In Touch MCCI January 2012

Vol.25 No10 January 2012

In this issue 4 President’s message 4 Chamber’s Activities • Municipalika 2012 – Making Cities Work • MCCI-MMA Video Discussion on “The Point of Impact” • FFT on Nuclear Power – To be or Not to be • Seminar on Exim Trade Facilitation

4 General Committee 4 Expert Committees 4 SPOT LIGHT Foreign Direct Investment

4 Policy Watch 4 Reflections 4 Additions to Library 4 Representations 4 Trade Fairs & Exhibitions 4 Economic Review

1

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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Financial markets tell a similar story.

The Sensex fell 25% in 2011, while the rupee fell a dramatic 16% in 2011, making it the worst performing major Asian currency and resulted in portfolio investors actively withdrawing funds.

In fact 2011 was full of signs of an economy decelerating - high inflation, a slowdown in manufacturing, exports losing momentum, and so on.

Economy & Business - in mystified state?

Dear Members, In the year 2011 which passed by and also the beginning of 2012 till now, there are mixed feelings about how our economy and businesses are doing.

Indian economy, undoubtedly, was steered by a series of downbeat economic and political events last year.

The global turmoil and uncertainties did cause an impact on our economy too.

The decelerating GDP growth rate has made our aim of achieving double digit growth, a thing of the past, and today we are struggling to maintain a 7.5% to 8% growth while the projections are no better than 7% ( India's economy may grow only by 6% in 2012, according to report by Moody's Analytics).The IIP dip added its own woes to the existing industrial gloom.

Rising Inflation took everyone by surprise and has had a cascading effect on many sectors, adversely affecting almost every section of people. Food inflation touched a record high. The Reserve Bank of India lifted interest rates 13 times within a period of 18 months to tame the inflation bug, but the effort did not yield necessary results. This, as many feel, has produced the worst of both worlds: Growth has been hit while there was less impact on inflation or expectations!

Also on the business front, nothing of the much talked about reforms or initiatives moved ahead - The GST, DTC, Companies Bill, none of them saw the light of the day. There is no sign of most of them coming through even in the current budget session too.

The mood is somber among the policy makers and the business community with regard to the short-term aspects of the economy and the outlook for 2012. India's corporate sector looks particularly vulnerable. Production of capital goods, considered as a gauge of investment intentions, plunged.

Infrastructure, particularly power, has been a major concern and the current plight of industries in Tamil Nadu needs no elaboration. All these and more do present a very bleak picture.

However, there are strong arguments that we should not confuse a short-run cyclical dip with a permanent de-rating of long-term structural potential.

The usual consolation is that our growth rate, though not matching our ambition, is still better off than many other countries, since most of them have negative or zero growth rate. The other silver lines are softening of inflation, including food inflation, a bit in the last few months. Headline inflation has particularly shown a decline in January 2012.

In an environment in which global growth is likely to be weak, economies like India that have a powerful domestic consumption dynamic, should lead; specifically for India, a fall in the exchange rate could also play a positive role. Indian exporters can gain market

share even if global trade remains depressed. Recovery in the US which is India’s biggest export market should help demand for manufactured goods.

With union budget around the corner, we should brain storm what really is required to get that magic growth rate of 9-10% which is said to be essential for a country of our size, to achieve many of our objectives and attain inclusive growth.

Reforms are going slow, but I recall what the IIM professor stated. Reforms need not be only in FDI & FII. These will automatically happen when the economic momentum picks up, with or without reforms. The reforms that we need are the ones that can actually raise our sustainable long-term growth rate. These have to come in areas like better targeting of subsidies, making projects in infrastructure viable so that they attract capital, raising the productivity of agriculture, improving healthcare and education, focusing on skill development, implementing fundamental reforms in taxation like GST and finally easing the countless rules and regulations that make doing business in India such a nightmare.

Tackling corruption and ensuring good governance has to top the agenda.

If the government can get even a minimalist agenda out of the above going, while improving its governance and management of infrastructure, and if the Reserve Bank of India can cut interest rates quickly, the Indian script for 2012 could change. A number of these things do not require new legislation and can be done through executive procedure. What is required is the will to find the way.

We have to wait and watch the budget!

Best wishes.

TT Srinivasaraghavan President

3

CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES 23rd-25th January 2012:

UK was the host country for Municipalika

The Secretary General Mrs K Saraswathi,

MUNICIPALIKA 2012 – Making Cities work –10th International Conference & Exhibition on Good Urban Governance for Safe, Healthy, Green and Smart Cities:

2012 while Chennai was the host City.

made a presentation at the Conference

The Madras Chamber participated in Municipalika 2012 - an event held at Chennai Trade Centre from 23rd to 25th January. The event was supported

by British Deputy High Commission, Chennai, along with other organizations like UN Habitat and US Dept of Energy etc.

on Urban Development and Municipal Solutions, which has been successfully organized since 2003.

Chennai and Sustainable campuses”

Mr K P Munusamy, Hon’ble Minister for

chaired

Municipal Administration and Rural

by

Dr

M

Ramachandran,

IAS (Retd), Former Secretary, Urban

Development, Government of Tamilnadu.

Development, Government of India and

The Presidential address was delivered

co-chaired by Mr P W C Davidar, IAS.,

by Mr R Vaithilingam, Hon’ble Minister

Commissioner, Corporation of Chennai.

for Housing and Urban Development,

The presentation is available on our

Government of Tamilnadu. There were

website www.madraschamber.in

addresses by other dignitaries too after which the exhibition was inaugurated

The other subjects dealt with at the

and there were 70+ exhibitors who

Conference related to – Progressive cities;

displayed their products and services to

Working cities; Vibrant Cities - Living

make Chennai a clean city.

Heritage; Safe and Resilient cities; Future

Apart

Municipalika is India’s only event focusing

on “Cities for the Gen Next – Sustainable

The Conference was inaugurated by

from

British

Deputy

Cities; Healthy Cities; Green Cities; Cities

High

for the GenNext; Inclusive and Humane

Commission, the US Department of

cities; affordable housing, smart cities,

Energy also participated in the exhibition showcasing

their

involvement

etc.

in

tackling the problems of urbanization

To get a holistic view, the conference

and climate change. Madras Chamber,

sessions had a mix of speakers from

The event was organized with the full

with the support of BDHC and USDOE,

Government (Central, State and Local)

support and participation of Government

participated in the event and took

Private industry, Technology suppliers,

of India, Ministries of Urban Development,

up a stall in the expo. Our recently

multilateral

Housing and Poverty Alleviation and New

launched initiative “Sustainable Chennai

citizens group and NGOs.

and Renewable Energy. MCCI was a co -

Forum” (SCF) was projected using our

organiser for the event.

participation in the exhibition.

The Madras Chamber had launched a Sustainable Chennai Forum (SCF) on the occasion of World Habitat Day. VISION OF SCF

To be a leading business advocate on sustainable development to make Chennai an inclusive, sustainable, clean and green metropolis in the global context.

AIM OF SCF To assist and promote a business case for Sustainable Development and evolve a congenial policy and action oriented environment for the sustainable development of the Chennai metropolitan region in collaboration with like-minded institutions.

PROPOSED ACTIVITIES OF SCF l Establish rapport with

4

government Central, State

and local - and participate in

policy development and recommend action for achievement of

sustainable development

l Undertake studies and facilitate debates concerning sustainability l Provide expert guidance on projects to ensure sustainability l Conduct seminars, workshops, exhibitions and training programmes to raise awareness and understanding of sustainable development and its implications for individuals and organizations in Chennai l Facilitate sharing of good practices and knowledge on appropriate technologies among businesses l Organize community outreach programmes to promote participation of the community and the youth in sustainable

stakeholder

institutions,

The event was well attended by more than 400 participants.

development

l Set up pilot projects and promote green practices among industries l Promote dialogue and build

partnerships for sustainable

development with governments, the international community and the major groups in Chennai l Create a databank and library to acilitate regular dissemination ofinformation related to sustainability PARTNERS IN PROGRESS: The Sustainable Chennai Forum (SCF) will work closely with like-minded organizations like Madras University, Athena Infonomics, Anna University, Citizens alliance for Sustainable living SUSTAIN, UN Habitat, British Deputy High Commission and US agencies and others in the sector.

CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES 25th January 2012:

touched on “Nuclear Power – To be or Not

MCCI-MMA Video Discussion on “The Point of Impact”

to be” especially arising out of the issues from Kudankulam Power Project.

Mr K Balu: Mr Balu made a presentation on ”The Role of Nuclear Power in Sustainable

The speakers for the programme were :

Development: Indian Context”. He said

monthly video discussion being jointly

l M r K Balu, former Director, Nuclear

our dream is to realise a quality of life

organized by the Chamber and MMA. Mr

The Point of Impact was the topic for the

S K Raja, Trainer and Facilitator, conducted the programme.

Recycle Group, BARC

l M r Nityanand Jayaraman, Writer

and Researcher on Environmental

Mr Raja explained that Point of Impact

and Human Rights Track Record of

between a customer and a person in an

Corporations; and

organization or a retail shop is nothing but communication between the two.

He said customer service is so important

l M r N S Venkataraman, Secretary,

Chemical Industries Association

for people commensurate with other developed countries. One has to address the fears and convince the people on how well we are prepared technologically to face these fears.

He said the nuclear power advantage was that it is a highly concentrated source of energy and gave details of the

as the customer forms opinions about

Mr

President,

coal, oil and uranium that is required

one’s organization at the first point of

welcomed the gathering and said that we

for operation of a 1000 ME (e) plant for

contact. He said customer service is good

have the right to information, education,

a year. There were no obnoxious gases

common sense and the three keys for

food, employment guarantee etc., but as

causing global warming and climate

this are – attitude, communication and

common citizens we do not have the right to

change; acid rain; hole in ozone layer or

effort. Create a positive attitude with

electricity. Over the last few years, especially

air quality degradation.

the customer; attitude comes from the

for people in business, perhaps one of the greatest impediments in our growth path

The challenges and strategies were - for

thought which is controlled by us.

He said the good traits of a positive person are – they smile, they do not waste time and they are problem solvers.

Smile even when you are on the phone. Have good eye contact with the customer; great service is what the customer wants. Create a trust with the customer and convince him he said.

