provide connectivity of the landlocked state to vital ports of the country (Mumbai and Kolkata). The superior connectivity of the Industrial corridors will give high mileage in the industrial development of the State. Hon’ble Chief Minister is focusing on developing the next generation Smart cities in Lucknow, Allahabad, Varanasi and Noida which would be transformational for the State. As per a recent report by World Bank & CMIE, the state has been ranked as one of the top 5 states for Manufacturing in India with 8.3 percent of national manufacturing output in 2012-13. The state has huge availability of basic raw material used for handicraft manufacturing like wood, metal (silver, copper, brass and tin), paper, stone, cotton, silk and leather and has set-up 1,76,033 Industrial units (MSME and Heavy units) during the 11th Five Year Plan with a total investment of USD 9.07 billion. Energy is another emerging sector of immense offerings both in renewable and non-renewable sectors. Uttar Pradesh intends to invest about USD 3.15 billion in transmission and USD 2.68 billion in the distribution sector. There is a strong focus of renewable energy in Uttar Pradesh in the 12th plan with an investment of 1.15 billion in power projects. The state is now giving a big push to IT hardware and
semiconductor manufacturing as one of the largest fab manufacturing facilities is coming up in the Noida/ Greater Noida region. Apart from introducing a landmark Infrastructure and Industrial Investment Policy for multiple sectors, has also introduced key sector specific policies – providing a mix of attractive fiscal and non-fiscal incentives. The state is moving forward with economic reforms that will make its growth sustainable and equitable. The motto of the leadership is Development and Care. Development means not only economic development, but also political, social, and above all, human development. The Government is taking special care to distribute the fruits of development to all sections of society and is specifically implementing policies to help and assist the weaker sections, differently-abled sections and those sidelined so far. The Diaspora’s contribution through philanthropy is well known. Today the face of philanthropy has changed and a new generation of social entrepreneurs has emerged driving innovations and transforming lives of others. Many of these change-makers are members of UP global diaspora, and the State Government has already taken some landmark initiatives to engage them for harnessing their knowledge, skills and global reach to dovetail the same in the developmental efforts of the State. Government of Uttar Pradesh also envisions connecting with the UP diaspora. In its quest to connect with the UP Diaspora and engage them in the development journey of the State, Government recently transformed NRI cell to a full-fledged NRI department. State has also launched a dedicated UP NRI website (www.upnri.com) on November 30, 2014 to connect with the Indian diaspora. The State is planning to celebrate the First NRI Divas in the historic city of AGRA between February 28 and ❐ March 1, 2015. january 2015 | india empire 33
educaTion
IntervIew wIth SArdAr tArAnJIt SInGh, MAnAGInG dIrector, JIS GrouP
“our vision is to lead and inspire knowledge and excellence” Please tell us about the vision and mission of the JIS Group? Our vision is to lead, and inspire knowledge and excellence in society across the globe. Our mission is to advance and enhance the learning possibilities by fostering awareness, developing holistic knowledge acquisition through creation, innovation, exposure and interaction to build human talent for self enhancement and also for the cause of society. The JIS Group has come a long way since its inception. You are now among the largest educational conglomerates in India, and the largest in eastern India. Please take us through the journey over the years… JIS Group is born out of Founder Chairman Sardar Jodh Singh’s entrepreneurial zeal and vision, which through the years have spanned the fields of dairy business, telecommunication, transportation, infrastructure, logistics, education, healthcare and social service. However, his aspiration to serve society by imparting knowledge, education and employment culminated into JIS Group Educational Initiatives, which began its journey from the year 1998 with Asansol Engineering College, at Kanyapur, Asansol. This was followed by the commencement of JIS College of Engineering, Kalyani in 2000, Narula Institute of Technology (NIT) (2001), and Guru Nanak Institute of Technology (GNIT) (2003). In the year 2002 a Centre for Management Studies was launched at JISCE. In the year 2004, a separate School for Management Studies was launched at NIT. Expanding its efforts the Group forayed into health education with its first private Dental College in West Bengal – Guru Nanak Institute of Dental Sciences and Research (2003) and Guru Nanak Institute of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology in the year 2005. The Group also entered hospitality education through its specialty institute Guru Nanak Institute of Hotel Management in the year 2005. The Group also started JIS School of Polytechnic and Dr. Sudhir Chandra Sur Degree Engineering College in 2009. Moreover, JIS started joint venture Engineering Colleges namely Greater Kolkata College of Engineering and Management (JV), Abacus Institute of Engineering and Management (JV) and Asansol Engineering College. In 2014, JIS Group joined the management of Haldia Institute of Dental Sciences and Research (JV) and 34 india empire | january 2015
Mr Taranjit Singh Managing Director, JIS Group
ICARE Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (JV). Recently a ‘JIS University Bill’ was passed by the West Bengal State Legislature. The University is commissioned to be operational in the year 2015. How many colleges and institutions run under the group’s banner? At present, there are 25 institutes under the aegis of JIS Group Educational Initiatives that offer 72 courses in diversified streams. What has been the increase in student intake in the last 10 years? Over the last ten years, the number of institutes under JIS Group Educational Initiatives has significantly increased from seven to twenty five. Accordingly, the number of student intake has moved up from 1800 to 8000 plus. A
diversified array of courses in multiple streams have been introduced like Bachelor in Pharmacy (B.Pharm), MBBS, Polytechnic, ITI, etc - Engineering and Management contributing to the maximum increase in the student intake in the last 10 years. Why did you choose West Bengal to start your educational enterprise, even though you are from the north? West Bengal has a rich heritage of quality excellence in the realm of education and knowledge. The students of West Bengal have always been torch bearers to this proud tradition. Though there was immense talent in the state, the ratio of institutions to potential students was extremely less and students to venture out of the state to study. It was then that the Government thought of initiating the Private-Public Partnership model, and JIS understanding the need to decide on the right talent, mould it into professionals and deliver it to the states across the country decided to invest in West Bengal. Please take us through some of the JIS Group’s Educational Initiatives… The main focus of JIS Group Educational Initiatives over the years has been three-fold: ● Providing quality Education to all students ● Providing proper counselling and guidance regarding career development to all students ● Enthuse all students for higher education and also to pursue Research& Development
