Think India Foundation

Maharashtra regulator suggests water trading

The proposal allows farmers to sell 50% of quota to other farmers if they feel they can’t use it fully

The Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority (MWRRA), an autonomous body that decides issues related to tariffs and allocation of water, has published a draft paper and is inviting public comments on its controversial recommendation to allow trading of water within the agriculture sector.

The paper argues that the move will promote efficiencies in water usage. The paper states that farmers can be allowed to sell 50% of the allocated quota to other farmers if they feel they are not in a position to use the entire quota. For example, if farmer A has been allocated a quota of 10,000 litres of water per day from dam B, and he feels he can utilize only 7,000 litres of water per day, he may sell the rest of his quota to other farmers. But the sale of water should not exceed 50% of the quota, which implies that farmer A would not be able to sell more than 5,000 litres of water in this case. Read more

Source : livemint.com

Retail biggies now chase online consumers

Rising real estate costs have forced them to start Web stores

NEW DELHI : After turning urban Indians into mall-rats, the Big Daddies of retail are wooing India's growing population of Internet users for additional revenues. Almost all major retailers have in the last six-eight months launched or are in the process of launching their online business.

Retailers hope to tap the youth market through online format

Just last week, More, the retail arm of the Aditya Birla Group, set up a virtual store called Moremegabuys.com. It showcases deals in 32 different product categories. Tata-owned Croma, a part of Infiniti Retail, says it will be launching its online format shortly, while Shopper's Stop is looking at adding a shopping option on its Facebook page. Early mover Future Group-promoted FutureBazaar is targeting a daily sales of Rs one crore from its portal. Read more

Source : thehindubusinessline.com

Delhi team hears Bhadra vendors’ woes in Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad : Development happens at a cost. The restoration work of Bhadra has started, but it has affected the business of several street vendors and taxi drivers. A team from New Delhi conducted a field visit of Bhadra fort area on Monday and heard the grievances of the street vendors.

General secretary of Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) Khurshid Saiyed wrote about the problem of the Bhadra fort to Cultural, Housing and Poverty Alleviation minister of government of India, Kumari Shailaja. Following this, the nodal officer from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, government of India, Capt Subrata Mukhopadhyay was sent to check the situation of the Bhadra development work and hear the grievances of the vendors. Read more

Source : dnaindia.com

IIM Shillong to send bureaucrats to China

GUWAHATI: Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Shillong is rolling out an advanced management programme for bureaucrats in the northeastern states in collaboration with Ocean University of China, from February 17 this year.

To begin with, nearly 20 bureaucrats from Meghalaya will be trained in China on the Chinese way of doing business. IIM plans to cover other states in a phased manner. Read more

Source : articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com

Focus on providing urban amenities in rural India: APJ Kalam

NEW DELHI: To become an economically developed nation by 2020, India needs to focus on sustainable development of villages by providing urban amenities in rural areas (PURA), former President A P J Abdul Kalam said today.

"The development of 6,00,000 villages is vital for developed India. The foundation of sustainable development of rural areas is PURA which means providing urban amenities in rural areas," Kalam said after inaugurating the second Global Agri-business Incubation Conference here. Read more

Source : articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com

Nehru Place traders want squatters out, shut down

New Delhi: The shopkeepers at Nehru Place - India's biggest computer goods market - partially closed down services on Wednesday to protest against unregulated vendors, encroachments and lack of cleanliness in the area.

The shops were shut between 10am and 12am and shopkeepers shouted slogans against the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), the civic agency responsible to maintain the infrastructure and sanitation in the market. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Hospitality majors use mobile apps to boost biz

Such apps help customers make hotel bookings, get directions using GPS navigation, check facilities and enjoy special offers

Hyderabad : Aiming to attract customers on-the-go, mobile applications (apps) and user-friendly mobile sites have become extremely important for hotels and restaurants.