Explaining further he said, the three elements of communication are – words, voice tone and body language. Use open ended questions with the customer – rather than saying “yes/no”. Move to more specific questions and encourage conversation; make them feel important.

Be a listener – listen to the customer at least 80%.

T

T

Srinivasaraghavan,

has been non-availability of power. Where power is available, the quality of power is very poor. This is true at the national level as well as the State level. The cost of power too has increased tremendously.

a country of the size of India, it cannot afford to plan its economy on the basis of large scale import of energy resources or

energy

technology;

indigenous

development of energy technologies based on domestic fuel resources should

For us at the State level, we were a power

be a priority for us. And nuclear power

surplus State about 7-8 years ago but not

must contribute about a quarter of the

now. The truth of the matter is we have all the

total electric power required 50 years

deficits on one hand and all the investments

from now.

made on the other. There are political

Following Pokhran explosion in 1974

difficulties, there are economic difficulties, there are ethical difficulties etc. He said the speakers today will give us an insight about the pluses and minuses of the topic.

he said we were able to develop our own reactors and operated quite a few of them. It is out of a strategic necessity that we are looking at certain externalities

The Chamber is looking beyond Kudankulam

now. We have the technology to manage

and trying to understand what would be

waste; Energy security is assured if we

the future of nuclear power especially when

ensure nuclear energy as a fair share of

we are driving the economic growth to a

power.

minimum of 9%.

To facilitate long term use of nuclear

It is best to have the benefit of the expertise

power, a sustainable nuclear fuel strategy,

28th January 2012

and knowledge of our speakers and try and

closed nuclear fuel cycle and thorium

FFT on Nuclear Power –To be or Not to be:

understand the reality in totality. He said this

utilization is essential.

will help us go back a little bit enriched.

He said nuclear energy has a role to

The Chamber’s FFT event in January

The speakers then addressed the issue on

play and every type of energy needs to

the following lines:

be looked at. As far as environmental

There was good interaction with the participants.

5

CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES

impact is concerned, nuclear energy has

resource. Transmission and Distribution

plant tripped. There was a chemical

the necessary technology to address

losses according to a recent study in India

explosion; the reactor there was 50 years

the issue of environmental impact.

are about 40% - this is not talking about

old.

Concluding he said nuclear power is the

theft. 782,000 MW of power goes up in

most competitive source of energy at

smoke. If we can achieve T&D losses of

least at the current time.

10%, we can save 60,000 MW.

Mr Nityanand Jayaraman:

We are concerned about money. Rs. 50

Without power, the cooling system can

lakhs investment is required for a one

operate. In case there is radiation, there

MW of power.

is a solution for that as well. He referred

Mr Jayaraman said over the years he has been observing the media and learnt many things from media reports.

At

the

peak

of

the

Kudankulam

controversy, he referred to Dr Abdul Kalam declaring that India needs nuclear energy and nuclear energy is the only way to solve our energy needs.

He made a mention of the smart designs for IT buildings, especially in our IT corridor, which are fully covered by glass neglecting the sunlight which can be used. Much energy is used inside though we have the sunlight most part

Referring to Kudankulam he said it has four generators and they will stop automatically, if there is any problem.

to the lnternational Energy Agency which has brought out a report in which stress has been laid for producing wind power, solar power, etc., for at least next 10 years. Till then, there is no alternative except nuclear power.

of the year. He said there must be smarter

To sustain the economy of several

He referred to the promises and the

designs where we could use much less

countries, if there is no nuclear power,

assurances of the Governments in the

energy. On nuclear waste management

one has to go to thermal power he said.

past as follows:

he said the street corner garbage is not

l I n 1952 Dr Homi Bhabha said we

being cleared. How can we trust a claim

require 20,000 MW of power

l I n 1970 Dr Sarabhai said starting

about nuclear waste?

By 2015 the global temperature will go up. India’s power requirement is 1,60,000 MW. We need to lift the poor

Many of our villages are yet to be

economically, (those below the poverty

electrified and alternative sources of

level). GDP growth cannot be increased

energy like solar energy and wind energy

without increasing power generation.

1973, we have to provide for a new

500 MW nuclear power plant every

year. The Tarapore plant came 35

need to be tapped.

years later.

He said globally nuclear energy accidents

tonnes. Coal India is not able to meet

have happened and each disaster is

the requirement of coal. We are desperate

different and it has happened because of

and by 2015, 250-300 million tonnes of

poor quality design or human error. He

coal may require to be imported.

l I n 1989, the Chairman of Atomic

Energy Commission assured us that

nuclear power constitutes only 3%

and this will be increased to 10% by

2000

Most of these have only been promises and crores of rupees have been sunk in,

said there have been loss of human lives but there is no track record of openness and truth. He called for an open and transparent administration.

Our requirement of coal is 600 million

As regards crude oil, our requirement is 180 million tonnes and about 260 million crude oil is required by 2015.

He said wind power generation is not

holding the people to ransom.

Mr N S Venkataraman:

Cooking fuel in the rural areas is very

Mr Venkataraman dealt with two issues

whole world requires power and nuclear

in his address namely (a) safety and (b)

power is inevitable. If you do not have

people in the manufacturing sector. Most

innovation.

nuclear power, there is not going to be

industries require boilers; they require

As far as safety issues are concerned, he

some source of heat. But there are other

said several explanations have been given

ways of looking at energy here. Our

by several scientists all over India – some

The programme ended with a very

engineers have failed in informing us the

convincing and some not convincing.

interesting and lively question and

important. Industrial fuel is a big issue for

various uses of energy.

On the nuclear disaster at Fukushima,

The fuel needs of boilers can be reduced

he said, in view of earthquake which was

he said. Electricity is a very scarce

followed by tsunami, the nuclear power

6

going to increase beyond 40%. The

progress he said and stressed that the country has to put faith in its scientists.

answer session.

CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES

30th January 2012:

a regular feature of the Chamber and the

of the Government to give fillip to our

Tamilnadu Electricity Regulatory Commission –

Chamber has always been fortunate that

exim trade.

the office of the JDGFT has been readily accepting our invitation to be present. He

Hearing on Tariff Revision Petitions: The

Tamilnadu

Commission

Electricity

(TNERC)

expressed his sincere thanks to Mr Anil Bamba, ITS., Zonal JDGFT for being with

Regulatory

announced

a

schedule for public hearings on multiyear tariff revision petitions filed by the

us to deliver the inaugural address and Mr R Muthuraj ITS, Jt. DGFT for agreeing to make a presentation on the issues relating to international trade with special focus

Delivering the inaugural address, Mr Anil Bamba said that Government of India’s goal is to achieve 3% global trade by 2020. For the last 30-40 years, we have been focusing on few products and few markets only and hence it is time for us to diversify.

on focused products/focused markets/

Speaking about apparel exports, he said

status holder incentive scrip, etc. and on

while China produces mass products,

issues relating to international trade and

India can produce niche products. We

(Tantransco).

the initiatives taken by the Government.

have the strength, manpower, products,

According to the petition of TANGEDCO,

He said Government has ambitious

Tamilnadu Electricity Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) and Tamilnadu Transmission Corporation

the retail tariff revision is being sought

target for 2015 and the mood is generally

raw materials, etc. and with the existing equipment and the labour, we can increase our exports.

with effect from 1st April 2012 or earlier.

upbeat. 2008 witnessed that despite a major global downturn, Indian exporters

In one or two years, China will be less

The first hearing was held on 30th

rose up to the challenge and the various

competitive he felt. If we enter new

measures taken by the Government of

markets now, we can capture the share of

India helped them and we did very well

China. Europe and USA are not producing

in the worst of times.

mass products and India has to take that

January at Raja Annamalai Mandram and the Chamber was represented at the hearing by Mr A Ponnambalan, General Manager, Orient Green Power.

Earlier,

the

Chamber

had

sent

its

The target set by the Government for

place.

2015 is $ 500 million and for this fiscal

He also said new SEZs are coming up

it is $ 230 Million. He said the testing

with good infrastructure and requested

times have also proved that the industry

the participants to take advantage of this

31st January 2012:

can innovate, look at options and in

development. He cited the example of

Seminar on Exim Trade Facilitation :

partnership with the Government can

Sricity. Government is trying to step up

take positive steps to move forward to

– you have to take the plunge to achieve

reach the goal. It is possible to reach the

the targets he concluded.

The Chamber organized a Seminar on

target but we need some sops and push

Exim Trade Facilitation at Hotel Deccan

which has to come from the Government

Mr R Muthuraj, ITS., Joint DGFT then

Plaza. The seminar was designed so as

of India.

suggestions to the TNERC.

to acquaint the executives/entrepreneurs

made a presentation on issues relating to International Trade with special focus on

A majority of the members of the

focused products and focused markets.

Chamber are involved in exports. On a

He said for the last two months his

regular basis, we do hold programmes or

Department has been interacting with the

seminars of this type which help to bring

exporters not only in Chennai but also in

about greater awareness of the current

Puducherry on the various incentives and

changes in the policy. Creating awareness

schemes formulated by the Government

Ms K Saraswathi, Secretary General of

is the job of the Chamber he said and

and implemented by DGFT.

the Chamber formally welcomed the

keeping this in mind, this Seminar has

speakers and the participants. The theme

been structured.

He said the objective of the policy is to

engaged in the area of exports and imports of the various concepts and formalities relating to exim trade and to familiarize them with the latest policy changes and schemes.

presentation was given by Mr J Krishnan, Chairman of the Expert Committee on Logistics of the Chamber.

Mr Krishnan said that this programme is

achieve an annual growth of 15% for the

He then gave an outline of the technical

first two years till March 2011 with an

sessions and the subjects to be dealt with

annual export target of US $ 200 Billion

after which he requested Mr Anil Bamba,

and to achieve an annual growth of 25%

ITS., Zonal DGFT to give the policy vision

during the remaining period of the policy.

7

CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES

Food Product scheme – the objective

Vishesh Krishi & Gram Udyog Yojana –

– import and export; Valuation Rules,

is to incentivize or reward the exporter.

this is to encourage agri based products

Valuation case laws; standing orders,

Introduced in 2006, the Government has

and 5% benefit is given.