Other than this, JIS as a brand aims to position itself as the best brand in the Global map in the field of education. In order to achieve this, we have given special attention to provide all students with every kind of technological conveniences, an upgraded infrastructure, state-of-the-art training methodologies and communication skill sets. Moreover, we also have tie-ups with corporates and other centre for excellence globally that provides the students a chance getting into exchange program knowledge sharing and also 1st hand industry experience. What is the size of the JIS Group in terms of institutions, faculty, students—including Ph.D students— and programmes? ● Today, JIS Group Educational Initiatives is a premier education service provider in West Bengal, having 25 Institutions, offering a spectrum of 72 academic programmes to around 25,000 students. ● There are currently about 1508 faculty members of which 308 are Ph.D holders. The teachers take special care to encourage students to churn out innovative ideas through discussion and debates for enriching both their knowledge and perspectives. ● There are 2175 published research papers in various national and international journals by our faculty members. We understand that your campus recruitment programmes have attracted national and international january 2015 | india empire 35
educaTion
companies to recruit graduates from different courses. Kindly elaborate. In the modern day’s globalized world where an industry is the soul and keystone of economic prosperity—right from schools to multinational companies—it is a necessity to adapt an organization to its environment and shape it towards perfection. For this job, every company chooses the right professionals the matches their goals and objectives during any campus recruitment. We are aware that during recruitment all corporates do research about who is providing the best professional talent pool in the market.In the same context, as we have mentioned earlier, we provide all students with every kind of technological conveniences, an upgraded infrastructure, state-of-the-art training methodologies and communication skill sets. We as a group of institution aid them in the process by moulding these talents and providing them with the required professionally skilled recruits. Thus we see a lot of traction when national and international companies come to our campuses for recruitment. It must be hugely satisfying to you as a Group to tie up with multinational giants such as Microsoft and Volkswagen. Your views… Yes. Satisfaction is there since for the last sixteen years JIS as a brand has been sustainably providing skilled professionals to the industry. On the corporate tie-up front, JIS Group Educational Initiatives has prestigious and strategic collaborations with Volkswagen, Oracle, Microsoft, Texas Instruments, IBM, Wipro, Infosys, MSME, and ICICI amongst several others to enrich the field of research and technology transfer. Dr. Sudhir Chandra Sur Degree Engineering College is the first college in the region to achieve the prestigious Microsoft Ed-Vantage Platinum level. In this program, Microsoft Corporation India Pvt Ltd provides a platform to augment student employability through its educational program Ed-vantage. With Volkswagen Group we have signed a MOU to set up a fully-fledged training cum service centre in the college campus to reinforce the quality of automobile engineers graduating from our college. 36 india empire | january 2015
We believe that it is only through forging of strong relationships between the industry and the academia, can we lead to sustainable utilization of the talent pool in our country. Just as the academia needs to keep pace with the skill sets sought after by the industry, so too the industry needs to understand the needs and aspirations of the students who are the future architects of tomorrow’s innovation. Please let us know about your expansion plans in other Indian states… We have set our goals in various upcoming initiatives. Firstly, there is the JIS University bill that has been passed in the state legislature, the University is to be commissioned in 2015 in Kolkata, West Bengal. There is an upcoming Knowledge Park in Naya Raipur, Chattisgarh that is to be formed under PPP model with the Government of Chattisgarh. There are also the upcoming projects in the state of Jharkhand under the PPP model that is aimed at the spread of quality technical education in the state. These are stated to come up in Chakradharpur, Barhi, Khunti and Bahragoda. On the infrastructure front, some of the infrastructural improvements we hope to implement soon will be the introduction of digitized learning procedure, i.e., smart classroom for high-end education delivery. We also plan to ‘Go green’ by implementing green energy and thereby operating on solar energy in our campus. We also plan to extend the services of our e-library; Entrepreneur Development Cell and Industry Institute Partnership Cell. Moreover, we have invested in upgraded medical instruments for our dental college. Last but not the least, we have collaborated with different medical colleges, private universities in SAARC countries to extend student and knowledge exchange program. There are also some additional plans to be implemented in enhancing scope of research and development in our engineering and management colleges by mobilizing more funds. More collaborative programmes with international standard Universities and Technological, Management Institutions, Opening more Incubation Centres for facilitat❐ ing student innovation in the Campus etc.
aTal bihari vajpayee
A proud Hindu As Atal Bihari Vajpayee turned 90 on December 25, he remains one of the finest practitioners of India’s enlightened pluralism as embedded in its ancient civilization rather than an obligation as mandated by the constitution of a young nation-state By Mayank Chhaya
V
ajpayee, now a shadow of his former self, has straddled public life before and after India’s independence since 1942. He is the last of the generation of leaders whose worldview is avowedly Indian and therefore universal. For someone who as a Class 10 student wrote this about himself, “Hindu body and mind, Hindu life, every vein carries my Hindu identity (Hindu Tan Man, Hindu Jeevan, Rag Rag Hindu Mera Parichay)”, it is not as if Vajpayee has ever been unambiguous about what informs his sense of identity. However, what has set him apart from the rest of the political crowd within his own Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is his innate sense of moderation and decency. He has been known to attribute that strength to his Hindu grounding. In a speech soon after he lost the parliamentary election to Madhavrao Scindia in 1984 in Gwalior, Vajpayee referred to that poem and said, “People say that the Vajpayee who wrote that is not the same as the Vajpayee who does politics. There is no truth in it. I am Hindu. How can I forget that? No one should forget that. However, my Hindutva is not constricted, it is not narrow.” Vajpayee also firmly subscribes to the idea that India is a Hindu nation but a secular state, a distinction between “rashtra” and “rajya” which, he said,
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Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, one of the most controversial pioneers of the Hindu movement, made. “Buniyadi taur par Bharat ek Hindu rashtra hai is sey koi inkar nahi kar sakta aur asweekar nahi kar sakta” (Fundamentally, Bharat is a Hindu nation. No one can deny that or find it unacceptable), he said during that speech to commemorate Savarkar in Pune. Some three decades later, even as he leads a firmly retired life, there is no reason to believe that his view has undergone any significant change. Notwithstanding that Vajpayee, drawing on his soul as a poet and inquisitiveness as a former journalist, developed a decidedly reasonable and moderate approach to public and private life. Having interacted with him frequently throughout the 1980s and 1990s, I can say with some certainty that he imbibed the essence of Jawaharlal Nehru’s humanism more than any other Indian politician who followed him. And yet he retained his distinct right-of-centre political ideology. It has often been said of Vajpayee that he is the right man in the wrong political party. Once you get past the cleverness of that wishful thinking you realize that he is very much emblematic of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) he conceived of in his mind along with Lal Krishna Advani. “Virdohi dalon me mere mitron ko mere bare mei