In fact, many claim that mobile apps are opening up a whole new field by enabling bookings at the press of a button, especially for same-day stays. Such apps are an easy way for customers to book a stay, get directions using GPS navigation, check hotel facilities and can even be used to promote special offers using push notifications. With smartphone penetration reaching 10 million last year and Indian research company, IMRB suggesting that one out of three urban Indian internet user has access to a mobile phone application, the hospitality sector is eager to cash in on these latest technologies. Read more

Source : business-standard.com

Franchising offers promise to start-ups in F&B space

One of the most promising ways to build a successful business in the food and beverage space is through franchising

The mushrooming of restaurants of varied hues, in nearly every corner of urban India, attests to the ease of starting these businesses. As other experts in this paper have written about, Indians are eating out at least once a month and appear to have a great preference for Indian food. Moreover, while fine dining restaurants are doing well in pockets, it is quick service restaurants that are doing roaring business, given the value for money that they offer. The good news for such businesses is that this opportunity is by no means confined to the metros alone but stretches to smaller cities. Read more

Source : livemint.com

$1b govt-backed VC to foster poor-centric startups

To convert innovation into commerce, particularly in farm, water, healthcare and education, the government has in principle decided to set up a $1 billion (about Rs 5,000 crore) venture fund for new services and products that promise to bring about a see- change in the lives of poor.

Sam Pitroda, adviser to the prime minister on public information, infrastructure and innovation, said on Monday the fund would foster to foster innovation across sectors and states. Read more

Source : mydigitalfc.com

E-commerce poised for a leap in 2012

After the social media revolution, is e-commerce the next big thing in India? Recent reports indicate so. Online retailers have registered an average 18 per cent growth this year, but are they prepared to handle the influx of online shoppers? The year 2012 may come as a year of surprises to cynics of the industry who believe that online shopping cannot become an Indian reality. The argument that is often given is that buying behaviour of Indian consumers is non-virtual.

The first report that showed data contrary to this argument was the Internet data released by IMRB and IAMAI. The report claimed that the number of Internet users has touched the 100-million mark and is likely to grow exponentially. The number of active Internet users has reached inflection point. But has this growth also translated into growth of online shoppers? Latest figures say so. A recent pan-India report released by comScore Inc reveals that online shopping in India has touched a growth rate of 18 per cent and is only likely to grow further. The report found that nearly 60 per cent of netizens in India visited a retail site in November 2011, with the number of online shoppers increasing by 18 per cent in the past year. Read more

Source : exchange4media.com

Solar gear makers seek policy relief as Chinese imports hurt

New Delhi (PTI) : Faced with stiff competition from Chinese players, and under utilised capacities, domestic solar equipment makers are in talks with the government for "policy interventions" to cushion their business against shocks.

Low-cost equipment supplies from countries such as China and Taiwan are impacting domestic manufacturers, even as things are promising on generation side, according to solar panel makers. Read more

Source : news.in.msn.com

Business summit to boost trade in Mangalore

MANGALORE: The Coastal Business Development Summit - a golden opportunity forentrepreneurs to invest in Mangalore, Udupi and Karwar districts - has been organized at T V Ramana Pai Convention Centre here on January 4 and 5. 

The Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry in association with department of industries and commerce, department of infrastructure development, state NRI Forum and Coastal Development Authority has organized the summit to showcase the strength and motivate the existing enterprises and to attract new entrepreneurs in coastal districts for investments in industry and trade. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Slow down, India!

We are too wound up, at work and home. The state of the nation adds to the stress. Take it easy and have a healthy 2012!

The year 2011 is wrapped up. All wrapped up on a cold December morning. Ready to be buried. It's time to take stock of what went into it in marketing terms. What, then, were the trends that defined the calendar year 2011 in marketing and brand terms?

Here goes. Read more

Source : thehindubusinessline.com

Gujarat growth on right track, top economist Bhagwati tells babus

GANDHINAGAR: Jagdish Bhagwati, one of the best known economists in the world who advocates free trade, told top state IAS and IPS babus on Saturday that Gujarat's economic growth will automatically lead to development of the social sector, in which it still lags behind other states, and there is nothing to worry on this score.