Export Valuation Rules, special valuation

been continuously strengthening and enlarging this scheme. The Government introduces the schemes where there is huge employment potential and export

Served from India Scheme – This is one of the new schemes in operation. The scheme is to accelerate growth in export

branch, etc. He also touched upon transfer pricing and customs, Service tax and Customs and GST.

of services so as to create a powerful

Mr K Sivarajan, Director, BMR Associates

and unique “Served from India” brand.

made a presentation on Customs Self

Government gives benefit of 1% on

Assessment Scheme and On-site Post

foreign exchange earnings.

Clearance Audit.

around 130 items. Under this scheme,

Status Holder Incentive Scrip - This

Post-lunch, Mr. U Udayabhaskar Reddy,

the Government gives 2% benefit.

is mainly to help status holder for

Co-Chairman of the Chamber’s Expert

modernization purposes. The sectors

Committee

include leather, textiles, jute, handicrafts,

presentation on procedural requirements/

engineering, plastics, basic chemicals, etc.

import and export documents/flow chart

potential. Earlier it was only for 6 sectors but subsequently with the demand from the industry as well as from the trade, the scheme was enlarged to include

Focus Market Scheme – The object of this scheme is to offset high freight cost and other externalities to select international markets with a view of enhance India’s

He also gave some details on Technological

export competitiveness in these countries.

upgradation,

Government has identified 116 countries

Duty

exemption

and

Remission scheme, Deemed Exports, etc.

on

Logistics,

made

a

for Customs/Export incentives/Advance licence, etc.

The last session was on the latest changes and implications of HSN and Mr

– these are located in South America,

Mr Anil Bamba and Mr Muthuraj also took

Africa and CIS. For exporters to these

some questions from the participants.

countries, the government gives 3%

This was followed by Technical Sessions

and Narcotics, Chennai addressed the

in which the speakers dealt with the

participants.

benefit. To further enlarge the scheme, the Government has notified 41 countries and exporters to these countries get a benefit of 4%.

following subjects:

National Academy of Customs, Excise

The

programme

ended

with

the

Mr K. Vaitheeswaran, Advocate & Tax

participants seeking clarifications to their

Consultant dealt with Customs Valuation

queries from the speakers.

Chennai Trade Recovery – Withdrawal The Chamber has been constantly taking up the issue of withdrawal of Chennai Trade Recovery by various Liners at the Chennai Port.

As you would have seen from the newspapers, beginning 15th February 2012, major shipping lines and feeder operators have decided to withdraw the Chennai Trade Recovery levied on the Exim trade at the Chennai Port.

Even though the congestion issue was solved within two months, shipping lines and feeder operators continued to levy CTR and thereby irking the exim trade.

Irked by the delay, the representatives of various trade bodies including the Madras Chamber took up the issue with the Ministry of Shipping and the Ministry of Commerce to resolve this issue.

8

M Manickam, former Asst. Commissioner,

SME delegation to Japan – May 2012 Indo-Japan Chamber of Commerce & Industry will be taking a 20-member multi-sector SME delegation to Japan between May 14-18, 2012.

The delegation will be visiting Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka, Hiroshima, Fukuoka and Saga. The programme primarily comprises B2B seminars with Japanese counterparts and leading Chambers of Commerce in these places.

Members of MCCI are invited to join this delegation. For further details please contact: Mr N Krishnaswami, President, Indo-Japan Chamber of Commerce & Industry – Tel: 24352010 Email: indo-japan@ijcci.com

GENERAL COMMITTEE

14th January 2012:

regard.

The Committee met on 14th January

The Committee suggested that a small

l Completion of MCCI-MOP Vaishnav

and considered the following issues: group of the Consultative Committee

College

Certification

course

on

EXIM procedures :

should meet the Chairman, CBDT and

During December, the Chamber had

MCCI- Skill Development CentreUpdation of progress:

make a representation directly.

arranged field visits to airport and

A Fitter course and a Basic Computer

l Seminar on Development of Ports

on different topics by groups of students

course have been started at the Centre.

in Tamilnadu & Release of MCCI Study

and also a 3 hour written exam.

To create an awareness amongst our member companies about the skill

The Committee noted that the following programmes were held by the Chamber:

on Port Sector in Tamilnadu – 17th December 2011.

and to discuss on customised curriculum

inaugurated the seminar and released the

for industries, the Chamber has planned

MCCI study on Port Sector in Tamilnadu.

a half-a-day workshop on 4th February The first copy of the Study was received “Workshop on Bridging Skill Gap for by Mr.Atulya Misra, IAS., Chairman of are senior HR executives of member companies,

faculties

and

placement

officers from Educational Institutions.

MCCI- Income Tax Matter:

Chennai Port Trust.

for one Liner, all the other Liners have withdrawn the congestion surcharge.

Minister

had conducted evaluation presentation

The valedictory function & distribution of

had

first week of April 2012. l Seminar cum B2B on Bridging the Gap in Agro-Biotech commercialisation – 22nd December 2011.

Assocham & MCCI had jointly organised

It was informed that post-seminar, except

The

Students. After the visit, the Chamber

certificates will be done sometime in the

development initiative of the Chamber, Mr G K Vasan, Union Minister of Shipping

Technical Work Force” . The target groups

Container Freight Station for the MBA

made

a

public

announcement that the Trusteeship of

this programme at which presentations were made by resource persons from NRDC. The

Committee

also

noted

the

forthcoming programmes as follows:

Chennai Port Trust will be restored to the

Participation

Madras Chamber and immediate follow

Forum in Municipalika – 23rd-25th

up should be done.

January 2012:

organizations, cancelling 12A exemption

It was stated that in about 2-3 years time,

l

and opening the Assessment Orders for

Chennai Port will be in severe financial

“Point of Impact” – 25th January 2012:

the previous years’ transactions.

crisis. A number of recommendations

The Income tax authorities at Chennai have issued notices to most of the Chambers of Commerce and other

This matter was discussed with the tax and legal experts and as suggested by them the Chamber had filed a Writ petition for the restoration of 12 A (a).

Stay has been granted for the assessment order.

It is understood that a number of other petitions have also been received and hence the court is likely to consider this

have been made in the study which was acknowledged by the Minister and the speakers. Once our representative gets

of

Sustainable

Chennai

MCCI-MMA Video Discussion on

l Food For Thought (FFT) on Nuclear Energy – To be or Not to be – 28th January 2012

on the Board, the Chamber can use this

The members expressed their concern

as a reference point and see that all the

with regard to the power situation

issues are constantly followed up.

and power availability in the State. The

The Committee greatly appreciated the efforts of the Logistics Committee in organizing this programme.

Committee noted with disappointment that all the hydel projects have been stopped.

The

Committee

felt

that

arising out of the debate, the Chamber

as a batch of applications and deal with

The Secretary General mentioned that

should make a representation to the

them.

a port delegation from US is coming to

Government.

A letter signed by all the Presidents of the Consultative Committee of City Chambers of Commerce is being sent to the Finance Minister and the Chairman, CBDT in this

Chennai around 21st February headed by US Under Secretary for International Trade and that US Consulate has approached us for a joint programme.

l Programme on EXIM Trade Facilitation – 31st January 2012: While on this it was noted that the Government of India has issued a 9

GENERAL COMMITTEE notification exempting taxable services

proposed and to discuss and understand

(referred to as specified services) received

how to make the programmes industry

by the exporter of goods and used for

– friendly.

export of goods from the whole of the service tax leviable subject to specified conditions. This will be circulated to the members for their information. l Workshop on Bridging the Skill Gap for Technical Work Force

– 4th February

2012 organised by MCCI Vocational Training & Skill Development Centre.

The Committee approved the membership of Skylift Cargo and Frendi Fashions.

l India Corporate Week 2011-12 – 7th February 2012:

This year, the India Corporate Week will be celebrated on 7th February. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India is taking the lead in organizing this programme jointly with the Institute of Company Secretaries of India, the Madras

The objective of the workshop is to bring

Chamber, Hindustan Chamber, Southern

institutions and industry together and

India

share information on the various courses

Exchange.

Chamber

New Membership:

and

Bombay

Stock

Status of Subscription 2011-12: The

Committee

noted

the

list

of

companies in arrears of subscription for the current year. While the secretariat is following up with the companies and trying to recover the dues, the President requested members to use their good offices to speak to the contacts known to them to recover the subscription.

EXPERT COMMITTEES: 13th January 2012:

Energy Environment & Pollution Control Industrial Development The above three Committees met on 13th January and the main agenda for discussion was the Chamber’s participation in Municipalika 2012 which was happening at the Chennai Trade Centre between 23rd and 25th January. Members were apprised about the purpose of Municipalika which is India’s only event focusing on Urban Development and Municipal Solutions.

This has been successfully organized since 2003.

The Chamber with the support of British Deputy High Commission and the US Department of Energy was given an opportunity to participate by taking a stall as well as by getting a presentation slot on Conference session “Cities for th e GenNext”.

Mrs K. Saraswathi, Secretary General of the Chamber apprised the members about the objective of SCF and what the proposed activities are. She presented to the members the logo of SCF launched during the World Habitat Day in November.

10

The members shared their thoughts on how to take this forward and also suggested that the objectives of the SCF could be fine tuned and made more specific. The suggestions were duly taken into consideration.

24th January 2012:

Company Law/Corporate Matters Before proceeding to the discussion, Chairperson Ms.Bhavani Balasubramanian and the members of the committee congratulated Mr.B.Ravi, a practising Company Secretary and special invitee to the Committee, for his Doctorate in Corporate Governance awrded by the Madras University. On behalf of the Chamber, a memento was presented to him by the Chairperson.

Dr.B.Ravi made a detailed presentation on the draft Companies Bill 2011.

Issues arising there from were discussed chapter-wise. The Committee felt that a representation should be made to Mr.Yashwant Sinha, Chairman of Standing Committee on Finance as well as to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

It was felt that the following heads needed more clarifications.

l P rospectus and allotment of securities –chapter III l A cceptance of Deposits by Companies – chapter V

l M anagement and Administration – Chapter VII l A ccounts of companies – Chapter IX l A udit and Auditors – Chapter X l M eetings of Board and its Powers – Chapter XI l E xemptions to private companies l C onstitution of CSR Committee l N FRA Members were requested to send further suggestions, if any, to the Chamber so that all the issues could be collated and a memorandum could be sent to the concerned authorities.