lagta hai ki aadmi to acchha hai lekin ghalat dal mein hai. Unko main kahunga aadmi bhi sahi hai aur dal bhi sahi hai (My friends in the opposition like to think that I am a good man in a bad party. Let me tell them that I am the right man in the right party),” Vajpayee told me in 1990. Contrary to the popular belief, Vajpayee has always been on the side that he genuinely thinks is representative of Indian ethos. At the same time, he has been acutely conscious of the extreme tendencies within his party that he thinks often cross the line. Ironically, the lowest point in his long and illustrious public life was also perhaps his highest at the personal level. Within three days of the demolition of the Babri Mosque in December 6, 1992, he was both selfassured enough and profoundly disturbed to declare the demolition as the BJP’s “worst miscalculation”. A deeply anguished and aggrieved Vajpayee chose only two journalists including this writer and his colleague Tarun Basu to publicly bemoan that moderates like him in the party had been cast aside in the run up to the demolition. During a two-hour conversation at his then Raisina Road residence, Vajpayee spoke with characteristic candour on record and even more strikingly off it. However, even in those terrible times for his party and him personally, he managed to stick to his position that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the BJP’s ideological parent, considered the action to be against “Hindu ethos”. Vajpayee has been a unique political figure in India’s history since its independence in the sense that he has stood for almost everything that the so-called hard right Hindu political philosophy would require. Yet, because of the way he has constructed his ideas and, equally importantly, the way he has articulated them he has managed to remain a broadly centrist and reasonable voice. He is a great example of soft, poetic enunciation of hard ideas. He used to be amused by the image of a cuddly nationalist that many outside the BJP had come to harbour about him. “It is almost as if they are trying to mitigate their guilt about liking me personally even while not approving of my party, (Aisa lagta hai ki jaise mujhe pasand karne se un mei paida ho rahe dosh ko kum kar rahen hain kyunki unko meri party pasand nahi hai),” is how he put it once. He has been someone who passionately pursued that rare right of centre ideology at a time when the country was in the grip of left leaning socialistic thinking. His economic philosophy was that of a pragmatist liberalizer who had faith in India’s entrepreneurial impulses. His foreign policy was in line with the national consensus at play since the time of Nehru, which was one of non-alignment driven by national self-interest. His cultural outlook has very much been in keeping with his deep grounding in the Hindu worldview.
At one point or another, Vajpayee has spoken about some of the same subjects which have come to the fore of the national discourse again. For instance, in his Pune speech 30 years ago he also spoke about how “dharmantaran” (converting to another religion) had also become “rashtrantaran” (switching national loyalties). In that context, he cited the examples of countries like Indonesia which, despite being Islamic, continued to maintain its cultural underpinnings. He said they may have changed their form of worship but not their culture. Notwithstanding all such assertions, even his worst detractors would happily grant him consistent cultural moderation, political reasonableness and high parliamentary behavior. Born in Gwalior in 1924, Vajpayee came of age in the midst of a tumultuous campaign for India’s independence. He spent his formative years contrasted against a national upheaval that eventually created one of the world’s greatest freedom movements. In many ways, Vajpayee was profoundly influenced by the national sense of purpose that he saw and was very much a part of the freedom movement even though he may have come to it from a position of someone like Savarkar. During his tenure as prime minister, he did manage to follow the philosophy of the state being nonpartisan. While some of it may have to do with the compulsions of coalition politics, it was mainly because of the way Vajpayee has always approached the idea of India, “Raj Dharma” as he calls it. One can always get into the specifics of his accomplishments as prime minister, such as turning India into a full-fledged nuclear power by ordering nuclear tests almost as the first order of business after taking over in 1998. However, Vajpayee’s greater contribution to India’s national life generally and politics specifically has been to steadfastly offer a competing but moral and righteous vision of the country as well as to maintain very high standards of public discourse in service of true democracy. ❐ january 2015 | india empire 39
educaTion
SAMAntA AS A SocIAl reforMer
Decades come and go but what remain are the impression and great acts of the social reformers. Odisha is privileged to have a great soul and a social reformer like Shri Achyuta Samanta (www.achyutasamanta.com), who through his life and work has brought in reforms to the whole higher education scenario and the education for the tribal population in the state of Odisha. The radical changes that have been brought about by Shri Samanta have no parallel in the world history so far. He has undertaken the reforms and taken up the challenges of breaking the lethargy and deteriorating standards of education and the jinx bugging the life and
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destiny of the deprived sections of the society. The contributions, made by this simple man who came up in life through great challenges of abject poverty to become an eminent soul making extraordinary contributions towards humanity. His life, activities and thoughts has given a new dimension to education as a social development tool and will definitely guide the future human generations. Shri Achyuta Samanta started KIIT (www.kiit.ac.in) with a meager amount of Rs. 5000 (100 USD) and transformed the same into a world class University within 17 18 years of time which in itself is an incredible accomplishment. The journey of KIIT has set many benchmarks for higher education in India and at the same time established the social responsibility of modern universities and for that matter any organization. The University’s commitment to social work which has been one of its essential nature inspired by its founder, has led to the growth of Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (www.kiss.ac.in) as world’s largest tribal educational institute and harbinger of social change and reform of the tribal society. Though smacked with abject poverty since childhood Shri Samanta never was daunted by it nor did he ever feel slighted because of poverty. He always bore a contagious smile on his face and plunged himself to helping people whenever any opportunity came his way. Social work was a kind of his second nature. He braved all struggles in life with a smile all through his life. He started working as a menial worker quite early in his childhood helping his widow mother. As a teenager he assisted his mother at home and in the farm and augmented the income of the family for which getting even one square meal in two days was difficult. He however ignored all the suffer-
adverTorial
ings and hurdles and marched ahead as if obsessed with a great purpose in life and truly so. No sooner he stepped into youth than he decided to dedicate his life for social work. His modest background, lack of any backing or banking support could not restrain his resolve. He had always realized that education was inherently potent in bringing about social change. He quit his job of an academic and with all that he had saved from his income as an academic he started two educational institutes which today have grown into two world class institutions-KIIT and KISS. KISS has been able to restrain spread of Maoist activities in the hinterland of Odisha where such insurgency once flourished. The tribal have been the focus group of the Naxalites and the Maoists. Facilitating education of tribal, far away from their native land in Bhubaneswar, was indeed a dangerous task in the face of the hold the Naxalites and the Maoists had over the tribal. However, the visionary mind of Shri Samanta was able to bring the tribal out of their impoverished native setting and gave them an opportunity to get education. He has not paid heed to the threat that lurched on his life for this. The educated tribal today are the change agents for their respective communities. KISS which has student strength of over 22500 is not only educating the young tribal children but also bringing about a change in the tribal mindset back in their native setting and they are increasingly able to identify them as at par with the mainstream population. Each student is a potential change agent for 22500 families and almost about the same number of tribal villages in 20 districts of the state. The tribal people suffered from lack of modern skills
