Dec - Jan 2020 by exhibition showcase

Vol. 1 | Issue 3 | Dec - Jan 2020

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Bi-Monthly Supplement Showcasing The Work Of Trade, Professional Associations & PSU’s

13TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF IEIA HELD SUCCESSFULLY

he 13th edition of the Annual General Meeting of the Indian Exhibition Industry Association (IEIA) was held on December, 16, 2019 at the Mirador Hotel, Mumbai. The event took off with the welcome address by Mr. Ravinder Sethi, Vice President (2017-19) who presided over the AGM and initiated the proceedings in the absence of Mr. KV Nagendra Prasad, the outgoing President of IEIA. Mr. Sethi also presented the annual report on activities conducted by IEIA during the year gone by. In his report, he stated that the entire Executive Committee had worked with a lot of dedication under the

leadership of Mr. KV Nagendra Prasad. Mr. Sudeep Sarcar, Honorary Treasurer, presented the Financial Report of the association for FY 2018-19. In his report, he stated the association had made good prot vis-à-vis various initiatives conducted during the year. The year witnessed increase in revenues from membership enrolments and sponsorships from the events conducted by IEIA. A special felicitation of Mr. Rakesh Kumar, Director General, EPCH and Chairman, India Expo Mart was also done by the Executive Committee members during the AGM for his long standing contribution towards IEIA being one of the founder

members and Immediate Past President for 2 consecutive terms. The day was also marked by elections for the Executive Committee positions, for electing the ofce bearers for the term 2019-2021 and the results of the elections were declared immediately thereafter. Mr. S. Balasubramanian, COO & Executive Director, IMTMA was elected as the President, while Mr. Sudeep Sarcar, CEO, India Expo Mart was elected as Vice President; Mr. Bhupinder Singh, CEO, Messe Muenchen India as Honorary Secretary; Mr. Gaurav Juneja, Director, MEX Exhibitions as Honorary Treasurer for the term 2019-2021. Other members of the EC included Ex Ofcio Past President Mr. K.V. Nagendra Prasad, COO HITEX, and Executive Committee Members; Mr.Ravinder Sethi, MD, RE Rogers; Ms. Sonia Prashar, CMD, NuernbergMesse India; Mr. Yogesh Mudras, MD, Informa Markets India; Mr. Dharampal Singh, Executive Director, Namdhari Events & Promotions and Mr. Sooraj Dhawan, Director, Falcon Exhibitions. Mr. Ravinder Sethi was also bestowed a special designation as International Ambassador of IEIA by the new Executive Committee.

BALASUBRAMANIAN ELECTED IEIA PRESIDENT

Balasubramanian Pillai, Executive Director & COO, Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers' Association (IMTMA) and Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC) was elected as the President of Indian Exhibition Industry Association (IEIA) at the 13th Annual General Meeting of IEIA held in th Mumbai on 16 December 2019. Balasubramanian has been active in IEIA for many years now, supporting its mission and driving developments. He has been serving as an Executive Committee member since 2015. Expressing delight on his new role Balasubramanian said, “I thank IEIA and IMTMA for placing their trust in me and giving

me this opportunity to take up the mantle. I am aware that I have a large shoe to t in to but I see this possible with members support. We will work together as a team and scale greater heights in developing the Indian exhibition industry.” Balasubramanian has been associated with IMTMA since 2007, heading the trade fairs division which organizes IMTEX and regional machine toolshows across various cities in the country, besides being the COO of BIEC, India's leading green exhibition facility. Balasubramanian comes with more than two decades of rich experience in exhibition industry. Prior to joining IMTMA he was associated with Informa group, INTECH Trade Fairs & Wisitex Foundation.

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INDIAN MACHINE TOOL MANUFACTURERS' ASSOCIATION TO HOLD ITS PREMIER 'IMTEX FORMING EXPO 2020' IN BENGALURU FROM JANUARY 23 TO 28

he 6th edition IMTEX Forming exhibition will be held at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC) and this time is spread over 33,000 square metres with more than 500 exhibitors from over 22 countries including India,” said Indradev Babu, IMTMA President. IMTEX Forming Expo aims to bring diverse groups and stakeholders on a common platform for knowledge sharing and transacting business. Technologies used in metal forming, such as high speed laser cutting machine, sheet metal working, welding and joining, presses, metrology, and CAD/CAM, essential for Indian manufacturing are to be exhibited 'live' enabling business visitors to make informed decisions. Babu said, “Technology enthusiasts will have a lot to unearth especially in additive manufacturing which is being showcased at IMTEX Forming besides Industry 4.0 which is highly relevant for the manufacturing industry. ”Sharing his views on IMTEX Forming, V Anbu, Director General & CEO, IMTMA, said, “IMTEX Forming 2020, now counted as Asia's leading exhibition, is highly relevant given the prevailing tough market conditions. The exhibition creates a welcoming environment for visitors. Industrialists feel privileged to conduct transactions at the show.” User industries to benet The technologies that will be displayed at

the IMTEX Forming 2020 are to help user industry sectors such as aerospace, defence, railways, power, medical equipment, white and brown goods, oil and gas equipment, shipbuilding, and many more. Trade delegations from leading industries, public sector undertakings, national and international associations will be visiting the show. Coinciding with IMTEX Forming 2020 & Tooltech 2020, IMTMA will also organise an International Seminar on Forming Technology (for discussing the trends in metal forming) on January 22. History of IMTMA

Formed in 1946, the Indian Machine Tool industry IMTMA was started when around 20 machine tool manufacturers joined hands. Over a period of time, the association has grown in size and strength and has emerged as the voice of the machine tool industry. Started in the Godrej Campus in Vikhroli, Mumbai, the Association later shifted its ofce to New Delhi and then moved to its own premises within the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre in Bengaluru.In 1969, IMTMA hosted the agship event 'IMTEX'

– a leading B2B Machine tool exhibition in South and South East Asia, which is now hosted at the BIEC. The exhibition has grown in size and today is the largest machine tool exhibition in South and South East Asia. IMTMA also conducts short term 'Seminars & Workshops,' organises 'Technology Mission' to international Trade fairs for CEOs and voices the 'demands of the industry' to the government.The Association also conducts training programs throughout the year, with skill development as its motto. Through various long term and short term training programs the Association bridges the gap between the academics and the industry requirement and upskill the working professionals for the benet of the machine tool industry. IMTMA follows very strict Code of Conduct and has a Vigil Mechanism Policy in place as per to the government policies and set itself high standards, concerning both IMTMA has played a leading role in the development of the machine tool industry, which is the backbone for industrial growth in India. This national cause has been the guiding force behind IMTMA and its membership. Recognized as the sole voice of the Indian machine tool industry, IMTMA with close to 500 members represents 90% of the organized machine tool and allied equipment manufacturers.

Mix business and pleasure in Singapore, with over 60 unique complimentary experiences to enhance your business event. Qualiﬁed groups can choose to enjoy dining and social networking experiences, thematic tours, attraction visits and team-building activities.

Floating Donut in Marina Bay Enjoy an innovative dining experience in a ﬂoating “donut” at Marina Bay Singapore’s Southern Islands

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EDITOR NOTE

The previous months were filled with good amount of buzz in the Indian economy. With recent developments, and the Indian industries facing a slump, it is now evident that the industry and professional associa ons should rise up and anchor their members interests proac vely. And we know that associa ons have to organise meaningful events for their members, every now and then, which may be of varied sizes and formats. Here are some important points for the associa ons to keep in mind in 2020 before planning the next big event: EXPERIENTIAL EVENTS: Eighty-five percent of mee ng planners say their role requires more “experience crea on” compared to five years ago, according to the IACC Mee ng Room of the Future survey. And when asked how incoming genera ons are affec ng mee ng formats, 80% said there is more emphasis on overall experience. How can you improve a endee experience while con nuing to provide top-notch educa on? You don't have to remake your mee ng all at once. There are small things you can do to start eleva ng your mee ng. Consider more interac ve sessions that have a endees brainstorming and solving common problems. Think of how you can incorporate art and music into their experience—at registra on, in between sessions and in the expo hall. Elevate the tradi onal exhibit hall bingo card by gamifying your en re conference through the event app. “The overall trend of experien al mee ngs lends itself to dozens of smaller trends that are transforming a endee experience as well.” IMPROVED TECHNOLOGY: Chatbots. Robust event apps. Virtual reality. 5G. The more that mee ng planners can educate themselves on the latest technology—and what's coming down the road—the more it benefits a endees by offering an exhilara ng experience. Adding innova ve approaches to your mee ng can inspire greater a endee produc vity. A endees can use chatbots to get answers to their basic ques ons—like a next genera on FAQ page. Chatbots can sa sfy customers with faster responses, plus save mee ng staff me, providing an efficient experience for all involved. Event apps now allow a endees to build their own community by planning meetups, crea ng chat threads on specific topics and mapping out their personal agendas ahead of me. In turn, the apps allow organizers to connect to a endees with live polling and surveys. Virtual reality is being used not only at the event, but beforehand. Some ci es now provide virtual reality site inspec ons, allowing you to cut back on travel costs. Fi h-genera on cellular networks—or 5G—will be coming to most cellphones in a few years, making our current 4G speeds seem like 19th century technology. 5G isn't a reality for most people yet, but Ericcson predicts that 5G coverage will reach 45 percent of the world's popula on by the end of 2024. What does that mean for mee ng planners? According to Social Tables, 5G's incredible speed means event managers and a endees won't have to worry about connec ng to WiFi. This not only eliminates headaches but opens the door to more venues and unique loca ons that don't have WiFi (or have weak connec ons). And the speed of 5G will lead to improved a endee produc vity and overall mee ng efficiency. Other trends a endees are embracing that you should consider are design trends—crea ng welcoming, cozy environments that look more like your living room or a swanky hotel lobby—as well as focusing on health and wellness throughout an event and offering ac vi es that mix business with leisure. As the mee ng industry con nues to thrive, a endees are looking for more crea ve, immersive experiences. Focus on how you can create a modern, innova ve a endee experience and see your engagement and a endance soar.

CONTENT Ahead 32

Moblie Event App: The Smarter Route To Attendee Engagement Association & PSU Buzz is a Bi-monthly supplement of Exhibition Showcase, whose registration number is DELENG / 2013 / 53372. Printed, Published & Owned by Raghav Khosla and Printed at Polykam Offset C-138, Naraina Industries Area Phase-1, New Delhi-110028, Published at 61, Suryakiran Society, Vikaspuri, New Delhi-110018 The publisher does not necessarily agree with the views expressed by contributors nor do they accept any responsibility for any errors of translation. Some news and stories have been picked from publically available sources. The publisher reserves the right to accept or reject any advertising or editorial material. Contact 011-28533196 or mail at connect@associationbuzz.in

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Kanpur Tanneries' Shutdown Brings Down Finished Leather Exports By 29%

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Perspective

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Focus On PSU’s

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COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY MINISTER MEETS EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCILS AND BOARDS

nion Minister for Commerce and Industry & Railways, Piyush Goyal met with all Export Promotion Councils (EPCs), Federation of Indian Export Organisation (FIEO) and Commodity Boards under the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry. In a marathon ve-hour meeting held in New Delhi, Piyush Goyal reviewed and sought inputs from EPCs for the Foreign Trade Policy and got their views on steps that may be taken to boost India's exports. Pre-budget inputs from EPCs was also taken so that they may be sent to the Finance Ministry. Thirty-seven EPCs, FIEO and three Commodity Boards of the Department of Commerce attended the meeting and took this opportunity to discuss with Commerce and Industry Minister each and every issue that the Councils are facing while exporting merchandise and services and also give their feedback on the various initiatives that are being taken by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to ease lending and credit availability to exporters. The EPCs also gave their views on India's FTAs/ PTAs with other countries especially ASEAN. The problem of exporters identied as “risky exporters” by CBIC was taken up and Commerce and Industry Minister directed that a nodal ofcer be appointed in the ofce of Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) and he urged the Councils to send a list of those identied as risky exporters to the nodal ofcer in DGFT so that this issue may be taken up with the Finance Ministry. Councils were directed to send this list by

31 December 2019 to Additional DGFT, Vijay Kumar. Commerce and Industry Minister further suggested that rationalization of EPCs must be taken up in order to avoid duplication of work and suggested that the big exporters may continue to be part of FIEO and smaller Councils may merge with bigger EPCs that deal with products of similar nature. Commerce and Industry Minister urged the EPCs to study the non-tariff barriers (NTB) being faced by them while exporting to other countries so that a study may be done to look at these NTBs and take up this issue by laterally with the countries especially with whom India has FTAs/ PTAs. The Minister urged exporters to make use of the NIRVIK (Niryat Rin Vikas Yojana) Scheme that will soon be approved by Cabinet so that exporters are able to access easy lending and enhanced loan availability that will cover 90% of the principle interest and will also include both pre and post shipment credit. Director General and CEO of FIEO, Dr. Ajay Sahai suggested that the New Foreign Trade Policy should study prole of our exports as well as global imports trends as India is largely exporting

textiles, leather, handicraft, carpets, marine and agro products. While these are important for employment their share in global exports is in decline. The top 5 products in global exports, accounting for over 50%, are electrical & electronic products, petroleum goods, machinery, automobile and plastic goods. However, their share in India's exports is less than 33%. India's global share in these 5 products, put together, is about 1%. Therefore, the New FTP should facilitate the export of these products suggested Dr. Sahai. The issue of India's low share in high technology exports was also discussed by FIEO. High technology exports accounts for 6.3% of our exports, whereas the same is 29% for China, 32% for South Korea, 34% for Vietnam, 39% for Singapore. (India USD 20 billion, Malaysia USD 90 billion, Singapore USD 155 billion, South Korea USD 192 billion, China USD 652 billion). The specic issues and problems being faced by certain EPCs like Telecom, Forest Produce and Shellac Export Promotion Council, Sports Goods EPC and CAPEXIL will be taken up with other line Ministries assured the Minister so that these issues and problems may be sorted out as soon as possible. At the end of the meeting, it was decided by the Minister, in concurrence with all EPCs and Boards, that another meeting will be held after the Budget in February 2020 to review the tasks achieved and those still pending, that were discussed in the meeting.

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PICTURES FROM THE

Indian Oil dominated the 39th edition of the Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB) interunit tennis tournament held in Delhi. Both players of Men's nal belonged to Indian Oil with Sumit Nagal overcoming defending champion Ramkumar Ramanathan to win the PSPB men's title.

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has successfully commissioned the rst Lignite based 500 MW thermal unit of the 2x500 MW Neyveli New Thermal Power Project in Tamil Nadu.

The US assassination of one of Iran’s most powerful generals has the oil industry bracing for something it has long feared and anticipated - direct military confrontation between the two adversaries. In the hours after President Donald Trump ordered the killing of Soleimani, who led Iran’s Quds force, crude oil surged, American workers began to withdraw from Iraqi elds and traders scrambled to position themselves for even higher prices.

In line with PM Narendra Modi clarion call of a $5 tn economy, #ASSOCHAM marked its centenary celebrations by providing a platform to policy makers & industry to pave a roadmap to achieve the vision.

Amitabh Kant, CEO, Niti Aayog was the chief guest at the 15th Annual Tourism Summit organised by CII. He reiterated that private sector will be the key driver of Tourism sector growth in India with government acting as a catalyst.

Mr. Deepak Jain, President, ACMA, had a special interactive session in an attempt to redene ACMA's role with Mr. Hemant Sikka, Chief Purchase Ofcer, Mahindra and Mahindra in New Delhi. ACMA adapted a four-pronged strategy acronymed RICE: Responsive / Responsible, Inclusive, Communicative and Engaging.

Coal India Limited organised a workshop on “Modern Exploration Technologies for Coal / Lignite Sector to expedite current pace of Exploration“. Shri. Anil Kumar Jain, IAS, Secretary, GoI, MoC inaugurated the workshop & said that its time to adopt new technologies for exploration.