Members were informed that the India Corporate-Investor Meet will be taking place on 7th Feburary at Taj Coromandel Hotel and the MCCI was one of the partnering organisations. Hon’ble Minister for MCA and the Secretary of MCA will be participating and addressing the meeting. Members were requested to participate in this programme.

REPRESENTATIONS 7th February 2012 Shri Muthuraj I.T.S. JDGFT Office of JDGFT, Haddows Road, Chennai 600006.

Dear Sir, We thank you for taking time off to be present amongst our members and addressing them at the Seminar on Exim Trade Facilitation organized by the Chamber along with the Zonal JDFT Shri Anil Bamba I.T.S. You had highlighted in your presentation that for the export benefits being claimed under Chapter 3, absence of the data on the shipping bill by the exporters is a situation that needs urgent remedial action as per policy provisions.

With reference to the issue rightly identified by you, the Chamber wishes to make the following submission for your kind consideration.

In the electronic filing of Shipping Bill provisions under the Customs Act, every shipping bill needs to bear the scheme code at the time of submission of electronic data from the exporters to the Customs House.

We attach an enclosure of the various scheme codes as per the Customs directory.

It may be observed that the DEPB scheme has been rescinded and the scheme code allotted.

Hence, this erstwhile scheme ( 03) may be amended to read as exports under claim for Chapter 3 of FTP and free shipping bill.

The Chamber feels this will help address the problem identified on the absence of this information on a large number of free shipping bills where benefits under Chapter 3 of FTP are claimed.

Thanking you, Yours faithfully, Sd/…..

K Saraswathi Secretary General

Scheme Code List Scheme Code Description

Scheme Code Description

1

NO EXPORT INCENTIVE

DRAWBACK AND DIAMOND IMPREST LICENCE

2

ADVANCE LICENCE

3

DEPB POST EXPORT

4

Concessional DUTY EPCG SCHEME

6

DrawBack

EPCG AND DFRC

EPCG AND JBG

EPCG AND DIAMOND IMPREST LICENCE

7

EOU/EPZ/SEZ/EHTP/STP

EPCG AND REPLENISHMENT LICENCE

EPCG,DRAWBACK AND DEEC

8

DRAWBACK AND ADVANCE LICENCE

9

10

DRAWBACK AND ZERO DUTY EPCG

DRAWBACK AND CONCESSIONAL DUTY EPCG

EPCG DRAWBACK AND DIAMOND IMPREST LICENCE

EPCG DRAWBACK AND DEPB POST EXPORT

11

DRAWBACK AND EOU/EPZ/SEZ

EPCG AND DEPB(POST EXPORTS)

ADVANCE LICENCE FOR INTERMEDIATE SUPPLIES

EPCG,DRAWBACK AND JOBBING

ADVANCE RELEASE ORFER

NFEI

ADVANCE LICENCE FOR DEEMED EXPORTS

5

ZERO DUTY EPCG SCHEME

ADVANCE LICENCE WITH ACTUAL USER CONDITION

REPLENISHMENT LICENCE

DIAMOND IMPREST LICENCE

DRAWBACK AND DFRC

DUTY FREE REPLENISHMENT CERTIFICATE

JOBBING(JBG)

EPCG AND ADVANCE LICENCE

EPCG,DRAWBACK AND DFRC

DRAWBACK AND POST EXPORT DEPB

DRAWBACK AND JBG

Advance Licence for annual requirement

11

POLICY WATCH: India-EU FTA will take time:

TRAI proposes Rs 20 crore for national level unified licence:

Petroleum Products under GST:

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of

taxation regime adopted for petroleum

for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, India proposed a fee of Rs. 20 crore for

products, the Petroleum and Natural Gas

Baroness Catherine Ashton.

a national level unified licence under

ministry has asked the Finance Ministry

the new regime, which suggests that

to bring petroleum products, including

there will be only four types of licences

crude oil, petrol, diesel, ATA and gas,

in future as against many across the

under the new Goods and Services Tax

communication sector at present.

regime in line with the recommendations

The India European Union Free Trade Agreement is likely to take some time, according to the EU’s High Representative

She said, although significant progress had been made, the finer details of the agreement would take some more time.

India-Thailand Trade target fixed at $ 14 billion:

The telecom regulator’s draft guidelines

Seeking an end to the discriminatory

of the XIII Finance Commission.

for the new unified licensing regime

It has argued that the move to keep

The Thailand PM said that India and

said: “The entry fee for different types

these products outside the GST could

Thailand would work to double the

of unified licence shall be Rs 20 crore for

permanently deprive this sector of the

bilateral trade to around $14 billion national level, Rs 2 crore for each Metro by 2014. and ‘A’ category, Rs. 1 crore for each B Both countries also decided to forge maritime partnership to develop seaport at Dawei, a strategic location on the South-Western coast of Myanmar and work for developing port infrastructure.

Dawei is a strategic location for India to

category, Rs 50 lakhs for each C category service area levels and Rs 15 lakhs for each district level unified licence”. The draft guidelines have proposed three levels of unified licence – at national level, service area level and district level.

China is investing heavily in the countries

Apex Bank moots deregulation of diesel prices:

neighbouring India. India-Thailand trade

The Reserve Bank of India has favoured

had seen a quantum jump from $1

a de-regulation of diesel prices. In its

billion to $7 billion in the last ten years,

third quarter review of Monetary Policy

get access to South-east Asian markets.

helped by “ Early Harvest” pact, limited 2011-12, the apex bank suggested diesel to 82 items. price de-regulation to contain aggregate

India-Sri Lanka Bilateral trade surges by 70 per cent:

demand and trade deficit.

Trade between India and SrI Lanka surged

fully de-regulate diesel prices.

by more than 70 per cent in 2011 over

Reiterating

the previous year touching an all time

risks still persisted in the economy,

high of $ 5 billion said the Indian High

the RBI pointed to “a large element of

Commissioner for Sri Lanka.

suppressed inflation” as domestic price

He said Indian companies had invested

of some administered products do not

more than Rs 100 million in Sri Lanka.

He highlighted the fast growth in India’s development assistance and the growing recognition that Indian projects

Since the food subsidy bill is expected to rise, the apex bank said it is prudent to

its

stand

that

inflation

reflect the underlying market conditions.

In this context, it singled out coal, which had not seen any increase in price this year. Any increase in coal prices will have

were being completed in a timely and implications on electricity tariff, it said. efficient manner.

12

advantages of GST. Warning against partial implementation of GST for some petroleum products will push up costs for the sector as the States would be levying service tax under the new regime, input credit cannot be availed of by the sector for the excluded basket. On the other hand, the inclusion of petroleum products under GST will eliminate stranding of taxes paid by suppliers as well as by the industry at different stages in the petroleum value chain besides enabling States and the Centre to capture full revenue potential it said.

Suspension of FDI in retail a pause: India assured global retail giants Walmart and Metro that its reforms agenda was well on course and the decision to put on hold Foreign Direct Investment in multi-brand retail is “just a pause”, forced by compulsions of coalition politics.

Mr Anand Sharma, Minister for Commerce & Industry said, the decision to open 51 per cent FDI in multi brand retail could not be implemented because of the compulsions of coalition politics as also partisan opposition.

He said while the Government had restarted consultations taking on board concerns of agrarian States, only the bonafide objections would be taken into account.

Additions to Library:

8th January 2012:

Annual Reports:

Seminar on Inclusive Industrial Development - The Way Forward

l 84th Annual Report 2010-11–Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry l Aids Prevention & Control Project (APAC) – Voluntary

This programme was organized by the Institute of Public Enterprises & Public Administration in connection with the

Health Services – 2010-11

birth centenary function of late Shri R Venkataraman .

l The Voluntary Health Services – 2011-12

Mrs K Saraswathi, Secretary General of the Chamber

l National Consumer Helpline – 2011-11

made a presentation on “New Manufacturing Policy and Inclusiveness”. The session was chaired by Mr S Sivagnanam,

l Indian Council of Arbitration – 2011-12

Director, MSME and Mr Rajagopal, former Vice-Chancellor

l Amrutanjan Ltd. March 2011

of Gandhigram University.

l 34th Annual Report – Bangalore Chamber of Industry & Commerce l MRF 2010-11

New Members:

l Annamalai University – 2010

MCCI extends a warm welcome to its following new members:

Directories: l I ndo-Australian Business Directory – 2011 – Indo-

Australian Chamber of Commerce

l A ssocham Business Directory 2011-12 l T ahiti Trade Directory 2011-12

Skylift Cargo P Ltd. Business: Customs Clearance & Freight Forwarding Frendi Fashions Pvt.Ltd. Business: Manufacturer and Exporter of readymade garments

Others: l I ndia Energy Forum Year Book 2011-12

Forthcoming Programmes:

l I ndian experience with FDI – Role of a Game Changer

2nd March 2012:

– Assocham

l R upee Exchange depreciation n – Impact analysis –

Assocham

l E valuation of Gender Mainstreaming in UN-Habitat-

Discussion on State of the Economy – Hotel GRT Grand (6 pm followed by dinner) 2nd March 2012:

l U nited Nations Human Settlements Programme

Seminar on Transfer Pricing – Pleasant Day Resort, Sriperumbudur (10 am to 1 pm)

l G lobal Report on Human Settlements 2011 –Cities and

17th March 2012:

Climate Change- UN-HABITAT

l A Guide for Investors – Bombay Stock Exchange

Workshop on Central Budget and the Finance Bill – Hotel GRT Grand (9.30 a.m. to 1.30 p.m.)

l H andbook on Investing & Investor Protection – ICAI

Proposed:

l F

irst Steps to Investing – A Beginner’s Guide – ICAI

Visit of a delegation from Czech Republic

l P rimer for First time and Existing Investors – ICAI

Workshop on Companies Bill

l T he Perfect link in Financial Services –

Workshop on Water Management

13

REFLECTIONS

By C.S.Krishnaswami The Chamber's IN-TOUCH for NovemberDecember is wide ranging in its coverage from Port Study to Policy Watch. I can't resist reflecting on the evolution of the Chamber to where it is now.