for life and livelihood. KISS, in collaboration with UNFPA, has been training the tribal students with the much needed life skills training and has been developing their personalities. As a result of this the tribal children feel confident in living in peace and harmony with the mainstream population. Getting the tribal children motivated to come to KISS has been an uphill task. However, Shri Achyuta Samanta’s charming stance, clarity of vision and leadership abilities could break the ice and more and more tribal parents are queuing up at KISS for getting their wards admitted. His slogan, NUAMANA, NUA SAPAN (New mindset, new dreams)” has caught the fancy of the tribal people and change is inevitable soon. Shri Achyuta Samanta’s visionary mind has been able to convince the KIIT’s management to sustain and support KISS. KIIT has 5 per cent of its seats in all disciplines of higher education reserved for the tribal graduates of KISS who are provided free education in KIIT. All the employees contribute voluntarily 3 per cent of their salary to KISS. KISS also receives regular voluntary contributions from all vendors to KIIT and KISS. A large number of elite guardians of KIIT students also make voluntary contributions to KISS. All these contributions come by because of simplicity, utmost honesty and sincerity of its founder Shri Achyuta Samanta. The reforms in tribal education and empowerment has been indeed legendary and epoch making in the history of tribal emancipation. ❐ —By Anjay Sinha
january 2015 | india empire 41
indians in usa
MAKInG newS By Arun Kumar Notching successes in fields as diverse as poetry and politics, some three million- strong Indian American community packed more power and influence far beyond their numbers in the year gone by. A record 30 Indian Americans jumped into November’s electoral battle with Republican Nikki Haley and Democrat Kamala Harris handily winning back their jobs as South Carolina governor and California’s attorney general respectively. But Republican Neel Tushar Kashkari lost an uphill battle against California’s popular governor Jerry Brown, while Rohit ‘Ro’ Khanna nearly upset seventerm incumbent Mike Honda in a Democrat versus Democrat House contest in Silicon Valley. Amiresh ‘Ami’ Bera, the lone Indian American in the US House of Representatives, repeated history by winning a tight California House race two weeks after the elections as he had four years ago. Eight Indian Americans scored victories in the states with 23-year- old law student Niraj Antani, a Republican, creating history by winning a House seat in Ohio to become one of America’s youngest lawmakers. President Barack Obama, whose administration has more Indian Americans than any other before, added many more, including former key Hillary Clinton aide Richard Rahul Verma as the first envoy from the community to New Delhi. With Nisha Desai Biswal heading the State Department’s South Asia bureau, Indian Americans would be watching US interests in both Washington and New Delhi when Verma takes up his post. Puneet Talwar took over as assistant secretary for political-military affairs to serve as a bridge between the State and Defence departments, while Arun Madhavan Kumar became assistant secretary of commerce and director general of the US and Foreign Commercial Service. “Vivek Murthy became the youngest US Surgeon General and the first of Indian descent after cooling his heels for more than a year for Senate confirmation
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as ‘America’s doctor’ in the face of strong opposition by powerful gun lobby.” Software giant Microsoft named Hyderabad-born Satya Nadella as its new CEO in place of Steve Ballmer, making him perhaps the most powerful Indian-born tech executive in the world. Indian Americans yet again paid a price for running more than half of America’s 150,000 convenience stores with many of them becoming targets when Ferguson exploded after a white policeman killed an unarmed black teenager in August. Amid growing protests over the treatment of blacks, Obama named Vanita Gupta to lead the US justice department’s civil rights division charged with enforcing laws that prevent discrimination. Kerala-born Stanford University Professor Thomas Kailath received the Medal of Science from Obama for his “transformative contribution to science and technology”, while Arun Majumdar, an Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay alumni, was chosen to serve as one of four US Science Envoys. Chennai-born scientist Subra Suresh was inducted into the Institute of Medicine (IOM), making him the only university president to be elected to all three national academies. Delhi-born Sujit Choudhry, a noted expert in comparative constitutional law, became the first Indian American dean of the University of CaliforniaBerkeley, School of Law, a top US law school. Indira Talwani and Manish Shah became the first Asian American federal judges in Massachusetts and Obama’s home state of Illinois respectively. Bengaluru-born Indian American poet Vijay Seshadri won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for poetry while the New York Times included the works of Indian historian Ramachandra Guha and five Indian American writers in its list of 100 notable books of 2014. Two Indian American youngsters made history as Sriram Hathwar and Ansun Sujoe were declared cochampions in the Scripps National Spelling Bee con-
Nikki Haley
Kamala Harris
Rohit ‘Ro’ Khanna
Amiresh ‘Ami’ Bera
Niraj Antani
Richard Rahul Verma
Nisha Desai Biswal
Puneet Talwar
test after 52 years and for just the fourth time in the contest’s history. New York’s US attorney Preet Bharara, known in India for his dogged prosecution of Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade, tasted his first defeat in July after winning 85 insider trading cases. Among those he sent to jail were Rajat Gupta, the former Indian American director of Goldman Sachs Group, and Mathew Martoma, former portfolio manager SAC Capital Advisors. But Dinesh D’Souza, maker of a highly critical 2012 documentary on Obama, escaped jail time after pleading guilty to violating the federal campaign finance law. High-profile hotel magnate Sant Singh Chatwal also awaited sentencing after pleading guilty to federal campaign finance fraud. Recognising the contributions of Indian Americans from workers who built some of the first railroads in the West to the creator of Hotmail, Smithsonian mounted a first of its kind exhibition called “Beyond Bollywood: Indian Americans Shape the Nation”. Highlights: ● Record 30 Indian Americans jump into November’s electoral battle. ● Republican Nikki Haley and Democrat Kamala Harris handily win back their jobs as South Carolina gover-
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nor and California’s attorney general respectively. Amiresh ‘Ami’ Bera, the lone Indian American in the US House of Representatives, repeats history with a narrow win. Eight Indian Americans win in the states. Niraj Antani, 23, creates history by becoming one of America’s youngest lawmakers in Ohio. Former key Hillary Clinton aide Richard Rahul Verma is confirmed as the first Indian American envoy to New Delhi. Vivek Murthy became the youngest surgeon general and the first of Indian descent, but after waiting for more than a year for Senate confirmation. Software giant Microsoft names Hyderabad-born Satya Nadella as its new CEO. Kerala-born Stanford University’s Professor Thomas Kailath receives the Medal of Science from Obama. Delhi-born Sujit Choudhry becomes the first Indian American dean of Berkeley School of Law. Indira Talwani and Manish Shah became the first Asian American federal judges in Massachusetts and Illinois respectively. Bangalore born Indian American poet Vijay Seshadri wins the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for poetry. Sriram Hathwar and Ansun Sujoe make history as they are declared co-champions in the Scripps National Spelling Bee contest after 52 years. ❐
