INFRASTRUCTUREPhenomenal

Growth Prospects

BANKING & FINANCEStrengthening The Economy

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Striding The Globe

| 1 |

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C O N T E N T S2 0 2 1 - I N D I A & T H E W O R L D

14Curtain Raiser —

Davos Agenda

18Viewpoint:

STL

20Finance and

Banking

24Interview:Jindal Steel

26Foreign Direct

Investment

32Interview:

Uttar Pradesh

29Infrastructure

34InformationTechnology

54Interview:

Avaada Group

38Viewpoint:

Tech Mahindra

56Interview:

KIIT, Odisha

42Viewpoint:

Wipro

58Interview:

SREI

46Viewpoint:

Odisha Tourism

50Interview:The Leela

02CII

President’s Message

06CII

Director General’s Message

10CurtainRaiser

| 2 | | 3 |

MESSAGE FROM PRESIDENT, CII

India’s economic journey expected to reach newer heights

The past year has been like no other in recent history with the advent of a devastating pandemic that has upended normal life and economic activity across the world. With

unprecedented lockdowns at different times in different countries, the tentacles of recession hit most economies. Researchers raced to develop vaccines and as we step into 2021, many large economies including India have commenced the process of inoculating their populations, which is likely to take months.

Positive signs and new trends characterise the new world that we now find ourselves in. The key imperatives today are normalising lives, restoring livelihoods and reviving growth. Healthcare for all has gained mindspace with nations increasingly cognisant of the need to develop strong and inclusive systems to protect their citizens. Equally, digitalisation has emerged as the platform for many economic activities, be it to facilitate working from home, enabling e-commerce to supply goods and services, driving fintech or making machines more intelligent. Sustainability too is on the top of the agenda of nations now, with energy

transitions and green business creating new value. With rebalancing of economies, businesses are seeking new sources of growth. In this scenario, India has attained a viable position as a reliable and stable partner of choice. Bolstered by far-reaching new reform policies over the last few years, its economic journey is expected to reach newer heights as it recovers from the pandemic-induced growth contraction.

To counter the slowdown, India instituted a stimulus package amounting to 15% of its GDP through targeted measures for vulnerable sections of society, stressed enterprises and liquidity infusion. This has had the impact of curtailing economic contraction and the economy is set to recover strongly in 2021.

India today embodies an amalgamation of the imperatives that are redrawing global equations. In healthcare, its innovative companies truly showed their competitive advantage, transforming to include personal protection equipment, ventilators and other medical supplies in their repertoire within a short time. While India was importing these products earlier, it has now turned into an exporter and supported

almost all countries with its medical goods and drugs. Always an IT hub, India’s startups are converging innovation with entrepreneurship and technology, making it one of the largest hubs for new tech-based enterprises including in areas such as artificial intelligence, healthcare, ed-tech and fintech. Eleven more unicorns crossing $1 billion in valuation were added to the ecosystem, the second highest number of additions during this crisis year.

In sustainability too, India’s renewable energy achievements have impressed the world. With multiple policy reforms, the country is one of the fastest-growing renewable energy markets and on track to achieve 175 GW of capacity by 2022 as planned.

Recently announced policy reforms cover a spate of areas. India has slashed corporate tax rates and lowered them even further to 15% for new manufacturing investments. Simplification and faceless procedures are being implemented for ease of paying taxes. In the area of investment climate, India has achieved a rank of 63 in the World Bank Doing Business list, up from 142 just a few years ago. It has further taken the effort down to the provincial governments and aims to weed out multiple outdated laws and regulations. Digitised processes, time bound clearances and deemed approvals are gaining pace.

Four labour codes have been enacted in consultation with industry and worker unions to improve conditions for workers and encourage employment. Privatisation is high on the anvil and the government has pledged to retain only a few public sector enterprises in each sector. Small enterprises have been given a big boost with support and incentives for a larger base through a redefinition of such enterprises. To attract FDI, the government has fully opened up almost all manufacturing sectors including sensitive ones such as defense production, space and nuclear energy.