At the start, the Burrah Sahibs first thought of the Port and other infrastructure like the Railways, Posts and Telegraphs and the Chamber saw to it they happened for the benefit of imperial trade and commerce. Benefits of British Rule was a stock question students had to answer. However, it can't be denied that post-independence those benefits (most of all, the English language which has given us the liftoff to cyberspace to reap the rewards of a preferred destination for IT and outsourcing) proved useful starting blocks for free India to get started on its economic development mission.

It is remarkable that for nearly 25 years after Independence, there was an amicable co-existence of the British firms and the newly emerging Indian entrepreneurs and their companies sharing the seats in the Chamber Committee equally almost till the mid 70s. The prime interest of the expatriates in that period was taxation bearing on repatriation and restrictions imposed by the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act which one Assocham President called 'Ferocious FERA'.

liberalisation and freeing the economy from the shackles of controls and licensing and regressive taxation. Lo and behold, the economy was progressively decontrolled and liberalized from the early part of the 1990s.

The gradual globalization of the economy with the emergence of the age of technology spurring the new knowledge based IT industries has marked a sea change in the industrial and commercial scene. They had their impact on older business models with the consequence that business organizations like the Chamber have begun to reflect a new spirit of taking responsibility for initiating positive programmes on their own, apart from cooperating with public bodies and government to promote development for the greater good of the community and the nation. MCCI's thoughtful project of a Skill Development Centre near Chennai is an instance in point. The many studies, seminars and workshops on a wide variety of subjects leave no doubt that the Chamber is on a proactive trajectory even as it discharges its traditional representational functions.

One can see the new camaraderie on an equal basis among members at meetings, quite in contrast with the stuffiness and hierarchical conservatism of the past.

The atmosphere is informal and relaxed.

This spirit has also been carried down to the day to day administration of the Indian business came into its own in the Chamber with notable delegation of Chamber with a strong leadership of responsibility to the Secretary-General senior as well as young entrepreneurs. and allocation of functions to members They had to grapple with the challenges of her team to officiate at meetings and of a planned and controlled economy. events. In the old days, the Secretariat For quite a few years the key question was appreciated for its silent behindof strategy debated was "to be reactive the-scene performance. or proactive". Reactive representations Back to the November-December INhad to be made out of necessity in the TOUCH which set off these train of interests of the membership, but loud thoughts, the cover page carries the affirmations of commitment to proactive photograph of the Central Minister action were made at every opportunity. releasing the MCCI Study on Port Sector Chambers, including MCCI, undertook in Tamilnadu. So, it has come full circle. educational and training projects, rural At its very start, the Chamber got the development programmes etc.

Madras Port established. Now 175 years All the time the pitch was raised at annual later, it has enlarged its logistics horizon meetings and in representations for pushing for the development of ports in 14 14

Tamilnadu to launch a thousand ships.

Full steam ahead to the bicentenary!

(Mr C S Krishnaswami is the former Secretary of The Madras Chamber of Commerce & Industry)

HUNGER ELIMINATION AND YOU MOVEMENT (HEY) HEY is registered as a Society for Hunger Elimination (SHE) at Tirupati.

OBJECTIVES: To awaken the people on the serious problem of hunger among the poorest of the poor and initiate action to feed the most needy, to provide safe water, clothes, education, with particular reference to children with malnutrition, under nourished women GOAL: To make India hunger free by 2020 MOTTO: Concern, care, compassion, commitment and cooperation to serve the hungriest citizens VISION: To light the lamp of hope and confidence in the minds of the hungry people to lead normal life with human dignity MISSION: ‘Care the uncared’, ‘Reach the unreached’, ‘Feed the unfed’, Save the unsaved’ SLOGAN: “SAVE THE FOOD AND FEED THE POOR” , “MAKING INDIA HUNGER FREE IS THE SOCIAL AND MORAL RESPONSIBILITY OF EVERY CITIZEN WITH DIVINE BLESSINGS” SHE humbly appeals to all the celebrities in film, sports, music sectors and industrial and corporate establishments to join hands with the society to light the lamp of hope and life with human dignity among the poorest citizens.

Please contact Dr.V.Rajagopal President, Tirupati phone number 0877-2287083 mobile number 094412 00217 and e mail ID rajvel44@gmail.com “If you cannot feed one hundred persons per day, feed at least ONE person per day” – Mother Teresa, Nobel Laureate.

SPOT LIGHT

The Fundamentals of Foreign Direct Investment Policies in India

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is now recognized as an important driver of growth in the country. Government is,

Automatic Route

(b) Existing Companies

(a) New Ventures

Besides

therefore, making all efforts to attract

All

and facilitate FDI and investment from

investment up to 100% fall under the

Non Resident Indians (NRIs) including

Automatic Route except those mentioned

Overseas Corporate Bodies (OCBs) that

under (i) to (iv) under Govt approval

are predominantly owned by them, to

below.

complement and supplement domestic

Whenever any investor chooses to make

investment. To make the investment in India attractive, investment and returns on them are freely repatriable, except where the approval is subject to specific conditions such as lock -in period on original

investment,

dividend

cap,

foreign exchange neutrality, etc. as per the notified sectoral policy. The condition of dividend balancing that was applicable to FDI in 22 specified consumer goods industries stands withdrawn for dividends declared after 14th July 2000.

items/activities

for

FDI/NRI/OCB

an application to the FIPB and not to avail of the automatic route, he or she may do so. Investment in public sector units as also for EOU/EPZ/EHTP/STP units would also qualify for the Automatic Route. Investment under the Automatic Route shall continue to be governed by the notified sectoral policy and equity caps and RBI will ensure compliance of the same. The National Industrial Classification (NIC) 1987 shall remain applicable for description of activities and

new

companies,

automatic

route for FDI/NRI/OCB investment is also available to the existing companies proposing to induct foreign equity. l For

existing

companies

with

an

expansion programme, the additional requirements are that (i) the increase in equity level must result from the expansion of the equity base of the existing company without the acquisition of existing shares by NRI/ OCB/foreign investors, (ii) the money to be remitted should be in foreign currency and (iii) proposed expansion programme should be in the sector(s) under automatic route. Otherwise, the proposal would need Government approval through the FIPB. For this the proposal must be supported by a Board Resolution of the existing Indian

Foreign direct investment is freely allowed

classification for all matters relating to

in all sectors including the services sector,

FDI/NRI/OCB investment: Areas/sectors/

except a few sectors where the existing

activities hitherto not open to FDI/NRI/

l For existing companies without an

and notified sectoral policy does not

OCB investment shall continue to be so

expansion programme, the additional

permit FDI beyond a ceiling.FDI for

unless otherwise decided and notified by

requirements

virtually all items/activities can be brought

Government.

automatic approval are (i) that they

in through the Automatic Route under

Any change in sectoral policy/sectoral

powers delegated to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and for the remaining items/ activities through Government approval.

Government approvals are accorded on the recommendation of the Foreign

equity cap shall be notified by the Secretariat for Industrial Assistance (SIA) in the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion.

company.

for

eligibility

for

are engaged in the industries under automatic route, (ii) the increase in equity level must be from expansion of the equity base and (iii) the foreign equity must be in foreign currency.

The earlier SEBI requirement, applicable

Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

15 15

SPOT LIGHT

to public limited companies, that shares

capital of units manufacturing items

PROHIBITION ON INVESTMENT IN

allotted on preferential basis shall not be

reserved for small scale industries; and

INDIA.

transferable in any manner for a period of

(3) all items which require an Industrial

5 years from the date of their allotment

Licence in terms of the locational policy

has now been modified to the extent that

notified by Government under the New

not more than 20 per cent of the entire

Industrial Policy of 1991.

contribution brought in by promoter cumulatively in public or preferential issue shall be locked-in.

technology collaboration would not be available to those who have or had any previous joint venture or technology transfer/trade mark agreement in the same or allied field in India.

Equity

participation

by

international

financial institutions such as ADB, IFC,

(ii) All proposals in which the foreign collaborator has a previous venture/tie up

However,

this

shall

not

apply

to

investment made by multilateral financial institutions such as ADB, IFC, CDC, DEG,

favour of a foreign/NRI/OCB investor.

which FDI is not permitted.

specific cap on FDI.

Areas/sectors/activities hitherto not open

In a major drive to simplify procedures

to FDI/NRI/OCB investment shall continue

for foreign direct investment under

to be so unless otherwise decided and

the “automatic route”, RBI has given

notified by Government.

permission to Indian Companies to

RBI has granted general permission under

days of such receipt and file required documentation within 30 days of issue of shares to Foreign Investors. This facility is available to NRI/OCB investment also.

Government Approval For the following categories, Government approval for FDI/NRI/OCB through the FIPB shall be necessary: -

casinos etc.

Exchange

Management

Act

by the Government. Indian companies foreign

investment

(g) Real Estate Business or Construction of Farm Houses (h) Manufacturing of Cigars, cheroots, cigarillos and cigarettes, of tobacco or of tobacco substitutes (i) Activities / sectors not opened to

(FEMA) in respect of proposals approved getting

(f) Trading in Transferable Development Rights (TDRs)

subject to SEBI/RBI regulations and sector

receipt of inward remittances within 30

(c) Gambling and Betting including

(e) Nidhi company

shares in an existing Indian company in

Foreign

including

lotteries,etc.

(iii) All proposals relating to acquisition of

sectoral policy/caps or under sectors in

Regional Office concerned of the RBI of

Business

(d) Business of chit fund

is permitted through automatic route

RBI. Investors are required to notify the

(b) Lottery

etc. as also investment made in IT sector.

(iv) All proposals falling outside notified

without obtaining prior approval from

product retailing)

Government /private lottery, online

CDC, DEG, etc.in domestic companies

accept investment under this route

activities/sectors: (a) Retail Trading (except single brand

in India.