Even as endorsing the Gujarat model, continuing for the last two decades, Bhagwati rejected the argument that Kerala suggested the way the social sector should develop. Kerala began with a high pedestal of social growth, one reason why its social sector remains strong. On the other hand, Gujarat began on a low pedestal, he added. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Some cheer for street vendors in offing

New scheme in 12th Plan to facilitate street vending

There is some good news for street vendors. The Centre is working to launch a scheme in the coming 12th Five-Year Plan period to facilitate street vending.

The scheme will have provisions for supporting development of vendor markets and vending zones, registration of street vendors, and facilitation of access to credit, besides demarcation of vending spaces. Read more

Source : thehindu.com

Central government to commission four hub ports

MUMBAI: The central government will commission four hub ports on the west and east coast of the country as part of the national maritime agenda to increase trade and port capacity at indian shores.

" The government will commission two hub ports on the east coast at Chennai Port and Visakhapatnam Port and will also develop them on the west coast at Jawaharlal Nehru Port and Cochin Port to receive the 13,500 + TEU (twenty-feet equivalent units) containerships", union minister for shipping, GK Vasan said. Read more

Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com

Smoke and mirrors

How many livelihoods are lost, will depend on the rate of growth of the economy and the speed of penetration by retailers.

At the centre of the storm of protest that arose over the cabinet’s decision to allow FDI in multi-brand retailing, lay one question: will it cause a loss of employment, not to mention the investment made in about 15 million stores and kiosks by the petty bourgeoisie? Read more

Source : deccanherald.com

Online shopping: A big small-town fad

Bangalore : Last Friday, Srikala KR finally brought home the convection microwave oven she had been eyeing for a long time.

Her purchase was delayed since the outlets near her home in Maddur, a small town between Bangalore and Mysore, didn’t stock the particular model from a Korean electronics giant. Read more

Source : dnaindia.com

In India,40% of search and 67% of e-commerce is mobile,says Google

An astounding 40 percent of all Google searches in India are conducted using mobile phones, according to Google India managing director Rajan Anandan, and 67 percent of e-commerce happens on mobile devices, reports the Business Standard.

These numbers were revealed by Anandan during Confluence 2011, a three-day business seminar organised by the prestigious Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in Ahmedabad. The 40 percent figure is especially striking, in light of the fact that only 14 percent of search queries in the USA, 11 percent in Russia and 6 percent in the UK are run from mobile phones. Read more

Source : thenextweb.com

No of users transacting online to be 39 mn by '15

New Delhi: As Internet penetration is increasing and e-commerce becoming more secure, the number of people transacting online is expected to touch 39 million by 2015, says a study.

According to the study by financial services firm Avendus, this will also provide a further fillip to the Indian e-commerce market which is estimated to grow to USD 24 billion by 2015 from USD 6.3 billion now. Read more

 

 

Source : zeenews.india.com

Opening up retail sector to create over 10 m jobs: Sharma

New Delhi : The Centre on Friday said that its decision to further liberalise retail trade will in turn help in generating around 10 million jobs in the next three years. The move will also help attract several big-ticket investments worth “billions of dollars”, it said.

The Union Cabinet had on Thursday permitted 51 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail trade with Government approval and 100 per cent FDI in single brand retail. The existing policy had prohibited FDI in multi-brand retail and allowed only 51 per cent FDI in single brand retail. Read more

Source : thehindubusinessline.com

Kochi catches up with big four centres of capital trade market on NSE

KOCHI: Major metros like Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkota still dominate the capital market trade in the country. But the data on city-wise trade from National Stock Exchange (NSE) throw up some interesting results.

Kochi has emerged as one of the top centres of capital market trade in the country occupying fifth position among all the cities in the country. The first four positions are occupied by Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Ahmedabad. Read more

Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com

Broadband user base still has a long way to go

Industry analysts say lagging numbers have a bearing on growth

Internet users in India have crossed the 100-million mark, still distant from China’s nearly 500 million and the 250 million or so in the US, but experts are buoyant about prospects in cyberspace even as low broadband penetration and poor online payment and distribution channels persist as hurdles.