Dr. Guruprasad Mohapatra, Secretary, DPIIT Chaired Empowered Committee Meeting on North East Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy (NEIIPP) & North East Industrial Development Scheme (NEIDS) in New Delhi. Under NEIIPP 2007 Scheme 10 proposals worth Rs. 35 Cr. were approved towards eligible Central Capital Investment Incentive in the meeting.

Canada's Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade, Mary Ng met with India's Minister of External Affairs @DrSJainshankarin #Ottawa, and discussed trade and investment opportunities between Canada and India.

Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited conferred with the North India Best Employer Brand Award 2019 at the Employer Branding Awards 2019.

ACMA NR Chairman Mr. Deepak Chopra and Chief Guest Mr. A S Raju, Sr. Advisor, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd., presented the certicates at the Certication Ceremony for the 19th Batch of the Six Sigma Black Belt Certication Programme.

Mr Anshuman Singhania, Vice Chairman, ATMA, addressed the Rubber and Tyre Fraternity at Rubber Skill Development Council (RSDC) Annual Awards 2019 Ceremony, held at the Oberoi, New Delhi on 21st Nov 2019.

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WORLD OF SOCIAL MEDIA

ELCINA Western Region organised a Seminar on Demand Growth and Policy Changes IN ESDM Industry on 20th December at Hilton International Airport, Mumbai.

Shri. R.K. Sinha, Joint Secretary, GoI, MoC, visited Gevra project of South Eastern Coalelds Ltd. & reviewed its operations. He was accompanied by Shri. A. P. Panda, CMD, SECL.

Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Hon'ble Minister for MSME interacted with Ambassador of Belgium to India, H.E. Mr. Francois Delhay, at New Delhi to discuss the areas of cooperation in the MSME Sector between India and Belgium.

Mr. RK Chugh, President-IEEMA, Mr. Sunil Misra, DG-IEEMA and Mr. Ajay Mahajan, Head Trade Fairs-IEEMA invited Hon'ble Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh for ElECRAMA 2020. ELECRAMA is a platform to connect the world with Indian industry in respect of technology, new trends and innovation for future energy transition.

Defending the passage of Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in Parliament, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked the Opposition parties: ‘why don’t you speak against Pakistan’s atrocities against minorities’. “India cannot leave the Hindus, Christians and Sikhs eeing Pakistan to ‘their fate’. It is the country’s responsibility to protect them and it is our efforts especially to protect dalits and tribals in Pakistan,” PM said.

“Keeping in view the size and reach of our organization, it is essential that we remain alert and updated on our security systems at all times. Safety is a continuous effort.” – Mr. Sanjiv Singh, Chairman IOCL during Security Week 2019 celebrations at their Corporate Ofce, New Delhi.

LC Goyal, CMD, ITPO has said that the redevelopment of Pragati Maidan will be ready by April 2021. The 4000 crore mega project will also see a 5 Star hotel coming up. He also mentioned that some new halls have already opened and events can be booked there.

MAIT successfully organized a Round Table on “Making India a Global Services Hub for Electronics Repair” with key stakeholders including MeitY, MoEF&CC, DGFT-Ministry of Commerce as well as industry stakeholders.

Air-Conditioning Heating and Refrigeration Institute's (AHRI) Board of Directors met with vice president of United States Mr. Mike Pence where they discussed their support for the USMCA and the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM). AHRI is a North American trade association.

Mr Rajan Wadhera, President SIAM along with Mr Sanjeev Handa, Co-Chair SIAM Trade Fair Group, Mr Rajesh Menon, DG, SIAM and Mr Sugato Sen, Dy. Dir. General, SIAM addressed the mediafraternity for Auto Expo 2020. Auto Expo 2020 will take place at India Expo Mart, Greater Noida.

Chairman SRTEPC and Stakeholders held a Meeting with Joint Secretary Shri Sanjay Saran regarding National Texile Policy on MMF. The Synthetic & Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC), set up in 1954, is one of the oldest Export Promotion Councils in India.

Mr Sushil Kumar Modi, Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, and designated Convenor of Group of Ministers on IGST, said that there is no possibility of any change in Goods and Services Tax (GST) rates till the revenue stabilises.

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News From Across The World Canada The industry association for Canada's mining sector was the most active lobbying body on the Hill in November, according to new statistics from the Ofce of the Commissioner of Lobbying. In its in-house ling with the commissioner's ofce, MAC lists a wide swath of lobbying priorities, including on transportation regulations related to the “shipping of mineral products,” environmental assessment rules, tax policy for the mineral industry and on the Canadian Environmental Protection Act “as it applies to substances produced by or used by the mineral industry.”

California A US federal judge has rejected a petition from the country's National Electrical Manufacturers Association, and the American Lighting Association, clearing the way for the rollout of energy-efcient light bulbs across. The move contradicts US President Donald Trump's scrapping of a rule by the country's Department of Energy (DOE) that would have phased out the use of less-efcient incandescent bulbs.

South Africa Chile According to Chile's Fruit Exporters Association, 88 percent of the harvest in the 2018-2019 season was shipped to China, and the gure in the 2019-2020 season is expected to match or surpass that record. Also, nearly 90 percent of cherries end up on dining room tables across China, mainly during the Chinese holiday season. The main goal of Chilean Industries is to export the fruit to the Chinese market, which has seen quite interesting growth in recent years. The Fushun Fruit Spa expects to export 1,000 tons of cherries by the end of the 2019-20 season. The season's rst cargo ight carrying more than 100 tons of cherries arrived in the city of Ningbo, in east China's Zhejiang Province, in late November after a 30-hour travel from Chile.

The Ghana Association of Writers (GAW) is poised to strengthening its regional branches and putting measures in place to achieve that goal. The association had a meeting with its regional executives to deliberate on how to strengthen the regional branches. The meeting focused on ways to strengthen the branches through proper administrative structures and resources. There is a need for regional executives to support the National Association in the bid to have stronger branches by working diligently to create the necessary structures to facilitate the effort.

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Azerbaijan The Pacic Asia Travel Association has welcomed the state tourism agency of the Azerbaijan as its newest government member. The agency's mission is to demonstrate a strategy focused approach to create an environment fostering the development of tourism in Azerbaijan through holistic institutional framework supported by research, bringing together all involved stakeholders (strategic partnerships), innovation and unique tourism experiences. Its vision is to develop Azerbaijan as a world class tourist destination, converting it into the most attractive and successful tourism destination in the region.

China According to the China Associa on of Automobile Manufacturers (CAMM), car sales in China slipped 5.4 per cent in November, marking a th 17 consecu ve monthly decline. Manufactures like Ford Motors, GM, BMW and Honda are expected to expand manufacturing in China as Beijing allows foreign ﬁrms to have wholly-owned local ventures that will increasingly serve the global market.

Malaysia The Federation of Chinese Associations Malaysia (Huazong) has asked the government to quickly review the guidelines for the teaching of Jawi, ahead of its inclusion in the syllabus for Year 4 pupils in vernacular schools next year. It said the education ministry had yet to commit to requests from Chinese and Indian organisations and education bodies for the school board to be included in the decision-making body for the teaching of Jawi calligraphy at Chinese and Tamil primary schools.

Australia The Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia (MFAA) has warned the broking industry to prepare for continued intense regulatory scrutiny in 2020 and the years ahead, and the unintended consequences that may ow on from legislation and regulation. The most pressing risk for the broking industry is the potential for unintended consequences resulting from the upcoming best interest duty. In late November, the updated best interests duty bill for mortgage brokers – the Financial Sector Reform (Hayne Royal Commission Response-Protecting Consumers (2019 Measures) Bill 2019 – was tabled in Parliament, outlining the role brokers need to take when helping a borrower from 1 July 2020.

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TAMIL NADU TO WOO ELECTRONICS HARDWARE MANUFACTURES & HOLD DISCUSSIONS WITH INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS state, it is now contemplating creation of an Electronics Manufacturing Promotion Fund (EMPF) with Rs 5 crore annual limit.

amil Nadu government is putting forward best efforts to attract electronics hardware manufacturers to invest in the state. The southern state has the second-largest number of electronics manufacturers in the country, after Uttar Pradesh. While the government had already announced that it will soon release a policy on electronics hardware manufacturing, which will enable companies to do business with ease in the

HOTEL MENUS FOR VISUALLY IMPAIRED

ll the members which are part of the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI) have been instructed to implement the order which states that they should print menus in Braille for the benet of visually impaired. Many PwD people who visit hotels maybe alone and Braille would be very helpful. As per the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 access to public services is mandatory. The Ministry of Tourism will put together the relevant provisions /requirements/ measurement and designs for various facilities in the hotels and restaurants irrespective of their category in a smaller booklet by extracting the same from the Harmonised Guidelines. “This is a very good order, provided that it is implemented with full will by the hotel owners, PwD people face such problems on daily basis, public buildings offering public services should be fully accessible without any hurdle to everyone.” said Ramesh Kumar, visually disabled student. The order also mentions that the smaller booklet needs to be uploaded in the website of Tourism Ministry, FHRAI, and also each restaurant and hotel, and that appropriate instructions need to be issued to every restaurant and hotel owner to ensure compliance with the provisions of the act.

According to ofcials from the department of industries, the EMPF will be utilised in showcasing Tamil Nadu as the best investment destination for electronics hardware manufacturers. The state government aims to organise exhibitions and trade shows with the fund to promote electronics manufacturing in the state. The department will also participate in trade shows abroad and put up special pavilions on Tamil Nadu to market the benets it provide to such industries. “The government is working on the Electronic Hardware Manufacturing Policy, which will encourage players to

pursue production of electronics hardware in the state. We also have plans to interact with major international electronics associations such as Korea Electronics Association, Japan Electronics and Information Technology, China Electronic Chamber of Commerce and Singapore Electronics so that we can hold events with them promoting the state as an investment destination,” said an ofcial from the department. The state will also seek advice of industry experts as what best needs to be done to project it as a perfect manufacturing hub for electronics hardware products. According to sources, the state will soon hold discussions with associations like Electronics Industries Association of India, India Electronics and Semi-Conductors Association, India Cellular and Electronics Association, among others.

IBA TO ADDRESS ELECTRONICS MARKET TO ISSUES OF TOUCH $400 BILLION: CONSORTIUM LENDING JITENDRA CHADDAH

r. Rajnish Kumar, Chairman, SBI, said “Industry faces problem, particularly in consortium and multiple lending and if even a small no objection certicate is required, the borrower keeps going around the banks, so it may take six months or one year or even oneand-a-half years to get the funding”. The Indian Banks' Association said that they will come out with a framework around April to address issues related with consortium lending to industry and nding solution for alternate sources of borrowing for them. "And the NOC may come or may not come and all your (industry borrower) plan goes for a toss. So there has to be a system in the decision making where these decisions can be taken on time," he said while speaking at the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry Annual Convention in New Delhi. He said the working will comprise six members with representatives from public, private and foreign banks. "IBA has taken members from foreign, private and public sector banks so that there is a commonality of approach. It is not that public sector banks are going in one direction, foreign banks in other and private sector banks are going in another direction," Kumar said.

r. Jitendra Chaddah, chairman, Indian Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA) said "The consumption of electronics in India is growing at a rapid pace. The market is estimated to touch $400 billion in the next four to ve years. The Electropreneur Parkin Bhubaneswar can play a very critical role in meeting the demand-supply gap”. The Electropreneur Parkin Bhubaneswar is being set up by the Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) in collaboration with the department of electronics & IT, Odisha government is the rst ESDM incubation centre in eastern India. It is also the second Electropreneur park in the country. The partnership will be in terms of business and technology mentorship to entrepreneurs and start ups of the park for knowledge sharing and network sharing activities in conjunction with STPI. Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) is a society established in 1991 by the Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology with the objective of encouraging, promoting and boosting the export of software from India. STPI maintains internal engineering resources to provide consulting, training and implementation services.

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EXPORTS HITTING MANUFACTURING IMPACTED GDP ADVERSELY: EEPC INDIA

lowdown in exports appears to have a major impact on performance of the manufacturing sector, as the GDP growth of 4.5 per cent for the second quarter of FY 20 hits a multi-year low, said EEPC India Chairman Ravi Sehgal. "Exports have been either contracting or showing a meagre expansion for quite some time, even as we face global headwinds, aggravated by increasing cost of raw material and high interest rates. In turn, the manufacturing got impacted adversely, leaving the GDP numbers in a discouraging phase," Sehgal said. He urged the government and the RBI to

take further steps, including making steel available at competitive prices, to give a competitive strength to exports. India's gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the three months ending September 2019 (Q2FY20) fell to 4.5%, down from 5.0% in the previous three months and 7% for the corresponding period of 2018 as consumer spending and private investment weakened further and a global slowdown impacted exports growth. This was the lowest reading since 4.3% recorded for the January-March quarter of 2013. With this reading, India's economic growth fell for the sixth straight quarter.

NIRANJAN HIRANANDANI TAKES OVER AS NEW ASSOCHAM PRESIDENT

iranjan Hiranandani, Co-Founder and Managing Director of the respected and well-diversied Hiranandani Group has taken over as the new President of the Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), the country's apex organisation of industry and trade. Presiding over as the ASSOCHAM Centenary President, Niranjan Hiranandani said, “New India is a centre of the vortex to achieve an ambitious mission of $5 trillion economies. We are fully aligned with the goal set to achieve

in tandem with double-digit GDP growth rate inclusive of employment generation. The Chamber shall 'Walk–the–Talk' its centenary vision of 'Looking Beyond 100' with emphasized focus on activating key sectors like MSME, Housing, Roads and Urban Infrastructure, Tourism, Skilling and Education at its core.” “ASSSOCHAM will be always at the forefront when it comes to serving the nation as a podium to voice their opinions and play their part in ushering new dawn of Rising India,” he added.

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DUTA CALLS FOR INDEFINITE STRIKE OVER GUEST TEACHERS' APPOINTMENT

The Delhi University Teachers' Association (DUTA) called for an indenite strike in December in support of their demand that a circular mandating appointment of guest teachers be withdrawn. The strike might affect the ongoing examinations in the varsity as the DUTA has urged all teachers to stay away from exam duties. The decision to go on strike has been made on the basis of August 28 DU circular which mandates that only appointment of guest teachers can be made against substantive vacancies arising for the rst time in the current academic session. The DUTA also wrote letters to the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the HRD Ministry on Tuesday to intervene immediately to end the crisis which has emerged due to a letter issued by the university. The DUTA criticised the vicechancellor for not taking any concrete steps to resolve the crisis in the university. It urged the teachers to stay away from invigilation, evaluation and any other ofcial duties. "Superintendents and Deputy Superintendents are urged to tender resignations and relieve themselves from all duties related to the conduct of the examinations. Similarly, CEC coordinators & incharges should tender their resignations," the DUTA said.Colleagues are, however, requested not to stop students from taking exams, it added. The DUTA said it will organise a massive protest and gherao the vice-chancellor. It also urged staff associations to ensure that teachers stay away from invigilation duties. “DUTA teams along with staff associations will ensure evaluation Boycott. DUTA teams will also meet principals of colleges who have kept renewal of ad-hoc teachers' tenure in abeyance and have not released salaries," it said.

