India - Partner In Growth
Welcome to the August 1, 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
Defense Ministry Empowers Armed Forces to Cut 'Red Tape' 
The Ministry of Defense recently granted increased autonomy to India's Armed Forces. The military's top brass can now place orders, procure equipment and carry out civil works without Ministry approval in order to expedite the decision-making for modernizing airbases and defense installations' security.    


Government Launches 'Sagar Vani' Coastal Alert System
India's newly-launched "Sagar Vani" system aims to provide further protection to the country's coastal communities by issuing alerts and advisories about rising tides, dangerous waters and other threats along the coast. With access to platforms including email, radio and TV broadcasts, social media, text messages and phone calls, the system will enable stakeholders such as state fishery departments and disaster management authorities to spread alerts within their own networks.

 
Deadline for Filing Income Tax Returns Extended to Aug. 5 
India's Income Tax Department (ITD) extended the filing deadline for income tax returns to Aug. 5, citing technical difficulties experience by some citizens using the online system. The ITD also noted an 11.9 percent increase in advance tax payments received this year as compared to last year.

 
Coal India Ltd. Invites Power Producers to Register for Coal Linkage Auction
State-owned Coal India Ltd. (CIL) invited independent power producers to participate in its coal linkage auction, also known the "Scheme for Harnessing and Allocating Koyala Transparently in India," or SHAKTI. According to CIL's notice, interested parties must register by Aug. 7. 

 
Bill Praises 'IIITs,' Calls for Greater Public-Private Collaboration
India's Parliament, or Rajya Sabha, recently passed a bill declaring 15 Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIIT) "institutions of national importance." The bill - the IIIT (Public-Private Partnership) Bill, 2017 - also calls for establishing IIITs through collaboration, in which the federal government, state governments and industry partners could share investments and costs.

 
HIGH-IMPACT NEWS
Trump Administration Report: India, US Are 'Natural Partners'
India and the US are "natural partners" on a range of political, economic and security issues, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in a joint report submitted to the US Congress. "We see a growing convergence with India on our strategic outlook for the region," the Report - the first of its kind from the Trump administration - said. 

 
PM Modi Inaugurates Memorial for Former President APJ Kalam
Marking the second death anniversary of former president APJ Abdul Kalam, Prime Minister Modi introduced a new memorial honoring the late leader in his hometown of Rameswaram. The prime minister said a fitting tribute for Kalam would be developing India "in all spheres" by the country's 75th Independence Day in 2022. 

Modi Invites Ideas for Next Speech, To Be Submitted via 'NM App' 
In advance of his Aug. 15 speech, Prime Minister Modi called on citizens to submit ideas for topics of discussion using the Narendra Modi (NM) App. The prime minister stressed, "When I address the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort on 15 August, I am merely the medium. The voice is of 125 crore Indians." 


BRICS Countries Applaud India's GST Reform 
Revenue and tax experts from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) hailed India's new Goods and Services Tax (GST), expressing enthusiasm for India's efforts to bring about "this major reform." Held in late July in Hangzhou, China, the meeting's Indian delegation was led by Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia. 


Minister: India to See 600 Million Broadband Subscribers by 2020 
India's Minister for Communications Manoj Sinha predicted the country will have 600 million broadband subscribers by 2020, an increase from March 2017's 422.19 million subscribers. He added that the government's BharatNet project aims to provide greater connectivity to areas throughout the country using fiber optic cables, traditional power lines and other measures.   



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