Despite the optimism in the industry, there is a consensus that unless broadband numbers and speeds increase, meaningful commerce on the Internet will not happen in India. Read more

Source : livemint.com

Improve infra in NE for trade: Meghalaya CM

New Delhi: The markets for the North-eastern region historically and geographically lie in India's neighbouring countries and these need to be rebuilt with appropriate trade protocols and improvement of infrastructure, Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma said on Saturday.

Addressing the National Development Council meeting, Sangma said basic infrastructure such as communication, power, etc to the existing land custom stations in the region is urgently required as this will provide an impetus for development of trade with Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. Read more

Source : zeenews.india.com

Gujarat lags behind in e-commerce, slips in rank

Mumbai/Ahmedabad : Logistical constraints and lack of broadband connectivity in non-urban areas of Gujarat seems to have caused a decline in the state's ranking as a top e-commerce hub in the country.

According to the census report by e-commerce major, eBay, Gujarat's rank has slipped from fourth in 2010 to seventh in 2011 after Rajasthan, which stood sixth gaining from 13th position in 2010. Read more

Source : business-standard.com

Gurgaon grief

Now for the next shake-up in the global labour market

AS THE DELHI metro snakes its way out of the crowded south of the city the scene turns more rural, with the occasional water buffalo, schoolgirls playing hopscotch outside a village school and crudely built brick houses. But by the time the train draws up to the suburb of Gurgaon, the cacophony of urban India is heard once again.

Twenty years ago Gurgaon was farmland. Now it is a sea of villas, shopping malls, office blocks and apartment buildings with names like Beverly Park and Oakwood Estate. The metro hoardings advertise the best places to buy officewear or the Lovely Professional University’s record for getting people into jobs. On a busy Friday the roads are crammed with honking Tata Sumos, the local sports-utility vehicle. Many drivers are on their way home after a night working the American shift. Read more

Source : economist.com

Razing crops to raise buildings: Be prepared for higher imports and inflation

Farms are disappearing in India. In the last decade, two million hectares of farm land - equal to Kerala's entire arable area - has been lost to industrialisation and urbanisation. More will be sold after new land acquisition laws are introduced by states. But why are farmers in such a rush to sell? Is it old-fashioned greed? Or do they know something city slickers don't? ET helps you join the dots.

We all know crop prices will rise as food, feed and fuel demand rises with growing population and incomes. Across the world, higher crop prices have made farm land more precious. During 2010 alone, land values rose by 13% in the UK, 8% in US corn-growing belt and 24% in Brazil's sugarcane-growing Sao Paulo state, according to the Knight Frank Farmland Index. In India, the equation is not so simple. Despite high crop prices, farmer returns are declining because the cost of cultivation, especially wages, is rising faster. Mechanisation is expensive. Small and marginal farmers unable to invest in new technology are the worst hit. Erratic weather is increasing risks for rain-fed farms that add up to 60% of total farmland. Read more

Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com

Indian shoppers turn to premium goods

NEW DELHI: A trend towards "premiumisation" means many Indian consumer goods manufacturers and retailers are now adapting their portfolios and strategies.

Hindustan Unilever, the FMCG specialist, has observed rapid shifts in shopper behaviour as a result of rising wealth levels, according to R Sridhar, the firm's chief financial officer. Read more

Source : warc.com

Gujarat eyes Japanese firms interested in Rajasthan

Jaipur: Gujarat may have made great strides in many areas, but Rajasthan has scored well in attracting Japanese investment to the state. But now Gujarat is keeping tabs on the Japanese investment en route to Rajasthan and it has approached to Japan external trade organisation (JETRO) assuring to provide the best facilities to the Japanese companies willing to ride on Gujarat bandwagon.

"Many states, like Karnataka and especially Gujarat have approached us and have assured to provide basic infrastructure and all possible facilities for setting up industrial units there. Presently, most of the Japanese companies are finding Neemrana, Khushkhera and Bhiwadi as most suitable places for investment," said Masaki Ida, chief director general, JETRO. Read more

Source : daily.bhaskar.com

Jet Airways to explore flight services from Surat city

SURAT: There is some good news for the high flying Surtis. Jet Airways has shown interest in starting domestic flight services from the diamond city, connecting Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore and other important destinations.