A landmark strategy for promoting manufacturing under the Make in India rubric was introduced with the production linked incentive scheme for 13 sectors, which will greatly boost production in select areas. This is coupled with the National Investment Pipeline which proposes a spend of $1.4 trillion over the next five years in roads and highways, railways, power and other infrastructure projects.

These measures enhance India’s attractiveness for overseas investments which remained robust in the first half of the financial year. Placed on a strong reforms path with a proactive government, dynamic entrepreneurs and young and productive workers, the country is set to emerge as a growth hotspot, aiding in global recovery as the world comes out of the pandemic year. •

Uday KotakPresident,

Confederation of Indian Industry

STL AD STL AD

IMAGINE WHAT OUR

DIGITALNETWORKSCAN DO FOR USSTL has always been transcending boundaries and this time it was about connecting 17,000* Islands and 300* ethnic groups with high-speed gigabit connectivity. From a vast optical-fibre network to high-speed data centres, we enabled a nation-wide future-ready network that helped transform the everyday lives of millions in Indonesia.

Making people self-reliant even during a pandemic

*STL estimates

Sterlite Technologies Limited stl.tech

| 6 | | 7 |

MESSAGE FROM DIRECTOR GENERAL, CII

2021: A year that embodies hope

There is much reason for hope in the new year. Several vaccines are ready for use and the Indian government has commenced a massive roll out across the country. Economic activity,

which had come to a standstill in the initial months of the pandemic, has resumed and is accelerating steadily. In fact, the economic recovery in India has turned out to be much stronger than earlier expected, although many challenges remain. India has also been able to contain the spread of the virus quite successfully, as cases have moderated across all regions in the country.

Distributing the vaccine in a country like India with its large population and vast area is a big challenge. Fortunately, India has some advantages, being the largest manufacturer of vaccines in the world. India also has an existing cold chain for vaccine distribution and an electronic vaccine intelligence network (eVIN) to track vaccine availability on a real time basis.

As the vaccination programme accelerates across countries, the global economy will start looking up

and be more open for business. Indian industry needs to take this opportunity to become a more competitive player with a greater share of global markets. The WTO expects the volume of global merchandise trade to rise by 7.2% in 2021 following a 9.2% contraction in 2020. Global supply chains are also shifting as countries reorient their production capacities. It can be hoped that countries such as India will emerge as reliable production hubs in 2021, with any hurdles in the path of investors being eased.

The reforms that have been unleashed by the government over the last few years together with the moves towards ease of doing business will build a momentum towards industrial rejuvenation in India. Businesses are ready to operate in the post-pandemic world using more sustainable business models and digital technologies. Worldwide, businesses are being restructured to become more climate conscious while smart technologies are enhancing their presence. The market will reward businesses that reorient their strategies in these directions and I expect a lot of winners will emerge in 2021.

As the economy begins to restore itself, one major challenge will be to create jobs as also to improve the quality of jobs. The experiences of workers, many of whom were migrant labourers, whose livelihoods were destroyed at the onset of the pandemic will not be forgotten. New jobs that are created must be accompanied with an improvement in the facilities provided such as housing and access to health and education. The share of formal employment needs to be increased, a trend that has already started and will certainly be enhanced in 2021. At the same time, informal employment and fixed term employment will come with greater social security.

In 2021, the government will focus on rebuilding the economy. I believe that funds will be provided for massive investment in physical as well as social infrastructure. Healthcare will emerge as a priority sector where investment needs to be stepped up to improve long-

term productivity of the workforce. Privatisation of public sector enterprises is likely to be accelerated to provide the funds to achieve these ends. A simpler and more effective tax system will be developed to enhance coverage.