january 2015 | india empire 45
nri philanThropy
c
no More SWiMMing
hildren from many tribal villages in Gujarat’s Chhota Udaipur district once had to swim across the raging Hiran river every day during monsoons to reach school in Utavadi village in Narmada district. Many of them carried a gohri, a 20-litre brass pot that they held on to stay afloat as they crossed the 600-metre tributary. Their ordeal will now be over, thanks to the gift of an inflatable power boat by a New York-based Indian-American couple. Ratna Bhalla, deputy director of emergency housing at Nassau County, Long Island, was planning a family trip to Disney World in Florida when her husband Varinder Bhalla told her about a story of the children’s plight he had read in an Indian daily. Bhalla, a mechanical engineer in the US for the past four decades, “was restless till he connected with the news reporter, who in turn put him in touch with the villagers and the school authorities to find possible solutions”, Ratna Bhalla said. The Bhallas, who founded the AWB Food Bank in 1991, a Delhibased charity which has distributed over 10 million meals to needy children in the last 23 years, decided to go to India to work out a solution. After toying with many ideas - like opening a school in Sajanpura and renting a bus to transport the children over a bridge 20 km away - the couple finally hit upon the idea of an inflatable motor boat. The Bhallas trained the village elders to navigate the boat they carried from New York, with safety and pre-
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cautionary measures, stressing the need to wear life jackets. On the chosen auspicious morning, they launched the boat in the river with the children. They started with the distribution of sweets and breaking a coconut as per the age-old Hindu ritual, while a village elder prayed for the success of the mission. The children’s eagerness and excitement knew no bounds as they embarked upon their first river crossing in a motor boat. Their nightmare had finally ended and the villagers heaved a sigh of relief. “For me and my wife, it was one of the most fulfilling days of our lives,” said Varinder Bhalla. And it was as good as going to Disney World,” added a jubilant Ratna. The exhilarated villagers on the other side of the river received the Bhalla couple with garlands. The children are dedicated to their studies and determined to succeed. They consider the gift of a boat from the AWB Food Bank as a loan from a bank and are committed to return this debt when they become successful in life by similarly helping others in need or distress. Volunteers of Bhagwan Shree Lakshami Narayan Dham, a charitable and spiritual organisation, from Mumbai, Delhi and Vadodara joined the Bhallas in their rescue mission and also donated a battery for the motor boat. The management of Inphynyt, one of India’s leading manufacturers of automotive and industrial batteries, also lent their support by donating a costly marine battery. The Bhallas are now back in New York but keep in touch with the villagers and the children in Gujarat. “We are Punjabis, I am from Amritsar and my wife from Delhi, but we may have discovered that we are Gujarati at heart,” said Varinder Bhalla. ❐
mrs leela gujadhur sarup
fond reMeMBrAnce
a
Christelle Gourdine-Mandjiny (left) and Dr Sarup at the Kolkata Memorial
fter a long and courageous battle, Dr. Leela Gujadhur Sarup left us and her soul is now resting in peace. I met Dr. Sarup at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2009 in Chennai. My plan was to attend the famous diaspora event and to fly to Kolkata to get some information about the emigration archives. Fortunately, during the PBD, I was introduced to this charming lady who spent years at the various archives of India to save all the documents available about the indentured system. Her family left Bihar to settle in Mauritius and never lost touch with India where she finished her studies and married an Indian businessman. She immediately invited me to visit her in Kolkata to check the records about Guadeloupe. I didn’t find precise information but at least, it was great to see from which district of North
India Indian workers were hired to join the former French colony. The books were very beautiful and delicate with pictures from the past so I couldn’t resist and I bought them. Since then, we regularly met here and there, I was closely following her work, she would share some material found about the proceedings or emigration acts. She wrote many books about History and kept pushing me to write about my family, which I’m now doing. We worked on common projects like the translation of Ganga story into French language and she eventually helped me to uproot again in India. Dear Leela, thanks to you, we have now the keys to understand our origins. Thanks to your endless efforts, we have a Memorial in Kolkata where we can pay a tribute to our ancestors and we’ll do our best to carry on your legacy. ❐ —Christelle Gourdine-Mandjiny january 2015 | india empire 47
column: yogi ashwini
mind and body
Pain iS beTTer Than grief By Yogi Ashwini Yogi ashwini
o
ften you will hear people saying that they can feel the pain of the other. Think about it. Can you really feel someone else’s pain? You may be grieved by their pain and feel sad for them, but can you feel their pain? No. Your pain is your own and someone else’s pain is his/her own, but someone else’s grief becomes yours when you connect with them emotionally. Both pain and grief cause suffering and amount to cancelling out your negative karmas. While the origin of pain is within you, the source of grief is usually someone else. People tell me that pain is better than grief since it can be cured by medicines while grief takes a long time to heal, and sometimes may leave a permanent scar. You will be surprised to know, it is actually the opposite. It is very simple to get out of grief. Pain, on the other hand, has to be endured. It is a misconception that medicines cure your pain, there have been enough studies on medicine and their mechanism to show that in the long run medicine causes more harm than good. If you still want to go the medicine way, then take poison; your grief too will disappear. We relate to our body as the different body parts that are visible to us but hardly anyone is aware of that which runs the body that you see, it is only a select few who with regular practice of Sanatan Kriya and Ashtang Yog are able to develop the senses to see the etheric body and energy centers. The source of grief is outside your body, it relates to the emotional center, the solar plexus, located between the navel and chest region. This center forms emotional connections with the people you meet through the day in the form of narrow tubes. You must have observed that if you see an accident on the road or visit someone in the hospital, you feel low…it is simply their grief being transmitted to you through the connections you form with them. It is ironic that those who give emotional counseling are the ones who are most troubled emotionally, because they are constantly forming connections with aggrieved individuals who pass on their grief to them. To get out of grief all you need to do is cut connections with the person who is the source of your grief and visualize him/her going away from you. Your grief will disappear in a matter of few minutes. Yet, pain is better than grief. Why? Because when you are in pain you think of God, you ask him to relieve you of the 48 india empire | january 2015