A delegation of Jet Airways India Limited led by its executive director, Saroj Dutta is scheduled to visit Surat on July 29 to gauge the possibility of starting domestic flight services from Surat airport. Dutta and his team will hold meetings with representatives from trade and industry including textile and diamond sectors. They will also meet the office-bearers of Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SGCCI). Official sources said Dutta confirmed his visit to the diamond city during the Indian Merchants Chamber`s (IMC) managing committee meeting in Mumbai on Friday, which was attended by president of SGCCI, Rohit Mehta. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Surat fourth fastest growing city in world

SURAT: The diamond city's glitter has been noticed by the world. Surat ranks fourth in a global study of fastest developing cities conducted by The City Mayors Foundation, an international think tank on urban affairs.

Ghaziabad stands at number two after Beihai in Southern China, which has the stupendous average annual growth rate of 10.58 per cent for 2006 to 2020. Ghaziabad's growth rate is given as 5.20 per cent. The City Mayors Foundation went by assumed annual growth rates for cities and urban areas between 2006 and 2020 based on past growth/decline and forecasts by international and national statistics organizations. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Our Techno Culture Is Creating Dangerous Digital Dumps of E-Waste

The global trade in e-waste is huge and growing, and is only partly illegal even though there have been attempts to regulate it

I teach in a University in New Delhi, the capital city of India. In one section of the building that houses my faculty, there is an enormous and motley collection of discarded computer-related items, stacked and piled in an unwieldy mess. This has been lying around for a while now, more than a year, not only because of the prolonged bureaucratic procedures involved in getting material “written off”, but also because no one knows what to do with the stuff once it has actually been written off.

It is a sight that that is increasingly only too common in urban India, and now even in some more prosperous rural areas of the country: ramshackle piles of dismembered pieces of discarded electronic equipment such as computers, CD players, televisions and cell phones lying around in the odd corners of offices and homes. Or else simply dumped in the open in garbage heaps, and then being painstakingly searched through by rag-pickers of all ages, who look for any elements that can be resold. Read more

Source : alternet.org

India likely to be largest economy by 2050: Blake

US Assistant Secretary of State (Bureau of South and central Asian affairs) Robert O Blake on Friday said the future of Indian economy seems very bright and the country is likely to become the world's third largest economy by 2030, and the largest by 2050.

He added, "The incredible growth of India's economy has resulted in positive spillover effect for the US between 2002-2009, US goods exports to India quadrupled, growing from USD 4.1 billion to more than USD 16.4 billion in 2009." Read more

Source : moneycontrol.com

India, Bangladesh plan to connect their borders through rail and road

New Delhi: Carrying forward the vision of maintaining peace at the border areas and promoting cross-border bilateral trade, India and Bangladesh are working towards connecting their borders through rail and road.

The two Asian neighbours, who are working towards connecting the borders through rail and road and promote trade and tourism, have finally given a go ahead to the 15 km long Akhaura Agartala rail project via Ganganagar. This project has been approved for Rs 267 crores. Read more

Source : dailyindia.com

Can India emerge as the World's third largest economy?

Bangalore: It is well known fact that, India is the next close competitor to China in terms of economic growth and the speed at which the growth rate is increasing, it is said that India will be the third largest economy in the World. Standard Chartered through one of its surveys predicts that by 2030, India will out beat China but there are many pitfalls that India has to face before it reaches that stature. Regulatory burden, infrastructure bottlenecks, high oil prices and slowdown in foreign direct investment could be the main hurdles that India will have to face.

According to Gerard Lyons, Chief Economist and group head, global research, Standard Chartered Bank, the world is going through its third 'super-cycle', which is referred to as a period of historically high global growth, lasting a generation or more. He said the growth will be driven by increased trade, high rates of investment, urbanization and technological innovation which only the large and new economies can sustain. He said that only countries which have abundance of cash or commodities will make it to the third super cycle and the balance of economic and financial power will be shifted from the West to the East. Read more

Source: siliconindia.com

India will grow faster than China in next 20 years: Standard Chartered

MUMBAI: India is likely to emerge as the world's third-largest economy by 2030 and grow faster, on an average, than China over the next two decades, says the Standard Chartered report India in the Super Cycle. However, regulatory burden, infrastructure bottlenecks, high oil prices and slowdown in foreign direct investment could affect growth. 