The automatic route for FDI and/or

FDI is prohibited in the following

private sector investment including Atomic Energy and Railway Transport (other than Mass Rapid Transport Systems).

approval

Besides foreign investment in any form,

through FIPB route do not require any

foreign technology collaboration in any

further clearance from RBI for the purpose

form including licensing for franchise,

of receiving inward remittance and issue

trademark, brand name, management

of shares to the foreign investors. Such

contract is also completely prohibited

companies are, however, required to

for Lottery Business and Gambling and

notify the Regional Office concerned of

Betting activities

the RBI of receipt of inward remittances within 30 days of such receipt and to file the required documents with the concerned Regional Offices of the RBI

Always be a first rate

(i) All proposals that require an Industrial

within 30 days after issue of shares to the

version of yourself,

Licence which includes (1) the item

foreign investors.

instead of a second rate

For greater transparency in the approval

version of somebody

requiring an Industrial Licence under the Industries (Development & Regulation) Act, 1951; (2) foreign investment being more than 24 per cent in the equity

16 16

process, Government has announced guidelines

for

consideration

proposals by the FIPB.

of

FDI

else – July Garland

SPOT LIGHT Sector Specific Policies for FDI ( as of April 2011 ) Sl.No Sector/Activity

% of FDI Cap/Equity Entry Route

1

Agriculture & Animal Husbandry

100%

Automatic

2

Tea Plantation

100%

Government

3

Mining

100%

Automatic

4

Coal and Lignite

100%

Automatic

5

Mining & Mineral separation of

titanium bearing minerals and ores, its

value addition and integrated activities

100%

Government

6

Defence

26%

Government

7

Electric Generation, Transmission, Distribution and Trading

100%

Automatic

8

Policy for FDI in Civil Aviation sectors

100%

Automatic

Airports – Greenfield Projects

100%

Automatic

Existing Projects

100%

Automatic upto 74%

Govt. route beyond 74%

9

Scheduled Air Transport Service /

49% FDI

Automatic

Domestic Scheduled Passenger Airline

(100% for NRIs)

10

Non Scheduled Air Transport Service

74% FDI

Automatic up to 49%

(100% for NRIs)

Government route

beyond 49% and up to

74%.

11

Helicopter services / seaplane services

requiring DGCA approval

100%

Automatic

12

Ground handling services subject to

74% FDI

Automatic up to 49%

sectoral regulations and security

(100% for NRIs)

Government route

clearance

beyond 49% and up to

74%.

13

Maintenance and repair organizations;

100%

Automatic

flying training institutes; and technical

training institutions

14

Asset Reconstruction companies

49% of paid up capital Government

of ARC

15

Banking – Private sector

74%

Automatic up to 49%

Government route

beyond 49% and up to

74%.

16

Banking Public Sector

20% (FDI and Portfolio

Investment)

Government

17

Broadcasting – Terrestrial Broadcasting FM

20% (FDI.NRI & PIO

Government

investments and

Portfolio investment)

17 17

SPOT LIGHT

18 18

Sl.No Sector/Activity

% of FDI Cap/Equity Entry Route

18

Broadcasting – Cable Network

49% (FDI,NRI & PIO

investments and

portfolio investment)

19

Broadcasting – Direct to Home

49% (FDI,NRI & PIO

Government

investments and

portfolio investment)

Within this limit, FDI

component not to

exceed 20%

20

FDI limit in (HITS) broadcasting service

74% (total direct and Automatic up to 49%

indirect foreign

investment including beyond 49% and up to

portfolio and FDI)

21

Setting up hardware facilities such as

49% (FDI & FII)

Government

up-linking, HUB /Teleports

22

Up-linking a Non News & Current

100%

Government

affairs TV Channel

23

Up-linking a News & current

affairs TV channel

26% (FDI & FII)

Government

24

Policy for FDI in commodity exchange

49% (FDI & FII)

Government

(Investment by

Registered FII under PIS

will be limited to 23%

and Investment under

FDI scheme limited to

26%)

25

Townships, housing, built up

100%

Automatic

infrastructure and construction

development projects

26

Credit Information companies

49% (FDI & FII)

Government

27

Industrial Parks – both setting up and

100%

Automatic

already established Industrial parks

28

Insurance

26%

Automatic

29

Infrastructure company in the

49% (FDI & FII) (FDI

Government

securities market

limit of 26 % and an FII

limit of 23% of the paid

up capital)

30

Non Banking Finance companies (NBFC)

100%

Automatic

31

Petroleum & Natural Gas sector

100%

Automatic

32

Petroleum refining by the Public Sector Undertakings (PSU)

49%

Government

33

Publishing of News paper and periodicals dealing with

26% (FDI and

Government

News and Current affairs

investment by NRIs /

PIOs / FII)

Government

Government route 74%.

SPOT LIGHT Sl.No Sector/Activity

% of FDI Cap/Equity Entry Route

34

Publication of India editions of foreign

26% (FDI and

magazines dealing with news and current affairs

investment by NRIs /

Government

PIOs / FII)

35

Publishing / Printing of scientific and technical

100%

Government

magazines / speciality journals / periodicals

36

Publication of facsimile edition of foreign newspapers

100%

Government

37

Telecom Services

74%

Automatic up to 49%

Government route

beyond 49% and up to

74%.

38

ISP with gateways

74%

Automatic up to 49%

Government route

beyond 49% and up to

74%.

39

Infrastructure provider providing dark fibre,

100%

Automatic up to 49%

right of way, duct space, tower (IP category I) ;

Government route

Electronic mail ; voice mail

beyond 49%

40

Cash & carry wholesale trading / wholesale trading

100%

Automatic

(including sourcing from MSEs)

41

E-commerce activities

100%

Automatic

42

Test marketing

100%

Government

43*

Single Brand product trading

100 %

Automatic

* As per the recent guidelines For current and uptodate sector specific guideline and for more details on the procedures , Please visit www.dipp.nic.in

Trade Fairs & Exhibitions:

Trade Enquiry:

Singapore:

HD Office Systems Sdn Bhd, Malaysia – their product

17-20 April 2012 19-22 June 2012

Wine & spirits Asia 2012 Broadcast Asia 2012 Enterprise IT 2012 Communic Asia 2012

range

9-12th April 2013 engineering

mta 2013 – The precision industry event

India Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Report – Special Advisory Team:

Sri Lanka: 28th to 30th March 2012

"Partner with Hub of Asia" Expo Sri Lanka

can

be

viewed

at

www.purple-apple.com

contact: Mr David Goh - emaiul: davidgoh@purple-apple.com

The Institute of Small Industries and Development, Cochin has invited Mrs K Saraswathi, Secretary General t o be a Member of the Special Advisory Team.

19 19

SPOT LIGHT

Indian FDIs – Trends & Concepts

India’s

inward

investment

regime

overwhelmingly

reflecting

hostility

marketing

expertise,

introduction

of

went through a series of changes since

following the experience with the colonial

modern managerial techniques and new

economic reforms were ushered in two

rule. From being assigned the role of

possibilities for promotion of exports. …

decades back. The expectation of the

supplementing and strengthening the

The government will therefore welcome

policy makers was that an “investor

domestic private sector, FDI was given

foreign investment which is in the interest

friendly” regime will help India establish

greater freedom and a role of its own

of the country's industrial development.

itself as a preferred destination of foreign

to contribute to India’s development

investors. These expectations remained

process along with gradual liberalization

largely unfulfilled despite the consistent

of India’s economic policies which started

attempts by the policy makers to increase

in the 1980s.

the attractiveness of India by further changes in policies that included opening up of individual sectors, raising the hitherto existing caps on foreign holding

The New Industrial Policy, 1991, which accelerated the process of liberalisation, stated:

But after 2005-06, official statistics started

the policy of self-reliance, there would be

reporting steep increases in FDI inflows.

greater emphasis placed on building up

into

different

sectors,

India’s

approach towards FDI too changed ever since independence; the initial approach

type

of

capital

flow

for

emerging

economies as it is expected to bring latest technology and enhance production capabilities of the economy.

While Government will continue to follow

and

that: FDI is considered to be the most attractive

and improving investment procedures.

As global capital flows expanded manifold

The Economic Survey 2008-09 reiterated

And

the

National

Manufacturing

Competitiveness Council specified that:

our ability to pay for imports through our

Foreign investments mean both foreign

own foreign exchange earnings. Foreign

portfolio investments and foreign direct

investment

would

attendant

investments (FDI). FDI brings better

advantages

of

transfer,

technology and management, access

bring

technology

to marketing networks and offers

competition, the latter helping Indian

Average reported FDI Equity Inflows during different periods

companies

improve,

quite

apart

from being good for consumers. This $ 19.73bn.

efficiency contribution of FDI is much more important.

Starting from such basic premise, from a regime of selective approach to foreign investment with emphasis on transfer of high technology and promotion of exports, since the

$ 1.72bn.

1991-92.1999-00

beginning of the ‘nineties India has

$ 2.85bn.

2000-01 to 2004-05

gradually expanded the scope for 2005-06 to 2009-10

Incidentally, in March 2005, the government announced a revised FDI policy, an important element of which was the decision to allow FDI up to 100% foreign equity under the automatic route in townships, housing, built up infrastructure and construction-development projects.

The year 2005 also witnessed the enactment of the Special Economic Zones Act, which entailed a lot of construction and township development that came into force in February 2006.

20 20

FDI by progressively increasing the number of eligible sectors as also the limits for FDI in an enterprise. The steps taken included removing the general ceiling of 40% on foreign equity under the Foreign Exchange

SPOT LIGHT

Entry Route-wise Distribution of FDI Equity Inflows in US $ mn Year

(1) 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10(P) 2010-11 (Apr-Nov)(P)

FIPB/SIA

(2) 1,456 2,221 919 928 1,062 1,126 2,156 2,298 4,699 3,471 1,604

Entry Route

Automatic*

(3) 521 802 739 534 1,258 2,233 7,151 17,127 17,998 18,990 8,950

Acquisition of shares (4)

362 881 916 735 930 2,181 6,278 5,148 4,632 3,148 3,471

Total (2)+(3)+(4) FIPB/SIA

(5) 2,339 3,904 2,574 2,197 3,250 5,540 15,585 24,573 27,329 25,609 14,025

Share in Total (%)

Automatic* Acquisition

of shares

(6) (7) (8) 62.25 22.27 15.48 56.89 20.54 22.57 35.7 28.71 35.59 42.24 24.31 33.45 32.68 38.71 28.62 20.32 40.31 39.37 13.83 45.88 40.28 9.35 69.7 20.95 17.19 65.86 16.95 13.55 74.16 12.29 11.44 63.81 24.75

Source Based on Table No.44 RBI Monthly Bulletin, January 2011, p S86.