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OFFERING QUALITY SERVICES DOESN'T STOP AT CREATING APPS AND WEBSITES URBANCLAP CO-FOUNDER

r. Abhiraj Singh Bhal, Cofounder, Urban Clap, said that offering quality services to the customers is not just about building an app and a website. A start-up entering the unorganized sector should be willing to get its hands dirty, he added. Speaking at the 92nd Annual Convention of FICCI on the theme 'India: Roadmap to a $5 Trillion Economy', Mr Bhal shared his experience of creating UrbanClap - an app and website through which consumers can order trusted and highquality home services - and taking it forward. Mr. Bhal said he accidentally stumbled upon this large unorganized sector. "UrbanClap is a platform for these blue-collar professionals to get training,

legitimacy, right tools and technology and where they for the rst time get to keep 80% of what the customer pays. So for the rst time we see these professionals making Rs 40,00050,000-60,000 per month, they have decency of life and are part of India's middle class, and there is an incentive for them to behave in a professional manner," he said. "We have close to 100 training centers in 15 cities. We have an internal log of 200 full-time trainers and in a given month we train 4,000-5,000 professionals, and many a time, absolute freshers with no experience," he said. Mr. Bhal also talked about the struggles of raising capital especially in an unproven sector with no global playbook like the one in which UrbanClap operates. Ms. Meena Ganesh, MD/CEO, and Co-founder, Portea Medical, said that the past 5-7 years have seen a huge number of technology-led start-ups in the healthcare space. "It is possible for start-ups that are innovative to nd a space where they can make a difference," she said. Mr Naveen Kukreja, Co-founder and CEO, Paisabazaar.com, said, "There is a huge

opportunity that start-ups are seeing in all categories of nancial products." He said that the nancial sector is unique because it not only contributes directly to the economy and the GDP but is a big enabler, contributing indirectly to the growth of other sectors as well. Dr Saurabh Srivastava, Former Chairman, NASSCOM, said, "Digital revolution is going to change the way things happen. The biggest revolution that has happened is what technology has done to the world of start-ups." He added that start-ups are beginning to engage in the real challenges of India. Mr Sandip Somany, President, FICCI, said, "With approximately 30,000 start-ups and 30-plus unicorns, India is today home to the third-largest start-up ecosystem globally. Projections indicate that by 2025, India may well have 1,00,000 start-ups, employing over 3.25 million people, and producing 100-plus unicorns, with a total market value worth over $500 billion.""Start-ups will contribute considerably to the vision of achieving a $5 trillion economy by providing innovative avenues for investment," Mr Somany added. Dr Sangita Reddy, President-elect, FICCI, said, "It is the entrepreneurial spirit of the Indian businessman and businesswoman which is the single most powerful factor to drive this economy forward."

ANDHRA PRADESH STANDS SECOND IN COMMERCE AND INDUSTRIES, FIFTH IN OVERALL RANKING

ndhra Pradesh secured the second rank in Commerce and Industries in the Good Governance Index (GGI) released by the Ministry of Personnel, Government of India. It was preceded by Jharkhand and followed by Telangana in the category. AP stood fth in the overall rankings with a score of 5.05, while Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Chhattisgarh secured the rst four places among the big States.

Neighbouring Telangana stood 11th in the list. Expressing delight over the State getting the second place in Commerce and Industries in the GGI, Minister for Industries and Commerce Mekapati Goutham Reddy tweeted “AP stands out at “Good Governance Index” practices in Commerce & Industries areas - as per the ranking of States released by Ministry of Personnel - GoI. Our performance speaks - a strong foundation for a better future!” GGI, a uniform tool to assess the status of governance and impact of various interventions taken by the States and Union Territories was initiated by the Centre to provide quantiable data to compare the state of governance and enable the States and UTs to formulate and implement suitable strategies for

improving governance by switching to result-oriented approaches and administration. A total of 10 sectors were taken into consideration for rankings based on different sets of indicators (50). The States were divided into two groups - big States and NE and Hill States with UTs being another group. Ranking in Commerce and Industries was determined based on three indicators Ease of Doing Business (EoDB), Growth Rate of Industries and MSMEs with a weightage of 0.9, 0.05 and 0.05 respectively. In Commerce and Industries ranking, AP scored 0.94. Though the score of Jharkhand was also the same, it was ranked rst for unspecied reasons. Telangana with a score of 0.93 was ranked third, followed by Chhattisgarh, Gujarat and Haryana.

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DR. SANGITA REDDY TAKES OVER AS PRESIDENT FICCI

r Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Group, has taken over as FICCI President from Mr Sandip Somany, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, HSIL Limited, at the apex chamber's 92nd Annual Convention in New Delhi. Mr Uday Shankar, President, The Walt Disney Company APAC & Chairman, Star & Disney India, has been elevated as Senior Vice President of FICCI, and Mr Sanjiv Mehta, Chairman and Managing Director of HUL, has joined FICCI leadership as Vice President. Dr Sangita Reddy, a Global Healthcare Inuencer, Healthcare Technocrat, a keen watcher of Indian and global economy with deep insights on the new-age businesses, and above all a Social Entrepreneur and Humanitarian, will be FICCI President for 2019-20. In her

message as the incoming President of FICCI, Dr Sangita Reddy said, "I look forward to an incredible year for FICCI and also for the country. At our just nished 92nd AGM, we have laid out a roadmap towards a $5 Trillion economy for India. While we discussed and deliberated on various issues, the most important takeaway is that everybody is moving ahead with a sense of commitment on how to make it happen." “That is what FICCI stands for - to be a denitive voice for the industry to assist in the growth and development of the country - and to do so in a manner that emboldens India and brings stature globally. I personally believe that service to FICCI is a service to the country. We look forward to greater inputs from the government, greater involvement from the industry and partnership with other

institutions, including other chambers and also our own, FLO," She added."We will work together, we will innovate and we will nd new ways. We will focus on science, innovation and entrepreneurship and bring in a new sense of energy, purpose and determination towards this tremendous goal of achieving $5 Trillion economy. We will make sure that every Indian is touched by this vision as we create a New India which is inclusive and prosperous," said Dr Reddy. Dr Sangita Reddy has been conferred with an Honorary Doctorate by Macquarie University Australia, in recognition of her untiring efforts and resolute commitment to bringing transformative changes in healthcare, development of Health IT and championing manifold initiatives both in India and abroad. She is an Honorary Consul of Brazil in Hyderabad, appointed by the Govt. of India. She was a member of The World Economic Forum digital committee and was also an elected Member of the Steering Committee on Health for the Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-2017) by the Planning Commission, Government of India. Dr. Sangita Reddy has also been nominated by the Government of India as a Member of the Technology Development Board, Department of Science and Technology. She was an Executive Member of National Association of Software & Services Cos (NASSCOM) and was on the Board for Development Institute, USA and GAVI.Org.

EPCH WELCOMES 6 NEW MEMBERS IN THE ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE

he 33rd Annual General Meeting of the Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts was held on December 14, in New Delhi. While addressing the meeting, Mr. Ravi K Passi, Chairman – EPCH informed that with the active support of the Council, exporting community performed very well with respect to exports from the country which was Rs 23,029.36 crores in 2017-18 and reached to the tune of Rs 26,590.25 in 2018-19 crores registering an impressive growth of 15.46% over the previous year. Mr. Passi further

informed about multifarious activities related to marketing, product and design development, skilling, compliance and other initiatives undertaken by EPCH during 2018-19. Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts also represented various issues pertaining to GST, MEIS benets and the range of other issues affecting handicrafts sector at the highest level including Ministry of Textiles, Ministry of Commerce & Industry and Ministry of Finance, he shared. With an objective to offer avenues for technological upgradation, skill development and marketing opportunities, EPCH set up Handicrafts Productivity Centre and Testing Laboratory at Jaipur, upgraded the Saharanpur Common Facility Centre with latest and modern technology machines, elaborated Passi. While speaking at the meeting, Mr. Rakesh Kumar, Director General – EPCH shared some interesting and notable facts about Council's PAN India reach and active participation of

the prominent exporters from various crafts pockets in development, promotion and growth of exports of Handicrafts.He further informed the House about the tremendous increase of participation in IHGF Delhi Fair (Autumn/Spring) as well as footfall of overseas buyers in IHGF Delhi Fair in recent IHGFs. Six new members of the Administration Committee Raj Kumar Malhotra of M/s Asian Handicrafts Pvt. Ltd., Gurgaon from Northern Region; Hansraj Baheti of M/s Thar Art Exports, Jodhpur; and Lekhraj Maheshwari of M/s Rajasthan Handloom & Handicrafts Industries, Jaipur from North West Region; Nabeel Ahmad of M/s Nawab Regency, Moradabd; Kamal Soni of M/s Vallabh Metal Inc., Moradabd; and Sharad Kumar Bansal of M/s Bansal Impex, Moradabad elected from Central Region were also welcomed in the team.

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COMPETITIVENESS, GLOBAL INTEGRATION MUST TO BECOME $5 TRILLION ECONOMY

minent CEOs of India Inc today highlighted the need for Indian manufacturing to become globally competitive and joining the global value chain as the key ingredients for making India a $5 trillion economy. Speaking at FICCI's 92nd Annual Convention on the theme 'India: Roadmap to a $5 Trillion Economy', Mr Anil Kumar Chaudhary, Chairman, Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) said, "If we have to reach the level of $5 trillion economy by the next ve years, we have to be globally competitive. "India also needs to increase its exports of steel and other manufactured items, Mr Chaudhary said at the CEOs panel discussion held on the second day of the annual convention moderated by Mr Raj Jain, CEO, Bennett Coleman & Co Ltd. Mr Sanjiv Puri, Chairman and Managing Director, ITC Ltd, said that while farming is directly a large employer with lots of jobs created in the post-harvest management, even the food processing segment has the largest employment to capital ratio. "We need to plug into the global value chains in value-added agricultural products," he added. Mr Pankaj R Patel, Chairman, Cadila Healthcare Ltd, said, "For any business to grow we require policy stability. Without policy stability it

becomes impossible for us to plan long term. And, we all know that manufacturing is not something we decide today and tomorrow the production will start."He further said that innovation has the most important role to play for any industry to survive. Mr Rajan Bharti Mittal, Vice Chairman, Bharti Enterprises, said that the government should focus on strengthening the digital backbone of the country. "Industry has been disrupted and when the industry gets disrupted the government needs to step in, especially if the country aspires to be an economic power and is aspiring to be a $5 trillion economy," he said. Mr Harsh Pati Singhania, Vice Chairman & Managing

Director, JK Paper Ltd, said that the country's manufacturing sector rst needs to become internally competitive as several factors are still holding it back including the multiplicity of regulations from different regulators. “As long as we have one new rule for every transgression, which seems to be happening now, it will be difcult to become globally competitive," he said. The captains of the industry present at the discussion also highlighted the need to support both the small and medium industries (SMEs) and the large industries. They said while the SMEs create large number of employments, the large industries bring in the latest technologies.

47 LAKH KG USED COOKING OIL COLLECTED SINCE AUG; 70% CONVERTED INTO BIO-DIESEL

early 47 lakh kilograms of used cooking oil has been collected from food business operators since August and about 70 per cent of the quantity has been converted into bio-diesel, according to an industry body. The Biodiesel Association (BDAI) conducted an interactive workshop at the National Street Food Festival being held at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium from December 25-29.

cooking oil. The total bio-diesel demand is 45 lakh tonnes per annum for 5 per cent blending.The workshop focused on green initiatives to collect and convert used cooking oil to bio-diesel.

The National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI), along with Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), is organising the festival. BDAI President Sandeep Chaturvedi said the collection of used cooking oil from food businesses started from August.

The RUCO initiative, which is currently running in eight states/UTs, has 11 enrolled bio-diesel manufacturers and four aggregators. "Total collection recorded till December 24 stood at 46,79,511 Kgs. Around 33,35,469 kgs of bio-diesel have been produced and balance stock of used cooking oil is 13,44,042 kgs," Chaturvedi told reporters.

FSSAI has set up a web portal RUCO (Repurpose Used Cooking Oil) for collection of edible oil. RUCO is a technology platform that gives 100 per cent traceable UCO-based bio-diesel to the oil marketing companies (OMCs).

He said there are about 30 plants for bio-diesel manufacturing. Chaturvedi said the OMCs are buying bio-diesel at Rs 51 per kg and then blending it with diesel. He said over 1 million tonnes of bio-diesel can be produced through used

Used cooking oil creates free radicals which attaches to our healthy cells and thus causes serious ailments like heart diseases, bad cholesterol, cancer, and irritable throat. The used cooking oil discharge can also pollute water bodies, freshwater resources and soil. One litre of used oil can contaminate 10,00,000 litres of fresh water. “Every used oil collection is recorded and veried with FSSAI registration number of the food business operator. The portal reects the collection quantity in each city in real time. The aggregated used cooking oil is supplied to the bio-diesel plant who convert it into bio-diesel and supply to the OMCs. All transactions are veried with the GST invoice and E-way Bills," Chaturvedi said.

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NSIC IN ASSOCIATION WITH SBC SETS UP INDIA-KOREA TECHNOLOGY EXCHANGE CENTRE

ational Small Industries Corporation (NSIC), in association with Small and Medium Business Corporation (SBC) of South Korea has set-up an India-Korea Technology Exchange Centre (IKTEC) at NSIC's Technical Service Centre at Okhla, New Delhi. NSIC has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with SBC (Now known as KOSME), South Korea for enhancing cooperation between Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) of both the countries. Under IKTEC platform, MSMEs from both India and Korea will be assisted to identify and exchange latest technologies, Machineries, Product development, Technology applications for productive development and share management expertise etc. amongst themselves.The objective is to facilitate

technology exchange between MSMEs from both the nation, thus, enhancing their competitiveness in the global market by synergising their competitive advantages.

globally competitive, Identify and initiate various cooperative MSME projects complimenting each other's strengths in MSME sector.

The IKTEC will focus on Business Matching to encourage Technology transfers, Joint ventures and sustainable alliances between Indian and Korean SMEs, Create Technology Data Bank of Potential technology seekers and technology providers from each country, Conduct Technology Demand Analysis of each country and identify promising sectors for technology exchange, Conduct a diagnosis of technology level problems, enterprise's capability of absorbing advanced technology and commercial feasibility on demand on chargeable basis, Encourage production of high quality products which are

NSIC has also launched a portal (www.iktec.in) on this occasion to assist MSMEs from both sides to upload their requirements of technology offer or technology request from each other's country.In order to encourage utilisation of services of India Korea Technology Centre by MSMEs and initiate linkages with Korean counterparts, NSIC has invited interest of Indian companies in the attached format.''Focus industries are Auto components, solar energy, light engineering, food processing, electrical & electronics, mechatronics, Textiles etc. However, enterprises from other elds are also invited,'' NSIC said.

316 TRANSPORTERS, 23000+ CHEMICAL TRANSPORTATION VEHICLES TAKE UP NICER GLOBE INITIATIVE OF INDIAN CHEMICAL COUNCIL (ICC)

“

The Chemical Industry is steadfast in its vision to create a safer world. Under the responsible care initiative, the Indian Chemical Council is committed to a safe environment and a nicer globe. The Nicer Globe initiative helps create risk free and safe transportation with swift addressing of any emergencies. Soon we expect at least half of all transportation of chemicals to be under the Nicer Global initiative.” said Mr. Vijay Sankar, President, Indian Chemical Council. A variety of services like the integrated single window tracking solution, Digital Check Tool, 24/7 Emergency Response Control Room, Emergency Response Centres and One service Provider Assessment have been developed in phases to improve efciency. Nicer Globe integrates vehicle tracking data from various GPS service providers and renders the same on a single window enabling stakeholders to monitor

transportation of chemicals and hazardous wastes closely. The emergency Points of Interest (POI's) projected on the tracking platform provides information related to Fire Brigade and Police Stations, Crane operators, Hospitals, Ambulance Services, Emergency Responders, Mutual Aid Group, among other emergency services. Online access to Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) and Transport Emergency Response Cards (TREM Cards) are provided signicant to mitigate offsite incidents. The Chemical industry, called the Industry of Industries, for it provides the raw material for almost every industry, is expected to grow to nearly US$ 300 Bn by 2025. As per government reports, there are 70,000 chemical manufacturing units and 80,000 chemicals & petrochemicals producing 27,847 MT annually of which more than 50% is transported by road.

To ensure that such large volume transportation of chemicals is safe, secure and efcient, Nicer Globe was initiated in 2014, a Responsible Care initiative of Indian Chemical Council through active collaboration between industry and regulators which came together with an objective to enable chemical transportation in line with globally acclaimed standards, infrastructure & service. Today over 60 Chemical Companies, 316 transporters, 84 GPS providers are making Chemical transportation in 23,000 vehicles safer and secure. The initiative also has more than 3500 Veried Pointsof-Interest for emergency responses, including Police Stations, Hospitals, safe parking locations, Fire Stations and Crane Services, helping enhance the safety in transportation and distribution of chemicals and hazardous wastes.