pain but when you are in grief, you think of a way to get out of it, you look for solutions and do not remember God with the same intensity. The impulse of grief gets transmitted very easily, every person possesses the capacity of giving you grief, but nobody except yourself can give you pain. The more aggrieved you are due to others, the more connections you have formed with them and the more you are tied to the physical (or the unreal) and away from God (real). So pain takes you closer to God while grief takes you further away from him. That is why yogsutras mention different ways of putting the body through pain, and not grief. In fact, yogis after a stage stop interacting with people and live in isolation because it is natural for the body to form connections with those you meet. If there is no impulse from the outside, your body will not react and it will not feel anything. Is it necessary to feel sad for someone else? People tell me it is important to share the grief of others as it motivates you to do something for them. This is the greatest avidya (falsehood). You should in fact remain unaffected by someone else’s grief. The more you get motivated by someone else’s sorrow, the more you tie yourself to the physical by establishing connections with them. Whatever suffering or grief an individual is going through is because of his/her own karmas, they have to bear it to balance out their karmas. There are many people who approach Dhyan Ashram repeatedly for healing their grief, at times we just do not respond. Why? Because these people have made it their habit, whenever they are sad, they ask for a healing. They forget that the grief they are going through is because of their karmas, a person may stop it for sometime with the power of his/her yogshakti but after that time period ends, it will come back in some other shape or form because you have to bear the effect of your karmas, you cannot escape it. The healers never refuse someone in pain but if they keep on removing someone’s grief, the person becomes habitual to it. It might seem like a convenient option but it will only take you to greater hells because you will neither think nor work towards improving your karmas, rather you will keep on stockpiling your negative karmas by preventing them from fructifying. —To be continued —The writer Yogi Ashwini Ji is the head of Dhyan Foundation, Delhi. For details contact: ashwiniyogi@yahoo.co.in
nri research
science
uMpirinG FAVouriTiSM
GENOMIC ORIGAMI
A study led by an Indian-origin researcher has found that the introduction of neutral umpires in Test cricket has led to a drop in the number of LBW (Leg Before Wicket) decisions going in favour of home teams. Amid renewed debate on whether neutral umpiring is still required in Test matches following the introduction of the Decision Review System (DRS), the findings add credence to the claims of many cricket fans that home umpires are biased towards their own team. Until 1994, both umpires in test matches were from the same country as the home team. From 1994 to 2002, one of the two umpires was required to be from a neutral country and since 2002 both umpires are required to be neutral. “Our results suggest that when two home umpires officiated in Test matches, away teams were likely to suffer on average 16 percent more LBW decisions than home teams,” said lead author Abhinav Sacheti from Nottingham University in Britain. “When the ICC (International Cricket Council) introduced the one neutral umpire policy, this advantage to home teams receded to 10 percent and when two neutral umpires were required in every Test match, this advantage to home teams disappeared,” Sacheti added. The researchers analysed LBW decisions in exactly 1,000 Test matches that took place between 1986 and 2012 - nearly half of Test matches ever played in the history of cricket. The researchers noted that the bias among the umpires “may have been unconscious” and a possible explanation for the finding is that home umpires were unduly influenced by pressure from local crowds. The study appeared in the Journal of the Royal Statistical Society.
Researchers, including an Indian-origin scientist, have created a three-dimensional (3D) map of human genomes to reveal their folding patterns and hidden switches that can turn on deadly disease causing genes. The map revealed a structural basis for gene regulation - a kind of “genomic origami” that allows the same genome to produce different types of cells. The researchers set out to identify the folding pattern called loops in the human genome. Loops form when two bits of DNA that are far apart in the genome sequence end up in close contact in the folded version of the genome in a cell’s nucleus. “More and more, we are realising that folding is regulation,” said study co-first author Suhas Rao, a researcher at the Baylor College of Medicine in the US. “When you see genes turn on or off, what lies behind that is a change in folding. It’s a different way of thinking about how cells work,” Rao added. For the study, the researchers used a technology called “in situ Hi-C” to collect billions of snippets of DNA that were later analysed for signs of loops. “Our maps of looping have revealed thousands of hidden switches that scientists did not know about before. In the case of genes that can cause cancer or other diseases, knowing where these switches are is vital,” said co-author Miriam Huntley, a doctoral student at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. The research appeared online in the journal Cell. january 2015 | india empire 49
FeaTure
URBANITES From visits to centuries-old villages to experiencing forest trails to participating in village festivals and carrying out traditional day-to-day agricultural activities, the urban tourist is going rural these days. Commonly referred to as rural or responsible tourism, it entails participation from the traveller as well as the host community, where the former partakes in the community’s day-to-day-activities and in turn contributes to reducing migration by creating employment opportunities and also registering an increase in the average annual household income. “Nowadays, people are looking to do something worthwhile while on a holiday. Hence, there has been an increase in experiential tourism,” Inir Pinheiro, founder of Grassroutes, which improves livelihoods in rural India through community-managed rural tourism and experiential learning programmes, said. “Rural tourism is one aspect of experiential tourism as it gives people a chance to do something on a holiday - be it farming, petting animals, eating fresh fruits and vegetables or just running around in farms and villages,” Pinheiro said, adding that Grassroutes operates in three Maharashtra villages. According to Union Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mahesh Sharma, rural tourism has “immense potential” that
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would be “completely” explored. “We (the tourism ministry) treat rural tourism as a separate entity and we will have different funds for this. It is very important to invest in rural tourism to prevent rural to urban migration,” said Sharma. According to the ministry, tourism in India contributed 6.88 percent to the GDP. So far, the ministry has sanctioned 153 rural tourism projects in 28 states and union territories, including 36 sites where UNDP has provided support for capacity building. According to the ministry, “Any form of tourism that showcases the rural life, art, culture and heritage at rural locations, thereby benefiting the local community economically and socially as well as enabling interaction between the tourists and the locals for a more enriching tourism experience, can be termed as rural tourism”. Like Grassroutes, there are other initiatives like India Untravelled and One Planet that are designed to minimize the carbon footprint, encourage local participation and journey off the beaten track. “The people we work with are all locals, as per our policy. Whether training them in hospitality, or they working more or less independently, is empowering for them. They are leading our village walks, guiding foreign guests - their language skills improving with every interaction - and managing the accounts. So, by keeping our role to