# Excluding investments in Unincorporated Bodies, Reinvested Earnings and Other Capital (P) Provisional

* Includes small quantities on account of NRI investment for the year 2000-01 and 2001-02

Regulation Act, 1973 (FERA), lifting of

goods,

abandoning

restrictions on the use of foreign brand

manufacturing

the

phased

royalty payments and permitting foreign

programme

(PMP),

investment up to 24% of equity of small

names in the domestic market, removing

diluting the dividend balancing condition

scale units and reducing the corporate tax

restrictions on entry and expansion of

and export obligations, liberalising the

rates. FDI limit for small scale units was,

foreign direct investment into consumer

terms for import of technology and

however, dispensed with in 2009.

Major Sector-wise Distribution of FDI Equity Inflows during 2005-2008* Sector (1) Total Inflow (US $ mn) Of which, Manufacturing Finance Construction & Real Estate Other Services IT & ITES Telecommunications Energy Trading Mining Agriculture Unclassified Total

2005-2008 (2) 64,423

13,436 12,114 10,754 8.915 7,016 4,737 2,933 1,367 488 136 2,529

2005 2006 2007 2008 2005-2008 (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) 4,354 11,119 15,921 33,029 64,423 (% share in Total Inflow for the Year)

41.41 17.44 18.67 20.35 20.86 11.68 19.77 18.08 19.77 18.8 3.12 11.5 17.41 19.88 16.69 11.31 20.22 10.74 13.52 13.84 21.21 17.25 15.18 5.32 10.89 3.64 8.37 6.72 7.8 7.35 1.44 2.26 3.69 6.15 4.55 0.65 0.76 3.62 2.05 2.12 0.15 0.03 2.65 0.17 0.76 0.21 0.01 0.75 0.02 0.21 5.19 2.39 2.5 4.96 3.93 100 100 100 100 100

Source : Based on the data provided in SIA Newsletter (various monthly and annual issues). # Excluding those into Unincorporated Bodies, Reinvested Earnings and Other Capital.

21 21

SPOT LIGHT

The number of items reserved for

volatile and hence can cause financial

suggested that close to 40% of the

the small scale sector has since been

instability—basic expectations from both

inflows were into companies that serve

drastically pruned to just 20 thus virtually

types of capital

freeing the sector both from ownership

have

been

criterion and product reservation. The

different

from

parallel process of virtual withdrawal of

each other.

Sectoral Composition of FDI Equity Inflows during 2005-2008

the Industrial Licensing System and the

Others 7.02%

retreating from the primacy given to public sector also enhanced the scope for

In

FDI participation in India.

inflows

Alongside opening up of the FDI regime, steps were taken to allow foreign portfolio investments into the Indian stock market through the mechanism of foreign institutional investors. The objective was not only to facilitate nondebt creating foreign capital inflows but also to develop the stock market in India, lower the cost of capital for

the

have

Energy 4.55%

overall, of

FDI

increased

substantially

Telecomm.

7.35%

Manufacturing 20.86%

compared to the earlier regime in

IT & ITES 10.89%

which the scope for FDI was quite restricted. As a

Other Services 13.84%

result, the stock of FDI in India

Indian enterprises and indirectly improve

The

corporate governance structures. On

inflows have been

their part, large Indian companies have

characterised

Finance 18.80%

Construction& Real Eatate 16.69%

increased

international capital markets through

by a sharp change in their sectoral the securities market suggesting that composition. By 2008, while the share they do not directly contribute to the

commercial borrowings and depository

of manufacturing declined to almost half

receipts having underlying Indian equity.

of what it was in 2005, share of services

Thus the country adopted a two-pronged

increased the maximum with mining and

strategy: one to attract FDI which is

agriculture related activities receiving

associated

marginal

been allowed to raise capital directly from

with

multiple

attendant

amounts.

Within

services,

financing needs of the Indian businesses.

These could be termed as adjuncts to the

foreign portfolio investors. In 2009, the situation changed somewhat. While the manufacturing sector gained marginally, the Construction and Real Estate sector

benefits of technology, access to export

Construction and Real Estate sector

markets, skills, management techniques,

gained the most. The Financial services

etc. and two to encourage portfolio

sector too gained in importance. Major

capital flows which jumped from $1.66

setback was, however, experienced by the

bn at the end of 1990, to $17.5 bn by the

IT & ITES sector. While the Energy sector

just 2.55% of the total.

end of 2000 and further to a little above

gained

telecommunication

A development which provides a specific

$164 bn by the end of 2009.12 In the

services managed to retain its share.

context to the present analysis is the sharp

process, the FDI stock more than doubled

Construction & Real Estate and Finance

decline in the reported total FDI Equity

between 2000 and 2004 and more than

are thus the major gainers in this period.

inflows during the first eight months of

quadrupled between 2004 and 2009.

A further scrutiny of the data suggested

2010-11 – by 23.88% over the inflows of

The addition during 2004 and 2008 is quite spectacular as the stock increased by nearly $125 bn.ease the financing constraints of Indian enterprises. FDI is also preferred as it is seen to be more stable than short term portfolio capital flows which have the tendency to be

22 22

relatively,

that while only a few of the Indian investee companies in the former can be categorised as engineering & construction companies the rest are developers—a few of these were engaged in setting up IT Parks and SEZs. A similar examination of the inflows to the Financial sector

improved its position further to claim more than one-fifth of the inflows. IT & ITES slipped even further with a share of

the corresponding period of 2009-10. The corresponding fall in FDI Equity inflows was 27.43%. UNCTAD estimated the fall in India’s FDI inflows during the calendar year 2010 at 31%.59 .It can be seen that even this level of inflow was sustained by a sudden increase in the inflows through

SPOT LIGHT

Sl.No

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

India's FDI Equity Inflows*: Top 10 Home Countries Share(in percentage) Country

(1) Mauritius Singapore U.S.A. U.K. Cyprus Netherlands Japan Germany U.A.E. France Sub-Total Others Total FDI Inflows # Memorandum Items: Nature of Source Country (i)Premier Tax Havens (ii) Mid Range Tax Havens (iii) Minor & Notional Tax Havens Sub-total Tax Havens (i+ii+iii) (iv) Others Grand Total

ug 1991 to A Dec 2000 (2) 31.51 2.76 20.1 5.44 0.2 5.19 7.41 5.61 0.08 2.59 80.9 19.1 100

7.57 31.94 0.01 39.51 60.49 100

2001 to 2004

2005 to 2009

(3) 38.81 2.22 14.36 7.8 0.18 9.48 7.32 4.13 0.66 3.22 88.19 11.81 100

6.27 39.26 0.02 45.55 54.45 100

(4) 49.62 11.33 7.28 5.64 4.41 3.83 3.22 2.61 1.75 1.24 90.8 9.2 100

18.79 50.29 0.09 69.17 30.83 100

"Source : Based on the data provided in SIA Newsletter (various monthly and annual issues). Classification of home countries into Tax Havens is based on : (1) Tax : Justice Network, Closing the Floodgates : Collecting Tax to Pay for Development 2007 commissioned by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and (2) United States Government Accountability Office, Large US Corporations and Federal Contractors with subsidiaries in jurisdictions listed as Tax Havens on Financial Privacy Jurisdictions, December 2008. ( * ) Excluding NRI investments and those for which country details have not been reported. The ranking is based on their position in 2005-09."

the acquisition route. From a share of

investors which was responsible for the

flows and the need for recovery in FDI

12.29% in the FDI Equity inflows of

slow down. The major fall in FDI inflows

which is expected to have longer-term

2009-10, its share doubled to 24.75% in

has caused concern in policy making

commitments.

2010-11. Acquisition related inflows in

circles and has become a subject matter

value terms during the first eight months

of public comments.RBI in particular

of 2010-11 already exceeded that for

is now worried about the fall in FDI

the entire 2009-10. And it is the inflows

inflows in the context of higher level of

and things are made to

through the automatic route which

current account deficit and dominance

be used.

were affected substantially rather than

of volatile portfolio capital flows. The

those through the Foreign Investment

volatile FII inflows which accounted for a

Promotion Board/Secretariat for Industrial

substantial proportion of the equity flows

world is that people

Assistance

are used and things

route

have in turn contributed to the volatility

suggesting that more than the problems

(FIPB/SIA)

approval

in equity prices and the exchange rate.

in getting the approvals through, it is the

RBI underlined the “sustainability risks’

voluntary restraint on part of the foreign

posed by the composition of capital

People are to be loved

The confusion in this

are loved!.

23 23

SPOT LIGHT

FDI in Second Decade of Liberalization

Summary and Concluding Observations The new economic policy regime in India, which came into being in mid-1991, emphasised the

Sectot - Wise FDI(2000-2009)

role that foreign capital can play in furthering the

Computer Software&Hardware 10%

country’s development aspirations, in particular her

Construction 6%

industrialisation needs. In so doing, a two-pronged strategy was adopted: one to attract FDI which is seen, in addition to capital, as a bundle of assets like technology, skills, management techniques, access to foreign markets, etc; and two, to encourage

Service 21%

portfolio capital flows which help develop capital markets and ease the financing constraints of Indian enterprises. The FDI policy was liberalised gradually in terms of the eligible sectors, extent of

Others 50%

Telecommunication.

7% House & Real Estate 7%

foreign participation and the need for case-by-case approvals. The expectations from the two types of flows were quite different.

FDI policies need not have to be unidirectional. Just as they are liberalized, they could also be tightened if the situation so warrants. To quote UNCTAD report “…it would be foolish to have either uniformly restrictive or uniformly liberal policies towards TNCs( Trans National Companies) across different

FDI in First Decade of Liberalization

industries. This also means that the same industry may, and indeed should, become more or less open to FDI over time, depending on the changes in various internal and external conditions that affect

Transportation 9% Electrical Equipment 8% Service 7%

it.”

After almost twenty years of trying to attract FDI probably the time has come to review India’s FDI policy, not from the view point of maximizing the inflows but from the perspective of bridging the gaps and gaining from it. What is required is an open mind and commonality in approach to unravel

Telecommunication.

7%

the FDI phenomenon and to maximise the benefits from it.