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AIPMA URGES GOVT FOR RESTRUCTURING OF CUSTOM DUTIES ON IMPORTS OF PLASTICS countries. Industry demanded that the Delta of minimum 10% should be maintained between custom duty of raw material and plastics nished goods. The domestic industry is suffering due to dumping by China and other countries at very cheap cost. Industry demanded that to prevent under invoicing by foreign players, oor pricing should be established on nished goods. It also demanded that The Directorate General of Trade Remedies should recommended anti-dumping duty on plastics nished goods originating in or imported from 3 major dumpers including China for a period of at least ve years.

he All India Plastics Manufacturers Association (AIPMA), the 74-year-old and the largest Industry Association in India representing 22,000 industrial units has called for immediate steps by the Government of India to revive the industry and put it back on the growth trajectory. The industry body has demanded restructuring of Custom Duties, Anti Dumping Duty on import of cheap nished products, review of Foreign Trade Agreements, enforcement of mandatory BIS standards and technology up gradation fund for the industry among others. The APIMA had organized an emergency meeting held in Mumbai on December 9, 2019 in the wake of emergency measures that needs to be taken by the central government for revival of the Plastics Industry. The Meet was attended by more than 70 participants representing 31 industry associations from across the country; industry leaders and other key stakeholders. Major Plastics Associations present were Gujarat State Plastic Manufacturers' Association, Organization of Plastics Processors of India Maharashtra Plastic Manufacturers Association, Karnataka State Plastics Association, South Gujarat Plastic Manufacturer's Association, Saurashtra Plastic Manufacturers' Association, Pimpri Chinchwad Plastic Association, Telangana and Andhra Plastics Manufacturers Association, Indian Plastics Federation, Plastics Export Promotion Council. Mr. Jagat Killawala, President of The All India Plastics Manufacturers Association said that the Plastic Industry is one of the major contributors to the Indian economy and is expected to play a key role in India becoming US $5 Trillion Economy. He also expected that the Central Government should engage strongly with the industry to ideate and implement

impactful policy solutions for higher growth. “The industry is currently witnessing depression in the market which has led the industry to halt their expansion and investment plans,” said Mr. Arvind Mehta, Chairman, Governing Council, AIPMA. He further highlighted the need for Government to come out with clear plans and strategy on various fronts in order to spur the much needed growth. Elaborating on the demands, Mr Killawala said that taking into account the short term as well as long term growth of plastics processing industry, the industry associations unanimously demanded government to not come under pressure from any quarter to increase custom duty on key raw material. “The industry demanded that custom duty of PVC should be brought down from 10% to 7.5% as nearly 50% of demand in India is being met through imports due to lack of domestic capacity. Any increase in custom duty will affect the agriculture sector due to high use of PVC pipes and ttings. Custom duty of Polypropylene and Polyethylene should be retained at 7.5%. If increased, it would have adverse effect on automotive, healthcare segments and would lead to cost increases in the value chain. Increasing Tariff for PET will affect the processing and consumer segment and thus tariff for PET should be retained to 5% to nurture consumer products consumption. It was further demanded that the custom duty on SAN and ABS should be brought to 5% to nurture associated industries growth,” he said. The plastics processing industry comprises of over 50,000 Micro and small units employing around 50 lakhs people. It is a major contributor to the Indian economy manufacturing goods worth Rs. 3.75 Lakhs crore annually. However, it is under severe strain due to cheap imports from China and other south Asian

Existing FTAs with various countries have failed. It has resulted in massive import of nished goods from FTA countries into India at zero or concessional duty badly affecting competitiveness of Indian plastics processing industry. However, exports from India to these countries have marginally grown leading to huge trade imbalance. Therefore, Industry demanded that all existing FTA's be reviewed and Polymers and Products made of Polymers shall be excluded from all FTAs. “Government of India is planning to enforce mandatory BIS standards on raw material. Industry felt that this move would put small enterprises to disadvantage and allowing imports of semi-nished and nished products, which are made from very raw materials which are being denied entry by imposing nontariff barrier to trade (NTBT), would not be in the best interest of the nation. Industry demanded that both BIS and international standards should be considered at par. This would avoid unnecessary compliance burden on the raw material suppliers and at the same time ensure import of safe and quality material,” said Mr Mehta. On the other hand, Small units would face major disruption if BIS standards are made mandatory on plastic nished goods due to compliance burden, high cost of certications and renewal, nonavailability of adequate facilities for testing and harassment by authorities. The plastics industry has also demanded that the long pending proposal for Technology Up gradation Fund on the lines of Textile industry should be implemented immediately to spur the export growth. Industry demanded that both BIS and international standards should be considered at par. This would avoid unnecessary compliance burden on the raw material suppliers and at the same time ensure import of safe and quality material,” said Mr Mehta.

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INDIA HAS THE POTENTIAL TO LEAD THE WORLD IN TECHNOLOGY: MR. KRIS GOPALAKRISHNAN AT CII EXCON 2019

rom USD 180 billion economy in 1980s to over USD 2.8 billion economy in 2019, technology has enabled India to grow multi-folds. India has one of the largest IT talent base with over 45 lakh technology professionals that can ensure the development of all the sectors. With the right approach and great platforms like EXCON 2019, we have the opportunity and potential to lead the world in technology.” said Mr Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chair, CII AI Forum & Chairman, Axilor Ventures at the conference in EXCON 2019 on “Articial Intelligence IOT & Automation” held at Bengaluru. This session focused on the paradigm shift from machine training through programming to achieve automated solutions with AI and IoT under the Industry 4.0 wave. The Industry 4.0 revolution has witnessed a convergence of digital computing, telecommunication revolution and increased use of sensors. These technologies have enabled the industry with easing and simplifying the processes leading to improved

productivity and quality. Mr. Pratik Kumar, Chairman, Task Force on AI, IoT & Robotics & Chief Executive Ofcer, Wipro Infrastructure Engineering, said, “The 10th edition of EXCON with the theme, Smart I-tech – Next Gen India@75 has thrown light on the role of technology as a change-agent in the construction & equipment industry and factors responsible to accelerate the industry's pace. The advent of technology has touched our lives in multiple ways. And, it is no surprise that even in this sector the products and services are creating new experiences for all of us.” With technology growing and innovating year on year, most industries have been affected by some sort of industry disruption. Companies that have chosen to shake things up and try new things have proven to be a major success, but what about the construction industry? In the past decade, the construction industry has seen many changes, from the construction materials used, type of builders, to methods used to design and build new facilities – all because of advancements in technology. Technologies such as AI, IoT, Automation, etc are making a great impact due to its future possibilities in the whole construction process. With digital computers bringing automation in tasks and processes, the construction and construction equipment

industry has seen a signicant improvement in terms of project turnaround time for completion, quality of products, safety of the labor and cost effectiveness of the projects. These technologies are backed by data and have further helped the AI and ML to provide more precise and enhanced solutions. These solutions will empower India to grow multi-folds in the next 15 years. EXCON 2019 endeavors to build India's infrastructure in an ecologically sustainable manner, enabling projects on Smart Cities, supporting Swachh Bharat programs, promoting Skill Development and position “Make In India” – as the National Agenda for achieving holistic growth in the infrastructure and related sectors. As part of the 10th year celebrations of EXCON, CII will be organizing special activities like exclusive Pavilions on AI, IoT, Robotics, Startups, and Components & Parts among others. Coinciding with EXCON, CII will organize a series of Conferences and Seminars like, Defence & Paramilitary; MSMEs; Components & Parts; Green Buildings; Smart Cities; Urban Development; Logistics among others. Government of Karnataka was the Host State for EXCON 2019. Indian Construction Equipment Manufactures' Association (ICEMA) was the Sector Partner for Excon 2019 and supported by Builders Association of India (BAI).

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ONE LAKH BOOKLOVERS THRONG THE NEW DELHI WORLD BOOK FAIR 2020 ON SUNDAY - 5TH JANUARY 2020," NATIONAL BOOK TRUST

he pleasant weather on a Sunday in January, and the ongoing New Delhi World Book Fair 2020 was enough to pull people out of their homes and throng the Pragati Maidan grounds to buy books and see the new releases and search for the old ones as well. Children accompanying their parents had a eld day at the fairgrounds with buying books of their choice and attending the various activities and programmes being held at the Children's pavilion. The second day of the book fair saw a huge crowd of about 1 lakh visitors. The book fair saw various activities also being held on the sidelines of the book fair. CEO Speak In the series of business sessions being organized on the sidelines of New Delhi World Book Fair, CEO Speak Over Chairman's Breakfast was organized jointly by FICCI and National Book Trust, India. The theme of the session was 'Book Export Markets'. In his address, Dr Mohsin Jawadi, Deputy Minister for Culture & Guidance, Government of Islamic Republic of Iran invited Indian publishers to the International Book Fair in Tehran and said that we are prepared to closely collaborate with Indian authors and publishers in different book-related elds. Welcoming the guests, Prof. Govind Prasad Sharma, Chairman, NBT informed the audience that National Book Trust, India was the Nodal Agency for the Guest of Honor Presentation of India at Abu Dhabi International Book Fair and Guadalajara International Book Fair. “Both these fairs cater to a wide and large books markets in Arabic and Spanish languages respectively,” he added. Speaking about developing cooperation between two countries, Mr Niknam Husainpur, CEO, Publication House, Iran, said that cooperation between Indian and Iranian publishers is an important aspect of Indo-Iran relations and Iran is willing to cooperate with Indian publishers.

Author's Corners / Seminars A discussion on the book The Saraswati Civilization, authored by Major General G D Bakshi was organized by Garuda Prakashan at Author's Corner, Hall No. 8. Another book, Kanpur Ki Ghatak Kathayein, authored by Mridul Kapil was released at Lekhak Manch, Hall No. 12. The session was organised by Aman Prakashan. In a symposium on mother tongue held at the Seminar Hall, and organised by The Intellects. Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Ravi Tekchandani emphasized on the importance of mother language. During the session, tribute was paid to A.V. Swamy, a true follower of Gandhi, Indian politician who represented Odisha in Rajya Sabha. The other speakers on the occasion included Dr. Bijayand Singh, Prof. Amarendra Kathua, Prof. Mrinal Chatterjee and Prof. Udaynath Sahoo. Children's Pavilion A number of activities engrossed children at the Children's pavilion today. The day began with a storytelling session in which the well-known children's authors including Suman Bajpayee, Suman Kumar and Kusum Lata Singh interacted and narrated a few interesting stories to children. 'Tamsili Mushaira and Kavi Sammelan' for children was also organized, where the young kids shared meaningful messages via poems. Theme Pavilion – Gandhi: Writers' Writer "Do we know Gandhi?" remarked Dr Varsha Das, well-known author and Gandhian at a panel discussion on the topic 'Gandhiji KoJaise Meine Jana' (How I Understand Gandhi) held at the Theme Pavilion. Dr Das discussed about the relevance of Gandhi in present times and also explained the ways to help children and young understand Gandhi. Talking about Gandhi's philosophy, Prof. Govind Prasad Sharma, Chairman, NBT said that his philosophy was diverse and extensive. He remarked that whenever we remember Gandhi, his philosophy gives us positivity in life. During the discussion, Shri Narendra Shukla highlighted about the inter-relation between Indian philosophy and Gandhi's thoughts. Shri

Ramesh Tanna talked about Gandhi as a journalist and role of Navjivan in Gandhi literature. Drrakesh Pande also spoke on the occasion. Ms Neera Jain, Director, NBT also spoke on the occasion. A panel discussion was also organized which was focused on the life of Mahtama Gandhi and how he enlightened everyone with his actions. The speakers on the occasion included Shri Madan Dubey, Shri B.S. Mirgay and Shri Avinash Dudhe. The panelists praised the enthusiasm and zeal Gandhi showed during his protests against the British and how he always led a simple life. International Events Corner A Presentation on Higher Education in Saudi Arabia was organised by the Embassy of Saudi Arabia at the International Events Corner and presented by Professor Hamid Bin Abdurrauf Saleh (Dean, Faculty of Quality and Academic Accreditation, Medical College, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The programme was moderated by Prof. Z A Farooqi (Academic Advisor, Cultural Attaché Ofce, Saudi Arabia). An event based on the 'Efforts of Saudi Arabia in teaching of Arabic Language' was also held. Another panel discussion organised by the Embassy of Denmark, New Delhion The Travel, the Foreign and the Meeting of Cultures was held at the International event corner. The panelists were Stine Askov, a novelist and author of Bjørneklo (Hogweed) and AnneSophie Lunding-Sørensens is the author of trilogy; Happy ending, Happy family and Happy Hour. The authors shared the various aspects of their writings, travels, and experience of new cultures which have an impact in their writings.

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VIOLENCE INSIDE HOSPITALS UNACCEPTABLE, SAYS INDIAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION

he Indian Medical Association (IMA) has condemned police forcefully entering different hospitals to crackdown on protesters holding demonstrations against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and denying access to medical care to those injured and asserted that violence inside hospitals was unacceptable. In a press statement issued recently, the grouping of doctors even hit out at the role of various State governments in deliberately obstructing administration of medical services. “No violence is acceptable in a hospital. Hospitals are sacrosanct and are exempted even in a war zone. What makes IMA react today is that disturbing reports of denial of access to medical care are emerging. This is unacceptable Everyone has the right of access to medical care. The government and its establishment have no right to deny anyone their right to access.” IMA And It's History Indian Medical Association is the only representative voluntary organization of Doctors of Modern Scientic System of Medicine, which looks after the interest of doctors as well as the well being of the community at large. The Association was started in 1928 on the occasion of the 5th all India Medical Conference at Calcutta with the avowed objectives: a. Promotion and Advancement of Medical and allied sciences in all their different branches.

b. The improvement of public Health and Medical Education in India. c. The maintenance of honour and dignity of medical profession. IMA is a well established organization with is Headquarters at Delhi and State/Terr. Branches in 23 States and 9 union Territories. It has over 78000 doctors as its members through over 1274 local branches spread all over the country. How The IMA Functions: The general control management and direction of the policy of the Association is vested in the 'Central Council' to which local branches send representatives and which meets once a year to lay down policies. It delegates its powers to 'WORKING COMMITTEEE' (A representatives body of all state Terr. Branches) for implementation of programmes and activities (but without powers to change the rules). This committee meets at least three times a year to execute various activities for welfare of members and the people in matters of health. National Headquarters: The National Headquarter of the IMA is situated at New Delhi, and its Journal

Ofce functions from Calcutta. For Housing the headquarters of the Association, a six storeyed building has been constructed at Indraprastha Marg, New Delhi and a Building of IMA housing the J.I.M.A has also been constructed at 53. Creek Row, Calcutta. President IMA and three vice-presidents are elected by all the members of association, while the Electoral College for the other ofces is the Central Council. Similar situation prevails at the State level, under the Jurisdiction of the State Branches the local branches are established which functions autonomously within the frame work of the IMA constitution.Over 100 local/state branches have their own buildings where provision of stay fom members is possible. For these who fulll the membership qualication, to become a member of IMA, the prescribed from in triplicate be lled & given to the nearest branch along with requisite membership fees. History Of IMA: Ÿ IMA was started on 28-12-1928 Ÿ IMA has to date (Sept.1990) 78,000members including 9,000 life members Ÿ IMA has 23 State Branches and 9 Territorial branches and 1274 local branches Ÿ IMA safeguards interest of its members and participates in all national health programmes.