"We factor in a trend rate of growth of 6.9% for China, allowing for setbacks along the way, and 9.3% for India, again taking into account the business cycle," said Gerard Lyons, chief economist and group head, global research, Standard Chartered Bank. Read more

Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com

India slips one rank in world competitiveness

New Delhi : India slipped one rank, to 32nd position in overall competitiveness among 59 nations, according to the ‘World Competitiveness Rankings’, announced today by the International Institute for Management Development, Lausanne (Switzerland).

The recovery of financial markets pushed the US and Hong Kong to first place, followed by last year’s topper, Singapore, which fell to third spot. In 2010, the US and Hong Kong ranked second and third, respectively. Read more

Source: business-standard.com

 

Environmental clearance issues hold up Rs 10,000-cr ports' project

NEW DELHI/AHMEDABAD: The Indian port sector is facing choppy waters as big-ticket expansion projects worth close to Rs 10,000 crore have been stranded, awaiting environment clearances.

The major port projects stuck due to environmental clearance include the Rs 3,600-crore container terminal project at Chennai, Rs 400-crore coal terminal at Marmagao Port, Rs 721-crore project for iron ore export at Marmagao port that is being built as a public-private partnership projects and projects worth Rs 1,000 crore at Paradip. In Gujarat, Kandla Port, too, has one project worth 1,000 crore awaiting environmental clearance. Read more

Source: articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com

CCI approves dry bulk terminal near Tuna at Kandla in Gujarat

The Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure (CCI) today approved a project for developing a dry bulk terminal off Tekra near Tuna on a build, operate, transfer (BOT) basis at Kandla Port Trust (KPT) in Gujarat at an estimated cost of Rs 1060 crore.

An official press release said the project envisaged construction, operation and maintenance of an off-shore berthing structure with four berthing faces by single BOT operator for a license period of 30 years. Read more

Source: netindian.in

 

Government of India Signs Loan Agreement Worth $150 Million for e-Delivery of Public Services Development Policy Loan

The Government of India and the World Bank today signed a Loan Agreement of $150 million for the e-Delivery of Public Services Development Policy Loan under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), a flagship e-governance initiative of the Government of India aimed at transforming the service delivery system across the country.

The Agreement was signed by the representatives from the Government of India and the World Bank. The signatories to the Agreement were MrVenu Rajamony, Joint Secretary (MI), on behalf of the Government of India and Mr Roberto Zagha, Country Director, World Bank, India. Read more

Source: pib.nic.in

 

What Will Delhi Look Like in 2050?

A model of the ‘Culture Loop’ scenario made with reusable materials.

Courtesy archi-i

A swelling population, high crime rates, and increasing pressure on resources like water are likely to evoke doomsday scenarios in people’s minds when they picture Delhi in 2050.

But a group of Delhi-based architects decided to look at the brighter side–and at how the city could improve between now and then if it embraces one of several models they came up with.

“While others have already given up on the city and its river, we thought as optimists,” said Dutch architect Anne Feenstra, who led archi - i, the team behind the “Delhi 2050” project. Read more

Source: blogs.wsj.com

 

H5N1 to grow more in 6 countries including India

Bird flu, the lethal disease, has claimed a huge number of lives across the globe, till now and followed by many health measures. Consequently, a report from the United Nation’s body, FAO, may afraid the natives of a few Asian countries, including India, that has revealed that the contagiousavian flu virus, H5N1, which is the root cause of bird flu is still alive in these countries because of insanitary in their trade practices.