Chemical 7%

Others 62%

24

References: India's FDI Inflows- Trends & Concepts by K S Chalapati Rao & Biswajit Dhar, ISID FDI in Indian Service Sector - Dr Arjun Singh Sirari & Narendra Singh Bohra

24

ECONOMIC REVIEW Contents 1. Macroeconomy

1.1 Advance Estimation of Gross Domestic Product 1.2 Performance of Exports.

1.3 Industrial Production in December, 2011 1.4 Direct Tax Collections

2. Corporate Sector

2.1 Revenue collection from corporate taxes 2.2 Railways Revenue Earnings

1. Macroeconomy 1.1 Advance Estimation of Gross Domestic Product for 2011-12 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at factor cost at constant (2004-05) prices in the year 2011-12 is likely to attain a level of Rs. 52,22,027 crore, as against the Quick Estimates of GDP for the year 2010-11 of Rs. 48,85,954 crore. The growth in GDP during 2011-12 is estimated at 6.9 per cent as compared to the growth rate of 8.4 per cent in 2010-11.

horticultural crops, production of fruits and vegetables is expected to increase by 3.5 per cent and 2.1 per cent, respectively, during the year 2011-12.

Industry

The manufacturing sector is likely to show a growth of 3.9 per cent in GDP during 2011-12 as against the growth of 7.6 per cent during 2010-11. According to the latest estimates available on the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), the index of manufacturing and electricity registered growth rates of 4.1 per cent and 9.5 per The growth rate of 6.9 per cent in cent, respectively during April-November, GDP during 2011-12 has been due to 2011-12, as compared to the growth the growth rates of over 8 per cent rates of 9.0 per cent and 4.5 per cent in the sectors of ‘electricity, gas and in these sectors during April-November, water supply’, 'trade, hotels, transport 2010-11. The mining sector is likely to and communication', and 'financing, show a negative growth of 2.2 per insurance, real estate and business cent in 2011-12 as against growth of 5 services'. There may be slow growth in per cent during 2010-11. The IIP mining the sectors of ‘agriculture, forestry and registered a decline of 2.5 per cent. The fishing’ (2.5%), manufacturing (3.9%) construction sector is likely to show a and construction (4.8%). The growth growth rate of 4.8 per cent during 2011in the mining and quarrying sector is 12 as against growth of 8 per cent in estimated to be negative (-2.2%). the previous year. The key indicators of construction sector, namely, cement Agriculture production and steel consumption The ‘agriculture, forestry and fishing’ have registered growth rates of 5.3 per sector is likely to show a growth 2.5 centand 4.4 per cent, respectively during per cent in its GDP during 2011-12, as April-December, 2011-12. against the previous year’s growth rate of 7.0 per cent. Production of food grains Services is expected to grow by 2.3 per cent as The estimated growth in GDP for compared to 12.2 per cent growth in the the trade, hotels, transport and previous agriculture year. The production communication sectors during 2011of cotton and sugarcane is also expected 12 is placed at 11.2 per cent as against to rise by 3.3 per cent and 1.6 per cent, growth of 11.1 percent in the previous respectively, in 2011-12. Among the year. This is mainly on account of

growth during April-November, 2011-12 of 15.5 per cent in passengers handled in civil aviation. Further, private corporate sector registered significant growth in trade, hotels and restaurant and business services during first half of 2011-12. There has been an increase of 28.0 per cent in stock of telephone connections as on December 2011. The sales of commercial vehicles witnessed an increase of 19.2 per cent per cent in April-December 2011. The sector, 'financing, insurance, real estate and business services', is expected to show a growth rate of 9.1 per cent during 2011-12, on account of 16.9 per cent growth in aggregate deposits and 15.9 per cent growth in bank credit during April- December 2011 (against the respective growth rates of 28.0 per cent and 19.2 per cent in the corresponding period of previous year).

The growth rate of 'community, social and personal services' during 201112 is estimated to be 5.9 per cent.

1.2 Export Growth in January 2012 India’s exports for the month of January 2012 have registered a growth of 10.1%, at US$ 25.4 billion. Imports for the January 2012 were US $ 40.1 billion with a growth of 20.3%. Balance of Trade stood at US $ (-) 14.7 billion during January 2012. April 2011-January 2012 the export stood at 242.8 billion US $ with a growth of 23.5%, Imports for the April 2011- January 2012 stood at 391.5 billion US $ with the growth of 29.4% and April 2011 to January 2012 stood at 25

ECONOMIC REVIEW (-) US $148.7 billion.

December 2010 are 4.0% in Basic goods, (-) 16.5% in Capital goods and (-) 2.8% During April 2011-January 2012, the in Intermediate goods (Statement III). The following sectors have done well viz., Consumer durables and Consumer nonengineering, (US $ 49.7 billion) which durables have recorded growth of 5.3% registered the growth of 21%, petroleum and 13.4% respectively, with the overall & oil products (48.9 US $ billion), 50.1%, growth in Consumer goods being 10.0%.

Gems & Jewellery registered the growth of 33% (US $ 37 billion), Drugs and 1.4 Tax Collection during Aprilpharmaceuticals 21.1% (US $ 10.20 January billion US $), leather 23.4% (US $ 3.8 Gross direct tax collection during Aprilbillion) Cotton yarn and fabric made-up January of the current fiscal was up by 14.7% (US $ 5.59 billion), electronics (7.3 14.57 percent at Rs.4, 25,274 crore as billion US$) 13.4%, Readymade garments against Rs.3, 71,188 crore in the same 21.5% ( US $ 10.9 billion), other basic period last fiscal. While gross collection chemicals grows by 29.6 % with the (US of corporate taxes was up 11.87 percent $ 8.8 billion).

(Rs.2, 85,837 crore against Rs.2, 55,514 As regards to imports during April crore last year), gross collection of 2011-January 2012, the growth personal income tax was up by 20.43 estimates on the following sectors are: percent (Rs.1, 38,730 crore against Rs.1, POL 38.8% (US $ 117.9 billion), Gold and 15,192 crore last year). Net direct tax silver 46.6% (US 50 billion), machinery collections stood at Rs.3, 46,959 crore, 25.8% (US $ 28.8 billion), electronics up from Rs.3, 17,500 crore in the same 22.9% (US $ 27.8 billion), Organic & period last fiscal, registering a growth of inorganic chemicals23.6% (US $ 15.8 9.28 percent. billion ) and coal 69% (US $ 14.1 billion).

Growth in wealth tax was 45.11 percent 1.3 Industrial Production and (Rs.682 crore against Rs.470 crore), use-based Index for December, while growth in securities transaction tax 2011 (STT) was -27.19 percent (Rs.4, 145 crore against Rs.5, 693 crore).

Index of Industrial Production (IIP) General Index for the month of December 2011 stands at 178.8, which is 1.8% higher 2. Corporate Sector as compared to the level in the month of December 2010. The cumulative growth 2.1 Revenue collection in the for the period April-December 2011-12 Current Fiscal stands at 3.6% over the corresponding The Central Board of Excise and Customs period of the previous year.

(CBEC) has been able to achieve nearly The Indices of Industrial Production for 80.74% of Budget Estimate up-to the the Mining, Manufacturing and Electricity month of January, 2012 in the current sectors for the month of December fiscal year. At the present rate of growth, 2011 stand at 136.2, 190.7 and 149.8 CBEC is optimistic to achieve the budget respectively, with the corresponding targets (Rs.3, 92,908 crore). growth rates of (-) 3.7%, 1.8% and 9.1% as compared to December 2010. The Please refer Table 5 for relevant figures cumulative growth The overall growth in indirect tax in the three sectors during April-December, revenue collections during the month 2011-12 over the corresponding period of January, 2012 is around 7.2%. of 2010-11 has been (-)2.7%, 3.9% and However the progressive growth during 9.4% respectively, which moved the April-January of current fiscal year has overall growth in the General Index to shown 15.1% over the corresponding period of last financial year. The growth in 3.6%.

Central Excise revenue has been negative As per Use-based classification, the for January, 2012. However, the overall growth rates in December 2011 over growth in Central Excise Revenue up 26

to January, 2012 is 6.8% showing a positive trend. The Service Tax revenue collection continues to be buoyant and has shown 34.2% growth during January, 2012. The Customs growth has been 2.5% during the month of January, 2012, though the overall growth up to January, 2012 has been 12.7%.

2.2 Railways Revenue Earnings up by 10.41 per cent during April 2011- January 2012 The total approximate earnings of Indian Railways on originating basis during 1st April 2011-31st January 2012 were Rs. 84155.40 crore compared to Rs. 76223.07 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 10.41 per cent.

The total goods earnings have gone up from Rs. 50916.21 crore during 1st April 2010-31st January 2011 to Rs. 56247.30 crore during 1st April 2011 – 31st January 2012, registering an increase of 10.47 per cent.

The total passenger revenue earnings during first ten months of the financial year 2011-12 were Rs. 23345.48 crore compared to Rs. 21336.88 crore during the same period last year, registeringan increase of 9.41 per cent.

The revenue earnings from other coaching amounted to Rs. 2353.55 crore during April 2011- January 2012 compared to Rs. 2093.62 crore during the same period last year, an increase of 12.42 per cent.

The total approximate numbers of passengers booked during April 2011-January 2012 were 6911.69 million compared to 6577.15 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 5.09 per cent. In the suburban and non-suburban sectors, the numbers of passengers booked during April 2011January 2012 were 3651.87 million and 3259.82 million compared to 3524.86 million and 3052.29 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 3.60 per cent and 6.80 per cent respectively.

Municipalika 2012 - 23rd to 25th January 2012

K Saraswathi, Secretary General, MCCI, making a presentation.

A view of MCCI's stall

MCCI & MMA Video Discussion – 25th January 2012

S K Raja, Trainer and Facilitator, addressing.

FFT on “Nuclear Power – To be or Not to be” – 28th January 2012

T T Srinivasaraghavan, President, MCCI, delivering the welcome address. Seated l to r: K Balu, Nityanand Jayaraman and N S Venkataraman.

A view of the audience

Seminar on Exim Trade Facilitation – 31st January 2012

R Muthuraj, JDGFT, making a presentation.

Anil Bamba, Zonal DGFT addressing.

Seated l to r: K Saraswathi, J Krishnan and R. Muthuraj.

27

28