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IMA IN RETROSPECT 1. The Indian Medical Association celebrated its Diamond Jubilee in the year 1988 and is completing 72nd year of its glorious functioning on the occasion of the 76th All India Medical conference being held on the 28th December, 2000 at Calcutta. 2. Prior to the formation of the Association, four All India Medical Conferences had been held the rst at Calcutta in 1917 under the Presidentship of Lt. Col.Raghavendra Rao, the second at Delhi in 1918 with Sir Nil Ratan Sircar as the President, the third in 1919 with Dr. M.. N. Odedar as its President and the Fourth at Nagpur in 1920 under the Presidentship of Rao Bahadur Dr. Maharaj Krishnan Kapur. It was at the 5th conference held at Calcutta on 28th December, 1928 under the Presidentship of Dr. G. V. Deshmukh of Bombay, that a resolution was adopted forming an All India Medical Association with the objects of promotion and advancement of medical and allied sciences in their different branches, the improvement of public health and medical education in India and the maintenance of honor and dignity of the medical profession. In the year 1930, the All Indian Medical Association and the body was duly registered under the Societies Registration Act, XXI of 1860. 3. The association had come in to being at a time when there was political unrest and the country was passing through big turmoil. Yet, it was a matter of great satisfaction that the stalwarts of the medical profession in those days like Dr. K. S. Ray, Sir Nil Ratan Sircar, Dr. B. C. Roy, Dr. M. A. Ansari, Col. Bhola Nath, Major M. G. Naidu, Dr. B.N. Vyas, Dr. D. Silva, Dr. N. A. Ghosh, Dr. D. A. Chakravarthi, Dr. Viswanathan, and Capt. B. V. Mukherjee actively participated in the promotion of the Association. Some of these stalwarts were also active in the Indian National Congress and had their terms in the jail for participating in the struggle for Independence of the country. 4. Though the Association was formed with only 222 members. Yet even with this numerical strength, it could achieve its position of strength, it could achieve its position of strength and command respect from the British rulers. It could prevent the appointment of British IMS Ofcer as a Commissioner of MedicalEducation in 1929 and it could achieve to organize an all India Medical Register and include the licentiates in it. TheMedical Council of India Act was got amended to have an elected President in place of a nominated one and it was a

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matter of a pride that Dr. B. C. Roy, one of the most illustrious past Presidents of IMA, became the rst elected President of Medical Council of India followed by many other illustrious presidents of IMA gracing the exalted chair including the past president of the Medical Council of India Late Dr. A. K. N. Sinha. 5. The Headquarters Ofce of the IMA was originally located in Calcutta. At the suggestion of Dr. S. C. Sen supported by Dr. B. V. Mulay, Dr. Chamanlal C. Mehta and Maj. General Amirchand, the IMA Headquarters was shifted to Delhi in January 1949, after the attainment of Independence. The Journal of IMA continued to be published from Calcutta. Dr. S. C. Sen also obtained a plot of land in Indraprastha Estate, New Delhi at the concessional rates from the Government and the project of construction of IMA Building thereon was undertaken, supported by Dr. B. V. Mulay, Dr. Chamanlal Mehta, Dr. C.S.Thakar, Dr.A.P.Mitra, Dr. Ved Prakash, Dr. R.C.Goulatia, Dr. P.C. Bhatia and Dr. D.S. Mehra. The foundation stone of IMA House was laid by the rst President of India, Dr. Rajendra Prasad on September 19, 1958 and the construction of the building was started under the supervision of Dr. P.C.Bhatia who supervised it brick by brick. With his untiring efforts, the building was completed and opened on September 6, 1964 by the then President of India, Dr. S. Radhakrishnan. 6. During the British Rule, some selected members of the profession were members of the British Medical Association which had branches in India. The stalwarts of IMA ultimately succeeded in reaching an agreement with British Medical Association that they would have no branches in India and got mutually afliated, which relationship continues even today. In the year 1964, IMA helped in the organization of the world body viz., the World Medical Association and thus became its founder member through the efforts of Dr. S.C.Sen, Dr. R.V.Sathe, the then President, IMA held the chair of the President of WMA when the WMA met in New Delhi in 1962. It's a matter of pride that another illustrious Past President of IMA Dr. A.K.N. Sinha also held the ofce of the WMA. The IMA has been playing an important role in the deliberations of the World Medical Association at New Delhi in the year 1966. later developments, however, forced us to take decision to withdraw from World Medical Association in 1985, since the organization refused to expel

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South Africa despite its dismal record of racial discrimination. The Indian Medical Association after consideration of all aspects of the matter decided in February, 1993 that IMA may again become a member of the World Medical Association. In pursuance of the above, 45th General Assembly of the World Medical Association at its meeting held on October 2-5, 1993 approved IMA's membership of the WMA. The IMA has continued to play an important role in the affairs of the Commonwealth Medical Association. 7. IMA has been pursuing the academic activities and continuing education of its members through its academic wings viz., IMA College of General Practitioners (IMA CGP) and the IMA Academy of Medical Specialities (IMAAMS). Through the IMA CGP which is a Founder member of the World Organization of the National Colleges and Academies, (WONCA), third Conference on General Practice was hosted by the IMA in the year 1968. It is a matter of pride that the rst ever Fellowship of the World Organization was conferred on one of our illustrious Past Presidents, Dr. P.C. Bhatia. 8. Over the period of 72 years, the IMA while maintaining its glorious traditions has secured a place of pride in the community, through its 1470 branches with a total membership of 120298 throughout the country. It has been rendering yeoman's service in the eld of health care deliver, disease control and eradication. Its services to the community during natural calamities like earthquakes, droughts and oods, famines and epidemics in the pre and post-Independence periods have been highly lauded. 9. Indian Medical Association publishes a Scientic Journal called 'Journal of the Indian Medical Association' a copy of which is mailed to each and every member of the Association. “Your Health” in English and “Aap Ka Swasthya” in Hindi are published regularly and cater to health education needs of the lay public. Some of the State Branches are also publishing their bulletins in English and/or Regional languages. 10. IMA College of General Practitioners has been conducting regular examinations twice a year and the successful candidates became eligible for the award of Fellowship. 11. The IMA AMS also awards Fellowships every year to selected highly distinguished specialists.

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COCONUT PRODUCTION HITS FOUR YEAR LOWEST production drop of 2 million nuts in 2018-19 due to drought and oods. The gure stood at 7,631 million nuts during the period, against 8,452 million nuts in 2017-18. The production area has also come down to 7.57 lakh hectares, against 8.07 lakh hectares.

oconut Development Board statistical ofcer Vasantha Kumar, VC, Andhra Pradesh said “Inadequate rains in Karnataka led to high incidence of pests and diseases, resulting in worst productivity decline of 31 per cent. Tamil Nadu experienced consecutive years of drought.”. In Kerala, unscientic farming methods, neglect of the crop owing to uctuating prices, high labour cost and irregular weather have all contributed to the decline. The oddities of nature seem to have taken its toll on India's coconut production, which fell 10 per cent in the 2018-19 agriculture year. “We were expecting the productivity to go above 15,000 nuts per hectare in the main producing states during the year,” Vasantha kumar added.

Coconut Production fell to 21,384 million nuts compared with 23,798 million nuts in the previous year as per the Union agriculture ministry's third advance estimate. After sliding to a decade-low of 20,439 million nuts in 2014-15, coconut production had been steadily growing until last year. The average productivity plunged 13.5 percent to 9,815 nuts per hectare. Excess rains in the current year may be good for the overall coconut output next year, though heavy rains did cause damage in major coconut growing districts of Malappuram, Kozhikode and Kannur in Kerala, unlike in 2018. Coconut prices doubled to Rs 40 per kg last year on account of poor availability, which also led to coconut oil prices soaring to a new high. In Kerala, there was a

Coconut Development Board (CDB) is a statutory body established under the Ministry of Agriculture of the Government of India for the integrated development of coconut and coconutrelated products. Coconut Development Board is a statutory body established by the Government of India for the integrated development of coconut production and utilization in the country with focus on productivity increase and product diversication. There are six state centres situated at Bhubaneswar in Orissa, Calcutta in West Bengal, Patna in Bihar, Thane in Maharashtra, Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh and Port Blair in the Union Territory of Andaman & Nicobar Islands. The Board has 9 Demonstration cum Seed Production (DSP) Farms in different locations of the country and now 7 farms are maintained. A Market Development cum Information Centre has established in Delhi. The Board has set up a Technology Development Centre at Vazhakulam near Aluva in Kerala.

NASSCOM IS THIRD LARGEST TECH LOBBYIST IN US

ational Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), India's IT services trade group spent $510,000 or about Rs 3.4 crore to lobby with the US government, and becoming the third biggest tech lobbyist in US. One of the main reason compelling India's IT Industry to strengthen lobbying appears to be the tightening visa environment. As per the website opensecrets.org, which keep tracks of political contributions in the US, Microsoft topped the list with $7.8 million followed by Cognizant which spent $1.7 million. Nasscom spent $270,000 with Republic

Consulting, a bipartisan boutique of both Democratic and Republican Consultants. It spent around $150,000 with the Lande Group. Foreign Relations, Immigration Trade and Education were some of the main issues according to the data of the website. Main focus of Nasscom included the department of commerce, education, department of homeland security, and department of labour.Nasscom hired Spencer Abraham, the former Republican senator from Michigan and US energy secretary under former president George Bush, as lobbyist to communicate to the Trump administration about how the $170-billion Indian IT industry has serviced a majority of the Fortune 500 in their transformation programmes. Until some months ago, John Engler, the Michigan governor in the Bush regime, was one of Nasscom's advisers on public policy. The amount spent on lobbying on immigration and advocacy in 2019 was less compared to $700,000 spent in 2018. Nasscom's lobbying spends have increased signicantly since 2015. It

uctuated between $40,000 and $150,000 between 2010 and 2014. The National Association of of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) is a non-prot global trade association of Indian Information Technology (IT) and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry which was established in 1988 with over 1500 members, of which over 250 are companies from the US, UK, EU, Japan and China. Ÿ

NASSCOM facilitates business and trade in software and services and encourages the advancement of research in software technology. It is registered under the Indian Societies Act, 1860. It is headquartered in New Delhi.

Nasscom sets the strategic direction for industry, advocates the policy for industry growth. It helps in undertaking international partnerships and afliations and developing sustainable workforce.

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REDEFINE MSMES ON THE BASIS OF TURNOVER: PHDCCI

HD Chamber of Commerce & Industry (PHDCCI) has urged the government to redene Micro, Small and Medium enterprises (MSMEs) on the basis of turnover in order to boost growth. The Industry and trade promotion body has proposed to dene micro enterprise as a unit whose annual turnover is between between Rs 5 crore and Rs 75 crore, and a medium enterprise as a unit whose annual turnover is between Rs 75 crore and Rs 250 crore. Currently, MSMEs is dened through the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act which was introduced in the year 2006. It denes MSMEs on the basis whether the companies produce goods or render services. It is based on the investment in plant and machinery for

manufacturing MSMEs and investment in equipment for service sector MSMEs. Mr DK Aggarwal, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) highlighted that the MSME sector is critical in meeting the national objectives of generating employment, reducing poverty and slowing rural-urban migration. It would also help in directing the benets of economic growth to the intended beneciaries.

denition of an MSME. Also, the Union Cabinet had approved amendments to the law to change the criteria for classifying MSMEs from 'investment in plant and machinery' to 'annual turnover'. The Change in the denition of MSMEs on the basis of turnover will help in promoting the ease of doing business as it would make the process of identication and dealings with such entities simpler and faster.

"We propose the amendment to be made in the forthcoming session of Parliament, as it will enable more than 90 per cent of registered companies to boost and provide an impetus to the growth of our manufacturing GDP as well as provide employment and slowly make a turn around to see that India once again is back on its growth trajectory of USD 5 trillion economy," Mr Aggarwal added.

MSMEs are the second largest employment generating sector after agriculture. It is the backbone of the national economic structure and acts as a bulwark for Indian economy, providing resilience to ward off global economic shocks and adversities. It provides employment to around 120 million persons and contributes around 6.11% of the manufacturing GDP and 24.63% of the GDP from service activities. MSME ministry has set a target to up its contribution to GDP to 50% by 2025 as India becomes a $5 trillion economy. It contributes around 45% of the overall exports from India. It provides opportunity for budding entrepreneurs to build creative products boosting business competition and fuels growth.

Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister of MSMEs had said earlier that the government would be making changes to the

CDT TO OFFER DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY COURSES

EFFORTS ARE UNDERWAY TO REVIVE HPC MILLS

he Centre for Digital Transformation (CDT), set up by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is keen on changing the digital landscape in the country by using the wide talent pool available at their disposal. Col. Suhail Zaidi, head of CII CDT said “Several companies are being forced to reorient their processes and systems and bring about technological changes after nding themselves in various stages of the digital curve. The courses on digital technology would be impacted by conducting training programmes and workshops as well as making use of internet and videoconferencing mode.” Highlighting their commitment to a Digital Transformation Excellence Model (DXCEL) and smart working systems by re-skilling corporate executives, Col. Zaidi said “Digital technologies are not only about technologies — a change in mindset, culture and attitude is required to adapt to the fast-changing world” Col. Zaidi reiterated “Digital transformation is aimed at a complete business transformation by creating new business models, enhancing both the topline and bottomline to fetch multiple benets.

n a fresh move to revive two Hindustan Paper Corporation (HPC) mills in Assam – one at Jagiroad in Morigaon district and other at Panchgram in Cachar district. Earlier, HPC employees were asked them to vacate their quarters by January 31, 2020. But, now they won't have to vacate their quarters. The authorities haven't made them off the grid. Their water and power connections are still intact. Abu Dhabi based businessman BR Shetty's BRS Ventures Investment Ltd has expressed interest to invest in the two paper mills in the state. Also, a few companies of Assam and the Northeast have got into a huddle to form a consortium to run the two paper mills. The Cachar mill has been lying nonfunctional since October 2015 and the Nagaon mill since March 2017. The employees have not received their salaries for the past 35 and 33 months respectively. The mills have about 1300 employees and at least 60 workers have died since the mills became non-functional. Atanu Sarma, general secretary of the Paper Mill Suraksha Committee said that the assurance was a “drama” and the state government do not have any control over the mills.

AAI TO SET UP INDIA'S FIRST WATER AERODROME

irports Authority of India (AAI) is seeking environmental clearance from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change for three water aerodromes in Andaman & Nicobar Islands. These airports are part of the ten water aerodromes that the Centre intends to develop. The establishment of water aerodromes will contribute in increase in level of current social infrastructural facilities of the islands. The incoming of tourists at proposed project locations will tend to increase in tourism and hotel business at local level. AAI intends to develop water aerodromes in Long Island, Swaraj Island, Shaheed Island with a total investment of Rs 50 crore and sought clearance for planning the Terms of References separately for three airports. Director General of Civil Aviation last year issued licensing norms for water aerodromes, where amphibian planes can land and takeoff. The Civil Aviation Ministry has said that it has invited bids for three un-served airports/airstrips in Andaman & Nicobar Islands, and one underserved airport in Lakshadweep Island under the fourth round of the regional air connectivity scheme.

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RELIANCE JIO IS LIKELY TO FORAY INTO MUTUAL FUNDS

eliance Jio Infocomm is likely to enter the space of distributing mutual funds and other nancial products in the new year through its digital payment platform. JioMoney is an app that enables users to make secure digital payments such as mobile and DTH recharges, everyday payments, send/receive money, pay insurance and other premiums and managing nances. “Reliance Jio has been working on rolling out nancial services for a few months now”, a source said. Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio has emerged out as one of the leading telecom companies in India. And soon after Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) took its rst step in the new commerce space by launching online grocery platform JioMart, the company is now all set to foray into distributing mutual funds and other nancial products this year. The company has been beta-testing the offering among its employees and is working on

rolling out nancial services constantly for the last few quarters. The company has also started hiring for its mutual fund segment and has also obtained an account aggregator (AA) license from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The assets under management (AUM) of the MF Industry have grown nearly 3.5 times in ten years. AUMs which stood at Rs 8.22 lakh crore as on November, 30 2009 rose to Rs 27.05 lakh crore as on November 30, 2019. The growth has been stronger in ve years with AUM rising from Rs 10.90 lakh crore from November 30, 2014 to Rs 27.05 lakh crore as on November 30, 2019, marking a 2.5 fold increase

during the period. Mutual Fund folios th rose for the 66 consecutive month in November last year. Reliance Industries has already announced the launch of Jio Payments Bank in April 2018. A 70;30 joint venture between Reliance Industries and the State Bank of India, Jio Payments Bank has established competitors such as Airtel Payments Bank promoted by Paytm Payments Bank. AA license allows an individual customer to transfer his/her nancial information about the customer's various nancial accounts such as bank deposits, mutual funds, pension funds, etc .to any entity requiring access to such information, added the report. If we look at Jio Infocom's annual nancial statements for the year ending 2019, the company has increased its revenue from operations signicantly by 91.8% to Rs 39051 crore from Rs 20355 crore in the previous scal. It's total expenditure incurred during the last nancial year also jumped by about 79.3% amounting to Rs 34,485 crore from Rs 19,227 crore in FY18.