Further, Bangladesh, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia and Vietnam were marked more likely to develop the virus and the flu indeed and eradication of the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus from poultry in these countries can take approximately 10 or more years and will remain endemic. Read more

Source: topnews.us

 

Navigating Asia's new urban jungles

Everyone agrees that Asia is urbanizing rapidly, and that this trend will have a dramatic impact on economic development in the region. But unearthing tangible business opportunities in those markets will not be straightforward. Making money in and from Asia's cities is about to become a lot more complicated.

There are more Asian cities than outsiders tend to realize. Everyone has heard of Mumbai and Delhi, Beijing and Shanghai. But Johore Bharu in Malaysia, or Medan in Indonesia? The key to tapping urban wealth in Asia will be to look beyond first-tier megacities to the second tier of "middleweights" with populations of less than 10 million. Read more

Source: online.wsj.com

Govt mulls allowing major ports to issue tax-free bonds

Among the various ways being considered by the central government to raise Rs 5,000 crore from tax-free bonds for shipping ports, one is to allow major ports to themselves issue these.

“We are yet to take a final decision. Major ports are one of the options for raising the money,” said K Mohandas, secretary in the shipping ministry. Read More

Source: Business-Standard.com

India-Thailand to cooperate in infrastructure and food processing

Shri Anand Sharma, Union Minister for Commerce & Industry, in a business meeting with Mr. Abhisit Vejjajiva, Prime Minister of Thailand, here today, expressed optimism over the growing trade and investment between the two countries. Shri Sharma in his inaugural address stated that, “Economic engagement between the two countries paved the way for rapid economic liberalization and the implementation of the Early Harvest Scheme led to robust growth. Bilateral trade between India and Thailand has grown 6 fold in the last decade and touched US $ 6 billion last year, growing at over 30% from the previous year.” While reiterating India’s commitment to deepening integration with South-East Asia, he said that, “Enhancing the share of manufacturing in the GDP is a priority for India and Thailand can play a major role in enhancing the share of manufacturing as they have a proven expertise in the area and has a significant share in their GDP” . Read more

Source: logisticsweek.com

Experts don't see realty stocks standing tall

Image via Wikipedia

According to the BSE Realty indicates, real estate stocks are believed to have seen a return of investors appetite. However, real estate analysts Aatash Shah of Nomura India and Surajit Pal of Elara Capital, in an exclusive interview with CNBC-TV18’s Latha Venkatesh and Anuj Singhal says that do not see much building upon on the realty space.

Shah says “Until volumes come back into this market, the stocks are not really going to react in a sustainable manner upwards.” He observes that the volumes have gone down significantly in cities like Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai. He believes that volumes alone are the key to stock performance because the other stigma on corporate governance is likely to remain poor. Read more

Source: moneycontrol.com

 

To fight water crisis, entrepreneur seeks to ship it by boat

Nearly 90 percent of the consumption of the world’s fresh water supply is used for producing food and energy. In 20 years, water demand will exceed supply by 40 percent. Most water infrastructure is land-based and is tainted by manufacturing and agriculture.

What if water could be shipped from countries rich in water supply like Russia to areas that need water the most?

The man behind this idea: John Barbieri. The entrepreneur says he sees a business opportunity and wants to trade water in a similar way that oil is traded: transfer large volumes of the stuff from areas that have surplus to areas that have long-term water scarcity.

It’s a radical idea, but in these times, it’s just one of many appearing as leaders attempt to solve our global water crisis. Read More

Source: Smartplanet.com

U.K. to expand business links across emerging Indian cities

The Hindu Stephen Green, U.K. Minister for Trade and Investment, and Mike Nithavrianakis, British Deputy High Commissioner in southern India, at a press conference in Chennai on Friday. Photo: R. Ragu

As part of its ambition to double bilateral trade in 5 years. 

The United Kingdom will expand business links across emerging Indian cities in 2011-12 as part of its ambition of doubling bilateral trade with India over the next five years, U.K.'s Minister for Trade and Investment Stephen Green said on Friday.

Addressing a press conference here, Lord Stephen said that while bilateral trade was around pound sterling 11 billion in recession-hit 2009, the situation improved substantially in 2010. “We are keen on at least doubling bilateral trade with India in another five years.”