GO RURAL By Shweta Sharma that of only overseeing things, all our associates have been empowered,” Shikha Tripathi, co-founder of One Planet said. Started in 2012, One Planet specialises in Uttarakhand’s Kumaon region. Its activities encompass Almora and Binsar, as also walking trails in the high-altitude regions of remote Kumaon. According to R.P. Mitra, assistant professor in Delhi University’s Department of Anthropology, the sudden boost in rural tourism is a “new-found love” for the urban traveller, especially the present generation that seems to be detached from the rural lifestyle. “Also, the imagination and the kind of media portrayal of rural society has created a sense of inquisitiveness. Additionally, the traditional tourist places are saturated so people want new experiences and the rural society offers them that,” Mitra said. He, however, pointed out that the nature and level of “outsider involvement” were important and needed to be taken care of since rural tourism can be successful if tackled from the right perspective. Does it not take an effort to convince locals to be a part
of the initiative? “Developing a village tourism destination involves mobilizing local villagers and communities, facilitating investors and local village communities to come together to create a destination that is owned, managed and run by local village communities, training of villagers, infrastructure support and building of village tourism committees and ensuring profitability of the destination. This takes time. We are able to develop a village tourism destination in one-two years,” Pinheiro explained. Agreed Tripathi, who said that the trust factor plays a major role here. However, do not such initiatives make the community’s economy dependent on a single entity, making it susceptible? And, with such urban influx, will the rural essence not get lost? “It has negative effects if you open up the sector in a big way. It will then attract a host of things like hotels and allied industries along with the outsiders. So, it is important to see how well it is planned and how well the local community is involved,” Mitra concluded. ❐
january 2015 | india empire 51
branding
MAKE IN INDIA The diaspora has an important role to play in helping Indian companies make a “solid global impact” and make sure the country has a current account surplus, a famous US-based marketing guru has said. “The Indian diaspora are extremely influential entities in the US and the UK,” Jan-Benedict E.M. Steenkamp, professor of marketing at Kenan-Flagler Business School, said on the sidelines of the 13th Brand Conclave organised by Confederation of Indian Industries. According to him, the diaspora can lead in promoting Indian brands globally and the right global approach will not only help Indian companies reap higher profits but will also help them raise their global brand power. “It is crucial because India is transitioning from a developing economy into an emerging one. It’s high time Indian companies started investing enough time, energy and money in brand building across the world”, he added. Right branding and right value proposition is needed for Indian firms for correct positioning in the global stage, he said. “No matter how big the size of the Indian economy is and how much potential it has, the fact of the matter is that 90 percent money in the world is outside of India. That’s where the problem lies. Unless much of this comes to India, the country will not be able to become an influential player
on world stage,” Steenkamp said. The professor has authored over 150 scholarly publications and four books. He is also the winner of the Muller Lifetime Prize from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences for exceptional achievements in the area of the behavioral and social sciences.
SANTANDER NAMES SHRITI VADERA Shriti Vadera, an Indian-origin minister in former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Government, has been named by the Spanish banking group Santander to chair its British business. Vadera was a minister in the British government during the days of the global financial crisis. She will replace Terence Burns in March, who had announced his plan to leave the board of the company in January. Vadera was made a life peer in the British House of Lords in July 2007 when Gordon Brown became the country’s prime minister, two months before the collapse of Lehman Brothers, which unleashed global financial turmoil, The Telegraph reported. She was moved subsequently from the department for international development to a businessfocused cabinet post in 2008. Vadera had spent 14 years at the Swiss investment bank UBS and eight years as a treasury advisor before becoming a Labour peer, the report said. She will be the first woman to chair a big bank in Britain and one among a small number of female chairpersons in large British businesses. Just three of the FTSE 100 firms have women as their chair. Vadera was dubbed “Gordon Brown’s representative on Earth” for her affinity with the then prime minister’s politics. However, she left the government in 2009 to take up a 52 india empire | january 2015
Ms Shriti Vadera
job with the G20. She had also taken up non-executive roles at BHP Billiton and AstraZeneca. “We’re proud and excited to welcome Shriti Vadera to Santander,” said Ana Botin, chairperson of the Santander Group. “(Vadera’s) deep expertise in Britain and global economies as well as her banking experience add to her credentials as a strong, independent non-executive chairperson,” she added.
Tourism
PM ProMoTeS norTh eaST Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday sought to promote India’s northeast as a tourist destination and urged people to visit the region if they wanted to see the beauty of nature. Modi said the northeast region is as good as Dubai and Singapore and went on to equate the region with the Taj Mahal. In his monthly radio address ‘Man Ki Baat’, Modi said the northeast has a lot of potential and described his recent visit to the region as a “heart warming” experience. “People sometime ask, ‘Modi ji, don’t you get tired?’ I say that it feels there is no tiredness after visiting the northeast.” He said, “People there gave me love. The sense of belongingness they showed towards me was heart-
warming.” The northeast region has eight states—Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim.
MorMUgao STrengThened Goa’s only major port facility, the Mormugao Port Trust (MPT), is spending around Rs 48 crore to construct a dedicated berth for international cruise liners, even as the Government here announced plans to promote the state as a cruise tourism destination. While replying to a query by Goa’s Congress MP Shantaram Naik, Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan in December told the Rajya Sabha that the money was being spent on construction of the cruise berthing facility as well as dredging of the seabed within the port area, which will enable cruise vessels up to half a kilometre in length, to dock at the MPT. Radhakrishnan also said an additional grant of Rs 8.40 crore had also been allotted by the union tourism ministry to build a dedicated cruise terminal building at the port facility. 54 india empire | january 2015
Goa attracts three million tourists annually and the state Government is in the process of promoting it as an attractive cruise tourism destination. Over 11,000 tourists embarked at the makeshift MPT cruise tourism jetty in the last financial year.
invesTmenT in india
OPPORTUNITIES GALORE By Narinder Wadhwa
W
e all know India is called the land of opportunities. There are opportunities in the form of setting up business, higher education, investments, etc. for the people in India as well as people outside India. When we specifically look at investments opportunities in India, there are varieties of investment avenues for various kinds of investors across different asset classes whether it is Equity, Debt, Commodity, Real Estate etc. Out of these different asset classes, historically Equity has performed extremely well. In the last 23 years i.e. since 1981, the 10 years moving average return of Sensex has been 16.04% p.a., whereas Gold has given 9.47%, PPF has been 8.31%, Residential Real Estate SKI provides a whole range of products and services to fulfill the needs and requirements of a diverse client portfolio: ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
Providing efficient Stock Broking Services Providing stock market related consultancy Funds Management Portfolio Management Depository Services Multi Commodity Trading Corporate advisory services Insurance Public IPO Issues, bonds, mutual funds etc.