EXPLORE A NEW WORLD OF MOBILITY : AUTO EXPO 2020

18% GST ON AGRICULTURE WILL IMPAIR FOOD PROCESSING SECTOR: AIFPA

ndian Auto Industry is keeping its nger crossed on new launches at Auto Expo 2020 to inuence consumer as to shape a new dimension to increase their sales after their dismal performance in the past year. This year theme for Auto Expo 2020 is “Explore a new world of mobility” to envision a safer, cleaner, connected and shared tomorrow. The event will be organised by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA), and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). The inaugural ceremony of the event will be held on February 6. Mr. Rajan Wadhera, SIAM president said “This auto expo will give a new dimension and feel to the visitors and enable them to explore the world of mobility through a world-class, techenabled experience for the auto lovers”. Auto Expo 2020 may feature improved safety standards and innovative emission technology and hence catering efcient vehicles to the citizens. It hopes to witness largest line-up of BS-VI vehicles much before the government's specied deadline.The Expo will also see participation of many start-ups, demonstrating their path breaking futuristic technology. The event will give the platform to more than 15 start-ups based on green and connected mobility.

ighteen per cent GST (Goods and Services Tax) on agri produce will only mar the growth food processing industry. This was opined by the All India Association for Food Processors Association (AIFPA). All the processed ready-to-eat foods are at 20 per cent GST. This was learnt at the 75th annual conference, award function and national seminar of the All India Food Processors’ Association (AIFPA). “We are aware that production cost is high, but the government is still charging 18 per cent GST for packaged foods. Now the government does not want to reduce the packaging duty among others, and it is going to be difcult to process the farmers’ produce, which has resulted in a slowdown in the economy,” said Dr S Jindal, president, AIFPA, and managing director, Excelsior Food and Chemical Industries. In his keynote address, Dr Chindi Vasudevappa, vice-chancellor, NIFTEM, MoFPI said, “There is a need to promote traditional foods along with the modern processed products.” These could be in the areas of dairy processed products or novel and nutritional foods. The Make in India culture will prove Indian food manufacturers robustness in the years to come, he added. Sanjay Singal, CEO, ITC, said, “The adoption of technology would bring in considerable transparency in operations from farm to shelf. There are several technologies for pre-harvest and postharvest. Technology helps food manufacturers to produce more efciently and the adoption of software ensures consistent quality.”

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GOVT TO LAUNCH AYUSH EXPORT PROMOTION, RESEARCH COUNCILS

aidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India, said on 19 December that government will soon launch AYUSH Export Promotion Council of India and AYUSH Export Research Council, which will facilitate the exporting community and undertake promotional measures to increase exports. Speaking at the 2nd International Exhibition & Conference on AYUSH & Wellness sector – 'International Arogya 2019' organized by FICCI, jointly with Ministry of AYUSH, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, and Pharmexcil, Kotecha said, “NABH & QCI have recently launched entry level standards of accreditation programme for practitioners and entrepreneurs who can start their day care facilities, hospitals around AYUSH with minimal standards to reach out to a wider audience across the country.” “We have received Rs 760 crore for providing soft loans and subsidies to entrepreneurs – contributing to the rapid growth of the AYUSH Sector,” added Kotecha. Dr. Dharam Singh Saini, Minister of State (IC) AYUSH, Food Security & Drug Administration (FSDA), Government of Uttar Pradesh, highlighted the initiatives

undertaken by the state government to promote various ancient Indian healing systems. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Founder, Art of Living Foundation, in his video address, said, “We have to see that no one should be deprived of the benets of Ayurveda.” Pramod Kumar Pathak, Additional Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India, introduced the theme of the exhibition and conferences at the inauguration ceremony. Arvind Varchaswi, Co-Chair – FICCI AYUSH Committee & Managing Director- Sri Sri Tattva, while highlighting the importance of AYUSH system in daily lives and the benets of Ayurveda and yoga, said, “AYUSH is an integrative system of healthcare and wellness for the world and it is time to use India's 5,000 year old wisdom on AYUSH to live a healthy life.” Anurag Sharma, Chair – FICCI AYUSH Committee & Member of Parliament, Government of India and Director – Shree BaidyanathAyurved Bhawan Ltd., said that Ayurveda has grown internationally. “The need of the hour for all of us is to try to make Ayurveda the system of medicine, recognized all around the world,” added Sharma. Prof Rakesh Bhatnagar, Vice-Chancellor, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), spoke about the expectations from International Arogya 2019. FICCI – F&S Knowledge Paper on 'Understanding the AYUSH Services Market in India' was also released during the event. Key takeaways from the report: The Ayurveda Services Market is estimated at Rs 7,700 Cr in 2018,

and is anticipated to more than double by 2024, growing at a CAGR 13.1%. The domestic market is expected to grow at CAGR 10.2% during 20182024, while the Tourist segment is anticipated to grow at a CAGR 18.6% from 2018 to 2024. With active government push, the Ayurveda delivery ecosystem has spread over 33 states and union territories of India. There were 443,704 registered Ayurvedic practitioners in India as on 1 Jan 2018, and the number has been increasing by 1.9% YoY from 1980 to 2018. There are 7,718 manufacturing units which are engaged in manufacturing of Ayurveda drugs as on 1 April 2018, of which 99.5% are privately owned. Insurance coverage is increasingly being offered for Ayurveda hospitalization and medical care services. Ayurveda services are showing increasing uptake, primarily due to increasing awareness and the growing preference for natural therapies, but there are quite a few challenges that need to be overcome for sustained growth.

An upswing in number of accreditations started only in 2018, and it is anticipated to witness a sharp increase during 2019-2024, especially with the NABH coming up with an 'entry level' NABH certication in May 2019. The four-day event including exhibition witnessed the participation of over 250 exhibitors showcasing their products to international delegates and buyers from 60 countries.

INDIA FINISH SECOND AT NATIONS CUP ESPORTS CHAMPIONSHIP Council (SEPC) in association with Electronic Sports Federation of India (ESFI) from 26th – 28th November 2019 at Global Exhibition on Services (GES) 2019 at historical Palace Grounds in Bengaluru.

ations Cup” concluded with Kyrgyzstan taking home the trophy, India & Maldives were placed second and third respectively. “Nations Cup” (International Esports Championship) was presented by Service Export Promotion

It is India's First esports championship under the aegis of any Government Body. “Nations Cup” had esports athletes from 8 National Esports Federations – Uzbekistan (Sanjar Usmanov), Kyrgyzstan (Samat Temirov), Nepal (Ayush Ranjit), Sri Lanka, Maldives (Abdul Maseeh),

Azerbaijan (Nicat), Vietnam (Truong Duc Hieu) and India (Moinuddin Amdani). Azerbaijan could not attend due to unavoidable technicalities. These Athletes were accompanied by respective national esports federation's Presidents/General Secretaries. “The Nations Cup was one of the key highlights of GES2019. Esports being presented at such a high prole event will open up multiple avenues for the Indian services industry in esports, gaming, animation, VFX, legal, event management said industry persons present during GES” – Ms. Sangeeta Godbole (Director General – SEPC)

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REVIEW OF SOME GOVT. INITIATIVES TOWARDS EASE OF DOING BUSINESS IN INDIA It will provide comfort to banks, bring down the cost of credit due to capital relief, less provision requirement and liquidity due to quick settlement of claims and will ensure timely and adequate working capital and relief to MSMEs. To enhance ease of doing business, Deemed Export drawback has been allowed on All Industry Rate of drawback schedule. An online portal for ling applications under 'Transport and Marketing Assistance (TMA)' scheme for Specied Agriculture Products has been launched. Easing Exporters' claims with ECGC through transparency — A database has been prepared by ECGC for all pending claims and online access on status of claims has been provided. This will be a critical tool for providing information access to exporters.

ndia has recorded continuous improvement in its ease of doing business ranking issued by the World Bank on account of steps taken by the government in this regard including new Export Credit Insurance Scheme for exporters, National Logistics Policy and Startup India Initiative among others. India ranks 63rd among 190 countries improving by 14 ranks from its rank of 77 in 2019 and has improved its rank in 7 out of 10 indicators and has moved closer to international best practices. The 2020 edition of the Report acknowledges India as one of the top 10 improvers, third time in a row, with an improvement of 67 ranks in 3 years. It is also the highest jump by any large country since 2011. Startup India- reaching new heights, making India a global leader in Innovation — A total of 21,778 startups are now recognised under the Startup India Initiative, of which 2,912 of them have been recognised since June 1, 2019. The Startup India Hub has 3,42,614 registered users of which 21,540 have been added since June 1, 2019.With the amendment in Section 54GB of Income Tax Act on August 1, 2019, the condition of minimum holding of 50 per cent of share capital or voting rights in the startup has been relaxed to 25 per cent. India's remarkable jump on the Global Innovation Index — In the past four years India's rank in the GII has improved from the 81st rank in 2015 to the present 52nd rank in GII 2019 report. India became the rst developing country to launch the GII in association with World Intellectual Property

Organisation (WIPO) and Confederation of India (CII). In order to promote innovation, several measures have been taken including Final Patent (amendment) Rules, 2019 – published on September 17, 2019 amending The Patents Rules, 2003 has led to signicant simplication of rules, especially for startups and MSMEs. The Patent (Second Amendment) Rules, 2019 were published to reduce fees for small entity or MSMEs for processing of patent applications under various sections of the Patents Act, 1970 will incentivise MSMEs to le for more parents. In order to promote export, the Department of Commerce has undertaken various measures. Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECGC) has introduced a new Export Credit Insurance Scheme (ECIS) called 'NIRVIK' for exporters in which increased insurance cover for export credit has been extended by banks from existing average of 60 per cent to 90 per cent for both Principal and Interest. Accounts with limits below Rs 80 crore, the premium rates will be moderated to 0.60 per annum and for those exceeding Rs 80 crore, it will be 0.72 per annum for the same enhanced cover. It is expected that the initiative will cost about Rs 1,700 cr per annum.

The online ”Origin Management System” gives single access point for all exporters, for all Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) and for all agencies. India has 15 FTAs/PTAs and 7 lakh 'Certicates of Origin' are issued annually. The platform will be made live for FTAs as per the concurrence of the concerned partner countries. This process is electronic, paperless and transparent with real time tracking of FTA utilisation at product level and country level. It will also lead to reduced transaction cost and time. Scheme for Remission of Duties or Taxes on Export Product (RoDTEP) formulated to replace existing Merchandise Exports from India (MEIS) scheme. This will be a WTO compliant scheme for promotion of exports. Textiles and all other sectors which currently enjoy incentives upto 2 per cent over MEIS will transit into RoDTEP from January1, 2020. RoDTEP will span all sectors and the revenue foregone will be about Rs 50,000 crore. Infusion of funds for Export Support — A capital of Rs 389 crore has been infused into Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECGC) on June 2, 2019. This will provide extra support to exports to emerging and challenging markets like Africa, CIS, Latin America and Asian countries. A Grant-in-aid (corpus) of Rs 300 crore has been contributed to National Export Insurance Account (NEIA) trust on June 21, 2019, thereby, enhancing its risk taking capacity to support project exports in challenging markets.

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Boost to Gem and Jewellery exporters by resolution of various issues like removal of the requirement of paying IGST on re-import of goods which were exported earlier for exhibition purpose/consignment basis. Allowing partial discharge of bonds executed by nominated agencies or banks for import of gold to be supplied to jewellery exporters, thereby enabling nominated agencies to release bank guarantee of jewellery exporters who have fullled their export obligation has helped in release of blocked working capital. National Logistics Policy, 2019

The National Logistics Policy is being prepared with the aim to bring down total logistics cost from 14 per cent to 9 per cent of country's GDP. The policy aims to boost business competitiveness, drive economic growth and make India a global logistics hub. The Multi-Modal Transportation of Goods Bill, 2019 has been nalised for approval. This aims at facilitating the movement of goods for exports, imports and domestic trade. It will help to x accountability and liabilities for violation of its provisions. Skilling for Logistics Sector As many as 34 Qualication Packs (QPs) for skill development of manpower engaged in Logistics Sector have been developed and nalised in collaboration with Logistics Skill Council. This is the rst time that such qualication packs have been developed. Implementation of Agriculture Export Policy — The Agriculture Export Policy has been approved with an outlay of Rs 206 Crore for 2019-20. In order to establish linkage between FPOs and the exporters a portal has been created by Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA). About 740 Farmers Producer Organisation (FPO) have been registered under Farmers Connect Portal. Schemes for backward regions — Budgetary Support under GST Regime to the units located in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and North Eastern States including Sikkim has been made. an amount of Rs 1,700 crore has been authorised by Department for

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web portal of SIMS providing necessary information. The registration will be online and automatic and no human intervention is required.

Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) for disbursement to eligible industrial units. Rs 1,692 crore already been disbursed by CBIC under the Scheme till November 15, 2019. During the last six months, Rs 86 crore was disbursed to 420 industrial units under the Special Package to the Himalayan States. Ensuring level playing eld for domestic industry and farmers — For antidumping the average number of days taken for initiation of antidumping investigations has come down to 32 days in 2019 (upto November 1) as against 259 days in 2016. Directorate General of Trade Remedies(DGTR) for the rst time ever initiated two cases of bilateral safeguards to protect domestic industry from injury. No bilateral safeguard has ever been initiated in the past by DG Safeguards or Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties. There has been signicant drop in the number of days taken to initiate two cases of Global Safeguards. In 2019, the average number of days taken is just 61, as compared the standard 75 days. In order to ensure interests of the Indian industry and farmers in FTAs, India successfully laid out its stand in Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that India's key concerns were not addressed. India took a strong stance to protect the interest of domestic producers. This decision will help vulnerable sectors including farmers and the dairy sector as well as small manufacturers, who would have been threatened by RCEP rules. India has also secured agreement for review of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) FTA (Asean-India Free Trade Area-AIFTA) after repeated follow up. This will help in removing rules that affect Indian producers and exporters and will also promote Indian exports and Make in India. Steel Import Monitoring System (SIMS) — The SIMS will facilitate the Steel Industry by providing advance information about steel imports to all stakeholders including Government, steel industry and steel importers for effective policy interventions. Importers of specied steel products will register in advance on the

SIMS has been notied with effect from November 1, 2019. Trade Facilitation Measures — The completion of negotiation of India-Mauritius Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) will enable trade promotion between the two countries. Improving Trade with Bangladesh – Besides the four operational Border Haats across IndiaBangladesh border in Tripura and Meghalaya, construction of three Border Haats in Meghalaya, out of six already identied locations (two in Tripura and four in Meghalaya) has been completed. Merger of Council of Trade and Development and Board of Trade: providing a common platform for addressing stakeholder concerns. This common platform, comprising representatives from industry, export promotion councils, Government of India and State Governments and representatives from Banking and Finance Sector is playing a critical role in addressing export related concerns, with a focus on addressing these on a priority basis.The rst meeting of this common platform took place on June 6, 2019. SEZ (Amendment) Bill 2019 became the rst legislation of the newly formed Government to be passed by Parliament. This will enable any entity to set up an unit in SEZs, including Trusts. This will help boost investments and create new export and job opportunities. Investments of USD 1.1 billion has been proposed since the ordinance was promulgated earlier this year. Better facilities for employees: SEZ units allowed to create facilities and amenities like cr?che, gymnasium, cafeteria for their exclusive use as a measure towards ease of doing business. Promoting Foreign Direct Investment — Hundred per cent FDI has been allowed under theautomatic route for coal mining activities including associated processing infrastructure. Hundred per cent FDI under automatic route has also been allowed in contract manufacturing. Providing more exibility and ease of operations to Single Brand Retail Trading (SBRT) entities. All procurements made from India shall be counted towards local sourcing, whether goods are sold in India or exported. Online retail trading permitted upto two years prior to opening brick and mortar

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stores. Government Procurement Progressive amendments have been made to favour local suppliers like procurement upto Rs 50 lakh has been exclusively reserved for local suppliers (except in certain cases). Only local suppliers eligible to bid for procurement of items, where there is sufcient local capacity and local competition, irrespective of purchase value. Bicycle Development Council constituted for the benet of Bicycle Industry - The Indian bicycle industry is the world's second largest bicycle

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industry. To develop the Bicycle industry and small part manufacturers towards global standards, a Bicycle Development Council has been constituted. National Institute of Design (Amendment) Act, 2019 - Amendment to National Institute of Design (NID) Act was moved for consideration and passing in the Rajya Sabha on August 6, 2019 to confer Institute of National Importance status to the four new NIDs and ten passed also. It will be introduced in the forthcoming session of the Lok Sabha for consideration and passing. The four new NIDs at Andhra Pradesh,

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Madhya Pradesh, Assam and Haryana to be declared as Institutions of National Importance on the lines of NID, Ahmedabad. NIDs, Madhya Pradesh and NID, Assam have commenced academic session of 2019-20 from July 29, 2019. Establishment of the National Traders' Welfare Board (July 26, 2019) - A longpending demand of traders has been fullled with the constitution of the Board to understand the issues and problems faced by traders and employees in their day to day business operations and for their welfare. The Board will have a number of representatives from Traders' Associations as members.

