India - Partner In Growth
Welcome to the July 25, 2017  bulletin of key policy decisions and high-impact news, presented by the Embassy of India, Washington DC.
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KEY POLICY DECISIONS
India's Cabinet Expands Community Welfare Fund for Diaspora 
The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, last week approved revisions to the Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF) guidelines that seek to expand the scope of welfare measures for overseas Indian nationals in emergency situations. The revised guidelines cover three areas: assisting overseas Indian nationals in situations of distress, community welfare activities and improvement in consular services. Established in 2009, the ICWF has supported Indian nationals during emergency evacuations or in conflict zones including Libya, Yemen and South Sudan.   


ONGC Acquires HPCL in First Step to Merge State-Owned Oil Companies
India's Union Cabinet signed off on Oil and Natural Gas Corp.'s (ONGC) proposal to acquire the state-owned refiner Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd. (HPCL), in a move seen as the first step in the government's plan to merge state-owned oil companies. The plan - first proposed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley - aims to increase efficiencies by merging the 11 government oil companies and creating a more cohesive, competitive firm.

 
Finance Minister Issues National Trade Facilitation Action Plan 
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley last week released the National Trade Facilitation Action Plan (NTFAP), which seeks to improve the ease of doing business in India. NTFAP will transform the cross-border clearance ecosystem by reducing cargo release time and cost, promoting a digital regulatory environment, implementing a transparent legal regime, and improving and building better infrastructure.

 
Government Launches New Exchange Traded Fund
India's Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Modi, authorized an alternative mechanism to create an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF). The ETF will impact divestment decisions as they relate to Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) and government-owned banks, financial institutions and insurance companies.

 
India's IRDAI Joins International Association of Insurance Supervisors
India's Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDAI) was designated a signatory to the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), according to a multilateral Memorandum of Understanding that was approved by Prime Minister Modi's Union Cabinet. The decision came as financial markets become increasingly integrated and the need for greater cooperation and information exchange between insurance industry supervisors grows.

 
HIGH-IMPACT NEWS
Ram Nath Kovind Elected President of India
Ram Nath Kovind was elected President of India on July 20, winning more than 65 percent of the votes in the Electoral College. The former governor of the state of Bihar, Kovind will be India's fourteenth president and is the first member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to be elected to the office. 

 
India's Mahindra to Double US Investment, Jobs
Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., an Indian multinational auto manufacturing company, announced its plans to double its investment in the US over a five-year period, spending $1 billion to strengthen its brand in America. The move will also double Mahindra's US employment to approximately 5,000 people, with company Chairman Anand Mahindra saying, "We believe in America."

Indian Students Win Awards at First-Ever Global Robotics Competition 
A group of seven Indian students won two awards at the FIRST Global Challenge, a global robotics competition held over three days in Washington, DC, with participants from 157 countries. India's Mumbai-based team - with their "Neutrino" robot - won gold for the Zhang Heng Engineering Design Award and bronze for the Global Challenge Match.   


Economist: India's GDP Could Reach $8 Trillion By 2032 
India's gross domestic product (GDP) could rise to $8 trillion over the next 15 years if the country grows at an annual rate of 8 percent, said Arvind Panagariya, professor of economics at Columbia University and Vice-Chairman of the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog). India grew nine percent annually over the past 15 years and, coupled with recent "big ticket reforms" such as the Goods and Services Tax (GST), Panagariya said India can grow its current GDP from $2.3 trillion and come closer to "eliminating abject poverty entirely." 


US Envoy Reiterates US-India 'Natural Partnership' on Innovation 
America sees India as a natural partner in innovation and Washington is committed to working with New Delhi to continue to grow an entrepreneurial ecosystem in India, said MaryKay Carlson, US Chargé d'Affaires in India. Speaking to graduates of "Nexus" - the US government-funded program that promotes entrepreneurship in India - Carlson listed partnerships such as the US-India Science and Technology Endowment Fund that highlight the strategic convergence between the two countries.  



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