India has a large sized middle class, which is further expanding substantially, offering a big fat market for foreign products and services. In fact, if India contin-
ues its recent growth trend, average household incomes will triple over the next two decades and it will become the world's fifth largest consumer economy by the year 2025, according to a McKinsey report in 2010. India provides great avenues for investments in various sectors like Automobile Components, Biotechnology, Construction, Defense Manufacturing, Education, Electrical Machinery, Electronic Systems, Food Processing, Gems & Jewellery, Healthcare, IT & BPM. Foreigners can directly invest in India either on their own or as a joint venture, with a few exceptions with regard to investment limits and sectors. No government approval is required for FDI in virtually all sectors except a small negative list formulated by government. Indian Capital Markets are open to NRI, FII's to reap the benefit of India Growth story in all above mentioned sectors. Everyone is optimistic with the Modi-fied Government at the Centre, which can bring the change in the industry by introducing new regulations for different regulatory bodies as well as different sectors, for bringing in transparency and protecting investor's interest, if these aspirations are fulfilled, investment in the equity sector would increase by leaps and bounds as I firmly believe that Equity was and will be one of the most wealth generating investment tool and we have a live example of India's Warren Buffet - Mr. Rakesh Jhunjunwala. It is also the next big wealth generating opportunity for those who have never invested in equities. Though it's said, "Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results"; but it is also said, "history repeats itself", and equity has been delivering similar returns what it has given in the past! ❐ —The author is Managing Director of SKI CAPITAL SERVICES LTD
january 2015 | india empire 55
invesTmenT opporTuniTies
IndIA overSeAS conSultAncy Pvt. ltd.
TalKing ShoP on inVeSTMenTS At a time when investors are aggressively eyeing India as a destination, India Overseas Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. is looking to handhold and strategize for key investment decisions On the firm’s role at the GIBC‌ India Overseas Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. proudly associated itself as a Lead Sponsor at the first Global Indian Business Conference (www.gibc2014.com) organized by Invest India, FICCI and in Knowledge Partnership with India Empire. The GIBC provided an platform for discussions between Overseas Indians on the one hand and the Government of India, State Governments and captains of In-
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dustry and Businesses on the other. The sessions at the GIBC well thought out and included subjects such as Healthcare, Education, Urban Infrastructure, Infrastructure Financing and Tourism. IOC has now built itself up to a full-fledged consultancy unit that is providing expertise to investors in shipping, power, real estate sectors. It is working with state Governments to facilitate overseas investors with invest-
adverTorial
IOC Directors Mr Sanjay Gupta (left) and Mr K K Anand at their Defence Colony office in New Delhi
ment decisions in sectors such as mining of gold. On growth opportunities in India… This is the best time to come to India. Investors want to look at guaranteed returns, and only two markets in the world assure them this possibility at the moment—China and India. For overseas Indian investors, India, therefore, becomes all the more important. We have a stable Government, a dynamic leader in Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi whose party has a clear majority, and we have world political and business leaders coming to India to talk about investments. Even President Obama will be here soon, as Chief Guest at the Indian Republic Day. Going forward from here, we need to create a climate of ease of investment. That is India’s single biggest challenge. Investors cannot be in fear of rule books and red tapism. Our company is here to build investor confidence, and ensure that projects get implemented smoothly without having to run into bureaucratic bottlenecks. We also have a law firm
called Anand Law Practice that will handhold investors through the merger, acquisition, buyout, FDI, private public partnerships, joint venture processes. Our team of experts have decades of experience and will want to provide the best possible support to all investors. On the sectors that services are provided… Our portfolio has power, oil and gas, SEZ, e-Commerce, Entertainment and Media, Retail, Inland Waterways, Infrastructure Finance, Mining, Ports, Civil Aviation, Highways, Education, Healthcare, Tourism and Hospitality and Urban Infrastructure. Apart from these, companies have issues regarding checking land titles, getting registration done, and several other paper bottlenecks which we can handle with ease and speed. ❐ IOC Directors can be contacted at consultancy@indiaoc.com or please call +91.11.2433.7151, +91.11.4060.1883, +91.11.4060.1884, +91.11.4659.4924, +91.97165.44664. january 2015 | india empire 57
FeaTure—Tourism
HIMACHAL
SKIERS’ PARADISE By Vishal Gulati With record amounts of snow falling, the pistes overlooking Himachal Pradesh’s popular tourist resorts Shimla and Manali have turned out to be a paradise for skiers. “This is just the beginning of good skiing days,” skier and international coach Roshan Lal Thakur said. Thakur said the Solang slopes, just 13 kilometres uphill from Manali, had more than three-and-a-half feet of snow cover and more spells of snow were expected. Like Thakur, the Winter Games Federation of India secretary general, there are a number of skiers who grew up with the Solang slopes in their backyard. Skiing and winter adventure sports organisers in Manali say more skiers will converge with the reopening of roads between Kullu and Manali. “Our institute has lined up courses, both for amateur and professional skiers, from Jan 11 in Solang and Narkanda,” said Randhir Singh Salhuria, director of the state-run Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports in Manali. Salhuria said the Solang slopes offer a challenging run to both beginners and advanced skiers. However, for beginners, not for professionals, the Narkanda slopes would be ideal. Currently, Narkanda, some 65 kilometres from Shimla, has more than two feet of snow. The Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corp’s (HPTDC) Hatu Hotel at Narkanda provides ski apparatus. According to the Met Office in Shimla, it snowed heavily in Solang and Narkanda on December 13 and 14, the season’s first snowfall. “The snow quality is marvellous (in Solang) and moreover it’s not crowded like Auli and Gulmarg
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slopes,” said Mudit Arora, a skier from Delhi. “We’re looking at more snow,” he added. Kufri, just a half-hour drive from Shimla and known as a honeymooner’s paradise, has also turned out to be a hub for skiers. Discovered as an ideal hill resort by the British in the 1930s, Kufri emerged as a popular destination for winter sports due to good snowfall. For many decades, it was a regular venue for the national winter games. But in the past one decade no winter sports activity was organised at Kufri. “This time, after a long, long break, we have managed to revive skiing in Kufri,” private instructor Mohit Bragta said. Skiers said the Kufri slopes were shorter and gentler, attracting mainly the tourists and the first-timers. Besides skiing, the tourists in Solang can enjoy snow scooter and sledging. A large number of private tour operators are providing both skiing apparatus and instructors to the skiers at Solang. Rohan Thakur, a travel agent in Manali, is upbeat about the skiing season ahead. “As per queries we are getting, we’re eyeing a huge opportunity heading into this season,” he said. More than 50 private operators are based in Solang to conduct activities in winter sports for students, families and corporates. Himachal Pradesh, whose economy is highly dependent on tourism, attracts every year tourists who surpass the state’s population of about 6.8 million. Kullu-Manali has emerged as a favourite tourist destination, followed by Shimla and Dharamsala, the abode of the Dalai Lama. ❐