KANPUR TANNERIES' SHUTDOWN BRINGS DOWN FINISHED LEATHER EXPORTS BY 29%

early 13 months lockout of Kanpur leather tanneries has pulled down India's nished leather exports by nearly 29 per cent during April-August 2019 compared to the corresponding period last nancial year 2018-19. While India exported nished leather worth $million 334.6 during Apr-Aug 2018, the offshore consignments fell by 29 per cent to $million 237.7 in the corresponding period in the current scal year. Other categories of leather also saw exports falling, Kanpur accounts for almost 30 per cent of the country's nished leather value chain and the order of the Yogi Adityanath government for complete shutdown of tanneries ahead of Kumbh Mela 2019 in downstream Prayagraj (Allahabad) to ensure clean water in river Ganga spelt a body blow to the leather industry. Nearly 400 tanneries in Kanpur City were directed by the UP Pollution Control

Board (UPPCB) for closure between December 15, 2018 and March 15, 2019. For compliance, the tanneries downed shutter nearly a month before the deadline of December 15 to ensure that no efuent was generated. In fact, the slowdown in the domestic nished leather owing to the Kanpur tanneries lockout also pulled down its share from 14 per cent last year to less than 11 per cent in the composite Indian leather industry. So far, about 40 Kanpur tanneries have already relocated to West Bengal owing to periodic disruption in Uttar Pradesh on issues of pollution and supply of raw leather after the Yogi Adityanath government clamped down upon illegal abattoirs. Kanpur leather industry, including tanneries and leather goods manufacturers, estimated at Rs 12,000 crore, provides direct and indirect employment to a million people in Kanpur and Unnao districts. The cluster

generates Rs 6,000 crore worth of exports to the Gulf, Europe, China, Iran etc. On December 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited Kanpur to review the progress of the Centre's agship Namami Gange project and to personally see the purported improvement in the quality of water owing in river Ganga. Within days of Modi's Kanpur visit, the UPPCB last week allowed 248 leather tanneries in the Jajmau area of Kanpur to reopen with the condition to operate at only 50 per cent of capacity. The green panel would assess the situation after two months and decide whether to extend the permission. “We have received the order of the UPPCB for opening out units. However, it would take another 15-20 days when the tanneries can nally start operations, since there is a lot of maintenance work to be done,” Small Tanners' Association Member quoted.

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OIL MARKETING COMPANIES (OMCS) INVITED EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST (EOIS) FROM ENTREPRENEURS

harat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), Gas Authority India Limited (GAIL) and Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) invited the Expressions of Interest from various gas manufacturers and potential entrepreneurs at a roadshow in Mumbai on 23 December. The EoIs were invited under a new scheme SATAT by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on October 1, 2018, to promote the use of gas biofuels such as Compressed Bio Gas (CBG). Entrepreneurs will set up CBG plants and offer them to the OMCs for marketing through their retail outlets. Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT), is the scheme which aims at providing a Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) as a developmental effort that would benet both vehicle-users as well as farmers and entrepreneurs. Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG) plants are proposed to be set up mainly through independent entrepreneurs. CBG produced at these plants will be transported through cascades of cylinders to the fuel station networks of OMCs for marketing as a green transport fuel alternative. The entrepreneurs would be able to separately market the other by-products from these plants, including bio-manure, carbon-dioxide, etc., to enhance returns

on investment. It is planned to roll out 5,000 Compressed Bio-Gas plants across India in a phased manner. This initiative is expected to generate direct employment for 75,000 people and produce 50 million tonnes of bio-manure for crops. The Chief Guest of the event was Mr. Vijay Sharma, Director, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. Introducing CBG in the transport sector has multiple benets such as waste management, reduction in carbon emissions, and additional revenue source for farmers by creating waste to wealth, and giving a boost to entrepreneurship and the rural economy by way of generating employment opportunities.” Mr Sharma said. He explained that if the total potential of the CBG is exploited in the country, then India can produce an equivalent of approximately 62 MMT of CBG annually, which is sufcient to replace the

entire gas demand of the nation and make farmers go from being grain providers to energy providers. “OMCs, GAIL and IGL are offering remunerative prices for procurement of CBG with long-term commercial agreement for entrepreneurs” said Milind Patke, ED, BPCL (Biofuels). He assured that companies would purchase CBG for the following ten years. “We are expecting that petrol pumps would be able to purchase CBG at 46 plus GST. The biggest advantage of CBG is that it benets the environment and the waste is being utilised gainfully. While CNG has more than 85% methane content, CBG will have more than 90%,” Mr Patke added. Bio-gas is produced naturally through process of anaerobic decomposition from waste and bio-mass sources like agriculture residue, cattle dung, municipal solid waste, sugarcane press mud, sewage treatment plant (STP) waste, etc. It is called CBG after biogas is puried and compressed, which has pure methane content of over 95%. CBG is exactly similar to commercially available natural gas in its composition and energy potential. It has caloric value of 52,000 KJ/kg and other properties are similar to CNG. CBG can be used as alternative, renewable automotive fuel. It has potential to replace CNG in automotive, industrial and commercial uses in the coming years, given the abundance of biomass in the country.

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NTPC PLANS TO ADD 10 GW SOLAR ENERGY BY ISSUING GREEN BONDS

ational Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) is going to add 10GW of solar energy generation capacity by 2022 which assumes signicance in view of India's ambitious target of having 175GW of clean energy by 2022. The investment will be funded by issuing green bonds. A green bond is a bond specically earmarked to be used for climate and environmental projects. These bonds are typically asset-linked and backed by the issuer's balance sheet, and are also referred to as climate bonds. These bonds are intended to encourage sustainability and to support climaterelated or other types of special environmental projects. More specically, green bonds nance projects aimed at energy efciency, pollution prevention, sustainable agriculture, shery and forestry, the protection of aquatic and terrestrial

ecosystems, clean transportation, sustainable water management and the cultivation of environmentally friendly technologies. As per the information, the company would also set up some of its solar energy projects under scheme where it gets viability gap funding to keep the tariff below Rs 3 per unit level. Till 2019, NTPC has installed renewable energy capacity of 920 MW, which includes mainly solar energy. It has formulated a long term plan to become a 130 GW company by 2032 with 30 per cent renewable energy capacity. NTPC is open to any economical borrowing option in the market but however the company would mainly rely on domestic green bonds which are offered for pure clean energy projects. To keep the tariff below Rs 3 per unit level, the company would also set up some of its solar energy projects under viability gap funding. To sell the electricity to industrial as well as

commercial consumers and also at energy exchanges , the company will be setting up set up solar energy projects without any long term (for 25 years) power purchase agreements (PPA). Central Electricity Regulatory Authority (CERC) has already approved the real time power market which is expected to kick in by April 1, 2020. There would be total 48 sessions of half an hour each in a day which will allow the consumers to get the desired power supply within an hour of buying at the energy exchanges. National Thermal Power Corporation is a Indian Public Sector Undertaking , engaged in the business of generation of electricity and allied activities. The headquarters of the company is situated at New Delhi. Its core business is generation and sale of electricity to state owned power distribution companies and State Electricity Boards in India.

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WITH A VISION TO BE A PARTENER IN NATION BUILDING : ASSOCHAM & ITS HISTORY

hronicling evolution of the chamber posits the advantage of stating at the outset, the schematic unfolding of the tapestry of events that eventually concluded in contrasting interests federating into a coalition of mercantile consolidation. Against this backdrop, the birth of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of India and Ceylon in 1920 was more than an event - it marked the culmination of a historical process reecting an age of tumultuous change, a logical, sequential development of the coming together of associations primarily representative of British commercial interests in different parts of the country. While the seed of such a formalised structure was evidently sown by the Calcutta Trades Association, as British trading interests tried to weave themselves into a body, on the lines of the more sophisticated business chambers back home, the Bengal Chamber of Commerce, duly supported by Madras and Bombay chambers, was the prime moving force in the establishment of rst-ever apex chamber in India. The industrialization pattern then obtaining under the British largely inuenced the need for collective protection of local business interests along with the mounting inevitability of restructuring neglected sectors and concurrently promoting entrepreneurship. The Chamber movement mirrors a paradox where British manufacturers saw in India a captive market for their goods but the British Indian manufacturers found such move emaciating their growth. Calcutta being the seat of govermnment from where

functioned the Legislative Council conferred on Bengal Chamber legitimate proximity gains for interface and enunciation of its needs. Expansion of the representative character of the Council by the new law, that amended the Indian Councils Act in 1909, prompted the Bombay and Bengal Chambers to seek allotment of representative membership in the Council. The parallel growth of industries had a direct deportment on the chambers. The indigo, tea, jute, cotton textile industry, coal, thermal power generation and the growth of engineering units with British and Indian interests dened the expansion of converging interests. The partition of Bengal in the year 1905 not only gently catalyzed emergence of a cohesive political opposition but also lent the rst impetus to conceiving an all-India entity when the captains of industry from the provinces, Ceylon and Burma discussed the necessity of national bonding. Twelve years later, at another such gathering again in Calcutta, in the wake of post-war scenario, the inspiration for a national business organisation was cemented specically in response to the integration of economic policy into an all-India pattern, an enlarging corpus of legislation, the rapid growth of Indian business, a sharper spirit of trade rivalry, as well as the mobilization of important Indian industrial nancial support for political purposes. The idea of an all-India organisation was certainly prompted by the lessons of the war but the transfer of capital to New Delhi in 1911 circumscribed the possibility to continue to protably

lobby with the Government primarily on the Bengal Chamber's strength. ASSOCHAM's maiden conference opened at the Royal Exchange, Calcutta, on Thursday, January 8, 1920, at three in the afternoon. Lord Chelmsford inaugurated it with the Governor of Bengal, the Earl of Ronaldshay anon, in the presence of the commercial and ofcial elite.ASSOCHAM was more than a chamber for its members; it served as stimulant to other business groups to close ranks. Primarily, it inspired the "Indian" sector, which looked at ASSOCHAM as an example of British business interests lobbying on a national scale and creating the wherewithal for smooth progress. Association of Chambers of Commerce of India and Ceylon started with 13 Chambers as its original members. These were Bengal Chamber of Commerce, Bombay Chamber of Commerce, Burma Chamber of Commerce, Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, Chittagong Chamber of Commerce, Cochin Chamber of Commerce, Cocanada Chamber of Commerce, Karachi Chamber of Commerce, Madras Chamber of Commerce, Narayangang Chamber of Commerce, Punjab Chamber of Commerce, Tuticorin Chamber of Commerce and Upper India Chamber of Commerce. PHD Chamber of Commerce Industry (PHDCCI), working since 1905, joined ASSOCHAM as its promoter chamber in the year 1922. The Indian Merchants' Chamber, Bombay, then in its eightieth year, joined ASSOCHAM as one of its promoter chambers in 1987.

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GIVE YOUR MEMBERS THE GIFT OF IN-PERSON CONVERSATION Individual face time feels like a precious commodity these days, which makes it an especially meaningful way to interact with members. This year, one association executive's “conversation tour” generated new ideas for serving her members better.

specia lly at this time of year, there are many ways to say thanks to members, many ways to say thanks to members , whether it's a holiday greeting card or an end-of-year video message from the CEO or staff team. But, what if, instead of delivering a simple “thank you,” you gave members the gift of your time and attention with a one-on-one meeting. That might seem like a heavy lift, but Debbie Trueblood, MS, CAE, Executive Director of the Illinois Park and Recreation Association, says it can be done if you set a goal and work to meet with members throughout the year. Over the past year, Trueblood repeatedly packed her suitcase and drove around Illinois in a “conversation tour” to celebrate IPRAs 75th anniversary . She set a goal of 75 meetings, as well as some rules for herself. “Each meeting

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had to be at least ve minutes and a two-way interaction in order to count,” she says. “It also had to be a small meeting with only a few, usually one or two, people present. And I tried to meet with as many people as humanly possible.” In the end, Trueblood visited with more than 130 IPRA members. “For me, this action was about going back to the basics, reinvigorating member recruitment, retention, and engagement,” she says. “Getting out there, especially to the far corners of our membership, and talking to people face to face seemed like a great way to achieve this.” The conversations helped change IPRA's member focus in a variety of ways. For example: Identifying underserved groups - Many associations develop member persons that help them identify which products and services are likely to be most useful and relevant to specic member segments. While these personas often ring true, they can also lead to bias in how

members are served. Before Trueblood's tour, she thought IPRA had a pretty good grip on members' competing needs. But as she traveled, she learned that the association was underserving one specic member group—those who work at forest preserve agencies. “We learned that they were different from our other members and that we needed to change our game up to better serve them,” Trueblood says. “In 2020, we're going to open a new forest preserve task force to give them a greater voice.” Removing geographic barriers - Most of IPRA's learning programs are clustered in metropolitan areas, but that leaves some members without nearby professional development opportunities. “People, especially rural members, kept saying, 'You're not listening to us. You don't get it,'” she says. “So, we put together a board of regents with two people from each region who intentionally live far away from each other, and we're using their recommendations for site selections. It's a more geographically inclusive effort.”

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MOBLIE EVENT APP: THE SMARTER ROUTE TO ATTENDEE ENGAGEMENT

e have talked about it earlier, event technology has come a long way since its inception. In this Internet of Things Era, the online shift has now transitioned into the smart world. We are in that era of technology where things are done on the go with a smart-phone and an internet connection. Introduction to a Mobile Event App Event planners are denitely abreast with the trend, stepping into the world of smart solutions themselves with a handy tool called a mobile event app The most used technologies by event planners are photobooths (45%), event apps (44%) and live streaming tools (44%) What exactly is an event app? The basic denition of an event app is a 'tool' that is used to communicate your event to the audience. The idea for developing an event application still remains the same; interacting with the audience, the modes of which have far evolved. The initial event app contained a dened list of features that were enough to help attendees out with the basics of the event such as agenda, schedule, speakers, etc. With time, event app developers have experimented with the tool. In the current scenario, there is a range of best mobile event app providers who create whitelabeled event apps with features at par with the recent technological advancements. Event app has now become an event tech tool meant not only to communicate the event to attendees but also a platform to engage them, maximizing their convenience while gaining valuable real-time feedback. A range of event app feature have been developed for the same, we shall delve into these event apps features further in the article. Types of Mobile Event App As event apps became a mainstream event-tech tool, event app developers began rening the tech resulting into multiple types of event planning apps with different functionalities and purposes. From mobile event and conference app, event networking app, social event app, event registration app, a range of event management apps exist in the market for multiple types of events with set event app features. Conference Apps Conference apps are one of the most popular types of event apps used in major business events including

conferences, seminars, summits, workshops, etc. Mobile conference app features generally include those that help attendees navigate such events easily simultaneously gaining valuable takeaways from the same. Hence features such as Q&A, itinerary management and yes, networking, are of prime importance in such a mobile app for conferences. Incentive Apps Incentive apps are targeted towards corporate incentive trips, corporate retreats, etc. These apps are meant to help corporate fulll their goal of engaging their employees and helping them conduct multiple activities in order to achieve their goals such as team building, value addition, etc. Incentive app features are based around this idea hence these features include event feed, gamication, travel and accommodation details, document sharing, etc.

hassle-free check-ins with features such as on-spot registrations and check-ins, manual check-ins, QR code check-ins, notications, etc. Event Management Apps Incentive app features are based around this idea hence these features include event feed, gamication, travel and accommodation details, document sharing, etc. Lead Retrieval apps This is where come into the picture. Lead retrieval apps help exhibitors capture leads from events. They can include custom surveys, questionnaires or capture leads simply through a QR code scan. Furthermore, the app also helps them in managing their team as well as nurture their leads for conversion. 46% of event managers view lead generation as a top reason to attend events. Exhibitor ROI at Tradeshows Selecting the perfect type of mobile app for your event depends on multiple factors including the type of your event, mobile event app pricing and its consistency with your budget, the event app features you would require etc There are also a few solutions that can provide free mobile apps for events including free mobile conference apps, event registration apps, etc.