His visit to Chennai caps a week-long Indian tour involving interactions with Union Ministers of Commerce and Petroleum as well as businessmen and investors in Mumbai and Delhi. Read More

Source: Thehindu.com

India, US Govts give in-principle nod for $10-b infra debt fund

Provides the base for long-term finance of infrastructure projects by leveraging private capital.

The Governments of India and the US have given their in-principle nod for a proposal by industry captains of both countries to set up a $10-billion fund to finance core-sector projects in India.

“The (India-US) CEO Forum proposed a $10 billion India-US infrastructure debt fund. It has been agreed in-principle that the Governments (of India and the US) will be fully supportive of the recommendation. The Finance Minister (Mr Pranab Mukherjee) and the US Treasury Secretary (Mr Timothy Geithner) are directly discussing what modalities should be adopted to put in place an infrastructure debt fund. The details are being worked out by them,” the Union Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Anand Sharma, told reporters on the sidelines of a function organised by the CII.

Promising fund

Mr Sharma said the final figure of the fund can only be known once it is agreed between the two Governments. He said the fund will be exclusively for infrastructure projects, adding that, “Both the Governments and the businesses (of India and the US) will be involved in the fund. It is a public-private initiative.”

Mr Geithner said the idea of putting together an infrastructure fund was a very encouraging and useful development as it would not only provide the base for long term finance of infrastructure projects by leveraging private capital but also in some ways provide a bit of a catalyst for the broader development of the securities market and corporate finance market in India.

“In this (infrastructure debt) fund that the Finance Minister (Mr Mukherjee) and (Planning Commission Deputy Chairperson) Mr Montek Singh Ahluwalia are working on, I think, has a lot of promise, not just because of its specific benefits of the fund but as a way to help catalyse the type of regulatory changes that will allow the emergence of a broader and deeper capital market in India. It is a necessary part of India's growth strategy,” the US Treasury Secretary said.

Speaking at the CII function earlier, the Finance Minister, Mr Mukherjee, said India's fast growth has placed an increasing stress on its existing physical infrastructure such as electricity, railways, roads, ports, airports, irrigation, urban and rural water supply and sanitation, all of which suffer from a substantial capacity deficit.

$1-trillion Investment

India is looking at an investment of over $1 trillion in the core-sector in the 12th Five-Year Plan commencing April 1, 2012.

In the 11 th Plan (2007-08 to 2011-12), the investment requirement in infrastructure was around $514 billion, of which about 30 per cent was to be from the private sector. Mr Mukherjee said, in the 12 th Plan, the Government expects this contribution by the private sector to go up to 50 per cent, and, therefore, is encouraging public-private partnerships.

Mr Mukherjee invited American investments in India's infrastructure sector. “India presents exciting opportunity for global investors. The recovery of the benchmark market indices of India over the last two years has been quite rapid and supports this assessment,” he said.  

He said foreign direct investment flows into India has been robust in the last couple of years, despite the trend of a fall in global capital flows. Read More

Source: The Hindu

U.S. to advance cooperation with India in agriculture

 

PTI U.S. President Barack Obama visits an agriculture expo at St.Xavier's College in Mumbai on Sunday.

U.S. President Barack Obama on Sunday expressed interest in furthering cooperation with India in the field of agriculture, saying the country can be a model for the world that strives for food security.

The collaboration between the two countries also contributed to India’s first green revolution in the 60s, he said, adding: “I will be discussing with Prime Minister (Manmohan) Singh, how we can advance the cooperation in the 21st century, not only to benefit India, but to benefit the U.S. and the world.”

He shared his experiences about Indian agriculture with students at the St.Xavier's College here, after visiting two expos and interacting with villagers.

“I was with two expos that underscore the partnership we can make together. The first is focused on agriculture and food security, that they will see innovation in technology and research that has transformed the Indian farming,” he said.

Mr. Obama narrated how a farmer told him about receiving crop information on cellphone, while another showed him tools of appropriate size and weight helping women to improve productivity and said many of these innovations were a result of public and private collaboration between the U.S. and India. Read More

Source: The Hindu