Embassy's Weekly e-Bulletin on Key Policy Decisions and High Impact News

Greetings from the Embassy of India in Washington D.C.!

Welcome to the July 13, 2018, edition of our weekly newsletter, bringing you important policy and high-impact news about India.

I hope you find it useful.

-- Shambhu Hakki, First Secretary, Press, Information and Culture

KEY POLICY DECISIONS

U.S. Defense Secretary Mattis Assures Indian Defense Minister Sitharaman

U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis has written to Indian Defense Minister Nirmala Sitharaman assuring her that Washington's decision to postpone the 2+2 dialogue is not aimed at signaling a lower priority to the Indo-U.S. relationship.

India OKs Net Neutrality Rules

Internet access in India will remain unfettered with the Government accepting the telecom regulator's recommendations to introduce one of the strongest net neutrality protections in the world, a move that will help consumers and startups.

Govt. Sets Up Separate Wing to Monitor E-commerce FDI

In the middle of ongoing discussions on the rollout of an e-commerce policy, Government officials have proposed to create a special group to keep a check on any violation of its foreign direct investment (FDI) policy by online retail platforms.

Digital India: 2021 Census Data to be Stored Electronically

SEBI Eases Way for Foreign Investors into Indian Businesses

Local business houses and financial services groups will find it easier to acquire foreign partners to carry out fund management activities in India with the capital market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), clearing the fog caused by a new rule.

HIGH-IMPACT NEWS

Make-in-India Win: Samsung Sets Up World's Biggest Mobile Phone Factory in India

Samsung Electronics opened the world's largest mobile phone factory in India, in a win for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's flagship Make-in-India program to lure investors to manufacture there. The factory, located at the outskirts of Delhi, will double Samsung's Noida unit capacity for mobile phones to 120 million units a year from 68 million units a year.

Google's 'CapitalG' Investment Unit Backs India Startup

The investment unit of Google's parent Alphabet Inc. is backing yet another startup based in India. CapitalG, which was formerly known as Google Capital, recently led the $21.5 million series C round of funding for Aye Finance, which helps India's small business owners to gain greater access to working capital and credit.

Indian-American Tapped as Senior Adviser to U.S. Senate Leader

Indian-American Jay Khosla has been appointed by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to head the Republican leader's economic policy team. Khosla, who was the staff director for the Senate Finance Committee, will serve as the chief economic policy counsel to McConnell (R-Ky.)

Disney's Next 700 Million Viewers Might Be in India

Disney's bet on Fox could soon give it a vast TV network and the leading video streaming service in a market of more than 1 billion people. If its blockbuster deal to buy most of 21st Century Fox goes through, Disney will gain a new audience of more than 700 million people in India, one of the world's hottest media markets.

GE, Boeing Win Big in Vistara Airline's Jetliner Order

India's Vistara airlines will buy 19 Boeing and Airbus aircraft, powered by General Electric jet engines for a combined $3.1 billion. Boeing will supply six 787-9 Dreamliners.

TRANSFORMING INDIA

Green India: Country's 1st Plastic Buyback Program Set to Launch

To ensure recycling of plastics that are not banned, the state of Maharashtra is set to implement a buyback program for plastic bottles and milk pouches. Maharashtra is the first in India to implement a buyback depository system.

Have a business problem with India you need fixed?

Email us at: [email protected] or [email protected]