Association Apps These apps are meant for larger associations and platforms belonging to a particular niche that conduct multiple events within a year for their members. Association apps help these organizations in managing all their events and member interactions from a single platform. “In the era of technology where everyone owns a Hence event app smart phone, it is time that you have a mobile app features for association apps for your association, that will help you stay include multi-event connected with your members 24*7*365" listing, member listing, in-app chat, etc. Check-ins are indenitely one of the most tedious parts of any event, no matter the event type. It is also the rst point of interaction before the event actually begins. Having an event registration app with a check-in feature in such a situation can be a life-saver. Hence, it is indeed a crucial stage of any event and has to be managed impeccably. Here is where play an important role, helping event planners conduct

INDUSTRY WILL CELEBRATE ITS ACHIEVEMENTS AT THE EXHIBITION EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2020

he 5th edi on of India’s one & only dedicated awards ini a ve for the exhibi on industry – The Exhibi on Excellence Awards will be held on Saturday, March 28, 2020 at the CIDCO Exhibi on & Conven on Center, Mumbai, India. Over 500 exhibi on & Conven on leaders from across India will witness the gala event. Organised by Exhibi on Showcase, the awards have been successful in promo ng the champions of Indian exhibi ons at a global level. There is a supremely experienced and accomplished jury panel and interna onally renowned exhibi ons advisory ﬁrm jwc Consul ng has been roped in as Process Adviser for EEA 2020. EEA gets an unprecedented par cipa on from the government bodies and the interna onal community. The event will also be broadcast on Na onal Television. The event will be further ampliﬁed many mes through thousands of footprints on the social media and trade publica ons. At the EEA2020, a special awards segment is being incorporated to acknowledge the contribu on of corporate and PSU exhibitors. The event will also witness the debut of Exemplary Associa on Awards alongside. In every sense, the 5th Exhibi on Excellence Awards will be a glorious extravaganza like never before! The Exhibi on Excellence Awards Have Transpired Into A Mega Pla orm For Industry Glory, Honour, Celebra on & Business Networking.

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December - January | 2020

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BHILAI STEEL PLANT TO ENHANCE PRODUCTION CAPACITY TO 10 MT BY 2030

AIL's Bhilai Steel Plant is undertaking feasibility study and starting documentation work for their next phase of expansion. The initial focus is on the consolidation of current expansion for the next three to four years, following which feasibility study will be done. The plant had recently undergone modernisation and expansion, increasing the plant's production capacity to 7 million tonne from 4 million tonne at an estimated investment of around 17000 crore. The plan is to enhance the capacity to 10 million tonne by 2030. Anirban Dasgupta, Chief Executive Ofcer, Bhilai Steel Plant said “There are old facilities in the country which are not energy-efcient and environment-

friendly, so we need to phase out those and replace them with newer technologies which are doing better in terms of techno-economic parameters, energy parameters and environment friendliness” The Bhilai Steel Plant is phasing out some of its older technologies which used twin hearth furnaces, ingot casting blooming mills since these involved higher cost of production and higher energy consumption. The company's EBITA-to-turnover ratio, which is 14-15 per cent, should improve to close at 24 per cent once the complete benets of modernisation and expansion starts kicking in.

BHEL MODERNISED ONE OF THE THREE 60 MEGAWATT UNITS OF BAIRA SIUL HYDRO POWER

harat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), announced that it has renovated and modernised rst of the three 60 megawatt (MW) units of Baira Siul Hydro Power in Himachal Pradesh. Signicantly, BHEL has also won the order for renovation and modernisation (R&M) of three units of the power located in Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh, amidst stiff competitive bidding. R&M of the other two units is under various stages of execution. R&M of the project will result in restoration of output capacity and improvement in efciency. It will lead to better plant availability and life extension of equipment. The capacity of

the turbine for each unit is designed for a rated output at 60 MW at reduced rated head of 238.1 metres. The turbines installed earlier in 1980-81 were designed for a rated head of 260 metres.BHEL's scope in the project comprises design, manufacture, supply, replacement and commissioning of critical parts of Turbines & auxiliaries, Governors, Generators and Control & Monitoring. The equipment has been supplied from BHEL's manufacturing units at Bhopal, Bengaluru and Jhansi, while the on-site installation activities were carried out by the company's Power Sector - Northern Region division, Noida.

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LATEST NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF TRADE ASSOCIATIONS & PSU’S

CARE RATINGS HAS DOWNGRADED HAL FROM AAA TO AA+

industan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) ratings has been downgraded by Care Ratings for long and short term bank facilities worth 7300 crore to AA+ with a stable outlook. The agency however reafrmed 'A1+' rating for short term. The ratings of bank facilities of HAL derive strength from its strategic importance as the core aviation equipment supplier to the Indian defence sector with majority ownership by government of India. HAL plays a strategic role in India's defence program as it is the only Indian company having specialisation in aircraft manufacturing and providing its maintenance, repair and overhauling services (MRO). The rating revision of bank facilities of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is due to change in operating environment involving reduced advance funding by customers and build-up of receivables position translating into increased reliance working on working capital debt. During FY19 HAL has delayed in disbursement of sanctioned budget resulted in high receivables position and reduced cash balances. Earlier, HAL used to receive signicant advance funding and milestone payments resulting in negligible borrowings and robust liquidity. Between December 2018 and September 2019, while receivables position has improved, a sizeable amount is left for HAL to fund and hence reliance on bank borrowings is expected to continue. HAL had posted an all-time high turnover of Rs 19,705 crore for the nancial year ended March 31, 2019, registering a year-on-year growth of 7.8 per cent. HAL's prot after tax (PAT) for the scal stood at Rs 2,282 crore, an increase of 14.8 per cent over Rs 1,987 crore in the corresponding previous year.

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December - January | 2020

CIL RESERVES WILL BE ADEQUATE FOR NEXT 25 TO 30 YEARS

ralhad Joshi, Minister of Coal has expressed his condence that coal will continue to dominate the country's energy scenario, providing half of the country's power generation even in 2030 despite the growth of renewable. CIL received a major boost after recent allocation of 16 new coal blocks by the Government of India to the Maharatna coal mining PSU. The present reserves of the coal mining behemoth will be adequate to meet the expanding coal demand of the country atleast for the next 25-30 years. NITI Aayog estimate conrmed that the share of coal in energy mix in 2040 would be at least 44 percent. As CIL spearheads the country's coal production, meeting around 82 percent of the entire coal output, the Coal India will continue to play a large role in ensuring the energy sufciency of the country in the future.

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LATEST NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF TRADE ASSOCIATIONS & PSU’S

HAL RECORDED PROFITS TO THE TUNE OF RS 2070 CRORE

RINL BAGGED THE NATIONAL ENERGY CONSERVATION AWARD

he Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) has bagged the National Energy Conservation Award in the integrated steel plant category in recognition of its signicant contribution of specic energy consumption. RINL has registered a reduction of 6.5% in specic energy through implementing various waste energy recovery technologies such as coke dry quenching, blast furnance top pressure recovery system, installation of billet caster in SMS-2, BF stoves waste heat recovery, injection of pulverised coal into blast furnaces to substitute BF coke and 120 MW gas-based Captive Power Plant. RINL has also developed the second cycle of Perform, Achieve and Trade (PAT) and monitoring and verication agency has recommended issuing of the '129907' energy saving certicates.

industan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) recorded a prot of Rs 2070 crore in 2017-18, seven percent less than previous year. HAL saw revenue of Rs 17,950 crore from operations. It rose by three per cent in 2017-18 to Rs 18,519 crore. HAL manufactures aircraft, including helicopters, for the armed forces. Mr. Shripad Naik, MoS Defence said that Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) develop systems and equipments from the armed forces in various technology domains. A total of 39 different systems, equipment worth Rs 95,062.08 crores designed and developed by the DRDO, have been approved for induction into the services during the last three years. These systems include various types of platforms, sonars, radars, software dened radios, missile systems, gun systems, munitions, bridging equipment.

BEML LTD. SIGNED A MOU WITH IRCON INTERNATIONAL LTD.

OU copies were exchanged in the presence of DK Hota, CMD, BEML and SK CHaudhary, CMD, IRCON International Ltd, to explore opportunities in the overseas market by synergising each other's strengths for large infrastructure projects in the transportation sector. The MOU is aimed at promoting supply of BEML manufactured rolling stock and construction equipment for railway projects outside India where in IRCON will carry out civil and construction work as well as facilitate design validation for

rolling stock of BEML to address export opportunities together. It is hoped that both the companies by synergising their strengths can attain the new heights in the international market.

and Sri Lanka. This MOU may turn a signicant leaf in the journey of both these organisations for projects outside India. This is a step towards further thrust on globalisation by joining the complementary strengths of two large CPSEs. Shares of state-owned BEML Ltd. gained by two percent on Monday after the company announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding with IRCON international Limited to explore opportunities in the overseas market. BEML is a leading multinational technology schedule A company under the Ministry of Defence and plays a pivotal role in serving India's core sectors lke defence, rail, power, mining and construction.

Government of India LoC is huge opportunity for BEML & IRCON to work together. IRCON has a strong International presence and have proven capabilities in the eld of track laying, construction, electrication of railway and infrastructure construction projects and are presently are operating in Algeria, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Nepal

IRCON, earlier known as Indian Railway Construction Company Limited, is an engineering and construction major specialising in transport infrastructure and is wholly owned by the Ministry of Railways. It has completed over 1250 major infrastructures projects in India and over 200 major projects in more than 31 countries.

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December - January | 2020

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SMT. H. K. DOSHI TOOK CHARGE AS CMD OF SHIPPING CORPORATION OF INDIA LTD

mt. H. K. Doshi took charge as the chairperson and Managing Director (CMD) of the Shipping Corporation Of India (SCI), Mumbai on 19 December 2019 with the approval from all the competent authority. She has a very rich and diversied experience spanning over three decades with ONGC, a mammoth Maharatna PSU. Her experience includes

almost two decades with ONGC Videsh Limited which looks after the international business acquisitions of ONGC wherein she was actively involved with the path breaking international transactions which led the company to turn around. It gave her a lot of opportunity to travel and develop her professional attributes to International Standards. She started her career as a lecturer in Delhi University and joined the corporate world in 1984. Smt. Doshi is a Fellow Member of the Institute of Cost Management Accountants of India. She is also a life member of the Institute of Public Administration, Delhi.

She had been deputed to Dallas (USA) for four weeks for nancial training and has undergone Advanced Global Leadership Program conducted by SCOPE and IIM Kolkata, with overseas exposure in Europe and has to her credit various overseas assignments during her long association with OVL during which she travelled to Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Oman, Dubai, Qatar, London, USA, Singapore, Vietnam, Russia and Kazakistan. The Shipping Corporation of India is a Government of IndiaPublic Sector Enterprise with its headquarters in Mumbai that operates and manages vessels that services both national and international lines.

TCIL BAGS CCTV DEPLOYMENT DEAL FOR DELHI BUSES

elecom consultants India Limited (TCIL) has won the Delhi project worth Rs 128 crore that would be completed within a 12-month timeframe. It will deploy CCTV cameras, panic buttons and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) in 5500 Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and cluster buses. TCIL is a nodal agency registered under the aegis of the department of telecommunications (DoT). It provides its IT services to more than 54 countries in Africa and has a presence in over 70 countries globally and had previously submitted a plan to clean Ganga, as a part of the National Mission for Clean

Ganga. TCIL had emerged as the lowest bidder for this project. The deployment of cameras is one of the election promises of Kejariwal-headed Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). The government would at least 10 panic buttons and 3 CCTV cameras in each bus in addition to setting up of a command centre to monitor on-board activities in real-time. Upon a pressing a button, a signal will be sent to law enforcement agencies, which will then ensure safety inside these

buses. The Delhi government had rst come with this proposal in November last year. However, at that time, it had failed to move ahead with this project because of inappropriate responses from the prospective bidders on certain norms.

GAIL HAS OFFERED UP TO 10 LNG CARGOES FOR LOADING IN THE US to early 2021. It has also offered seven cargoes for loading from the Cove Point plant, with four of them loading next year over April 25-27, July 27-29, Aug. 27-29 and Dec. 11-20.

as Authority India Limited (GAIL) has offered its cargoes through its Singapore subsidiary on a free-onboard basis from the Sabine Pass and Cove Point LNG plants and will be priced on a Henry Hub basis. GAIL has offered up to 10 liqueed natural gas (LNG) cargoes for loading in the United States (US) over early 2020

The other cargoes will load in 2021 over Jan. 21-30, Feb. 11-20 and Feb 21-28. GAIL has 20-year deals to buy 5.8 million tonnes a year of US LNG, split between Dominion Energy's Cove Point plant and Cheniere Energy's Sabine Pass facility in Louisiana. B C Tripathi, Managing Director, GAIL said that the company sends most of its US LNG supplies back to India and sells the rest into the spot market. All the LNG will eventually be shipped to India when

more gas pipelines and re-gasication terminals are completed. Gail (India) Limited (GAIL) (formerly known as GAS AUTHOUITY OF INDIA LTD) is Government of India undertaking company. Gail is the largest state-owned natural gas processing and distribution company in India. It is headquartered in New Delhi. It is a state-owned enterprise of the Government of India, under the administrative control of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

Honoring Industry Associations That demonstrate excellence The Exemplary Association Awards 2020 ("EAA") are designed to recognise the contribution of professional and trade associations in India and felicitate its distinguished achievers. It is now for the ďŹ rst time ever that a worthwhile effort is being taken to acknowledge the excellence of various associations across the country in the most holistic manner. The Exemplary Association Awards will be held in two parts every year. This version of EAA which is being held along with the Exhibition Excellence Awards 2020 is restricted for TRADE ASSOCIATIONS. There are 15 categories for trade associations.

1. Excellence In Convention

2. Excellence In Exhibition

3. Excellence In Events 5. Excellence In Service

4. Mega Quality Award

6. Excellence In Value Creation

7. Excellence In Innovation

8. Excellence In Sustainability

9. Excellence In Industry Promotion 10. Excellence In Content Creation 11. Excellence In Advocacy 12. Excellence In Education & Training 13. Excellence In Research 14. Excellence In Outreach Initiatives 15. Exemplary Industry Commitment

Esteemed jury panel

Amaresh Tiwari Vice Chairman ICPB

Subhash Goyal Hon. Secretary FAITH

Randhir Vikram Singh President Federation Hospitality And Tourism of Rajasthan (FHTR)

Sanjeev Pasricha Executive Vice President EEMA

Girish Kwatra CEO Meetings & More

Monimita Sarkar Chander Mansharamani Managing Director Managing Director, Alpcord Network KW Conferences

Samir Kalia Managing Director MCI Group - India

Ravi Khosla Additional Director Exhibition Showcase