I also expect to see the creation of a future ready financial sector in 2021. Financing India’s growth to achieve its ambition of reaching the $5 trillion size sooner rather than later would require a nimble and supportive financial sector. This would need several reforms including greater freedom to the private sector to participate in banking. Sorting out the problem of non-performing assets would be critical to reduce the stress in the banking system. Innovative solutions need to be found and I expect a new paradigm to emerge in 2021.

In 2021, I expect there will be greater focus on the quality of school education, as children get back to the physical school environment. Similarly, livelihoods will be restored in other services sectors where contact is important.

The pandemic has made the past year one of the most painful in recent history but fortunately it has ended with the creation of effective vaccines. It is therefore natural that 2021 embodies hope for a better future. It is essential that all stakeholders combine forces to make this a reality, with partnerships across countries, across public and private sectors, across government and civil society. •

Chandrajit BanerjeeDirector General,Confederation of Indian Industry

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y11DqiGAiIc

| 10 | | 11 |

CURTAIN RAISER

Indian economy poised toexpand at a good clip in 2021

The Indian economy is poised to expand at a good clip in 2021, as the country emerges after battling the COVID-19 crisis in 2020. Leading

international experts and economists predict a faster growth rate this year.

The World Bank, in its Global Economic Prospects report notes that India’s growth will accelerate to 5.4 per cent in fiscal 2021-22.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is all praise for the decisive steps taken by the government, which will help accelerate the recovery in 2021.

“What the government has done on the monetary policy and the fiscal policy side is commendable,” remarked Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF Managing Director recently. “It is actually slightly above the average for emerging markets. Emerging markets on average have provided six per cent of the GDP. In India, this is slightly above that. Good for India is that there is still space to do more.”

According to her, India has taken very decisive actions and steps to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic consequences. “India moved to more

targeted restrictions and lockdowns. What we see is that the transition, combined with policy support seems to have worked well. Why? Because if you look at mobility indicators, we are almost where we were before COVID in India, meaning that economic activities have been revitalised quite significantly,” she added.

India’s financial system faces both challenging times and new opportunities as the economy returns to full vitality, says Shaktikanta Das, Governor, Reserve Bank of India. “New vistas of financial intermediation leveraging on technology and new business models will emerge. With the exponential growth of digitisation and online commerce in India, the Reserve Bank has also directed its policy efforts to put in place a state-of-the-art national payments infrastructure, while ensuring a safe, secure, efficient, cost-effective and robust payments ecosystem.” According to him, the Reserve Bank is positioning itself to provide an enabling environment in which regulated entities are catalysed to exploit these new avenues, while maintaining and preserving financial stability.

Many international analysts believe India’s economy could grow at between 7.5 per cent and even more than 9 per cent in 2020, revealed a survey by a leading business daily. Barclays, for instance, was bullish, estimating 9.2 per cent year-on-year growth in GDP for calendar year 2021.

“After a sharp fall in GDP growth in 2020, we expect a reasonably sharp bounce back in 2021, as India will likely go back to pre-Covid GDP levels by H2 2012,” Rahul Bajoria, chief India economist, Barlcays, was quoted as saying.

Nomura, the Japanese financial services company said India would be the fastest-growing Asian economy in 2021, with GDP likely to expand by a whopping 9.9 per cent. But even more bullish is Goldman Sachs, which projected India’s GDP growth in 2021 to touch the double-digit mark at 10 per cent. This would be the highest for major economies in the world.

A more conservative figure of 7.6 per cent growth projection for India was the estimate of DBS Bank, making the country the fastest growing in the region. “Our baseline assumption is for consumption to improve as businesses come back online resulting in a lift to income and employment prospects, as well as a larger shift from unorganised to organised sector, with any acceleration in vaccine availability to be an additional tailwind,” the news report quoted Radhika Rao, senior vice president and economist, DBS Group Research.

With India managing to overcome the Covid crisis over the past few months, indicators are that 2021 would turn out to be a much more productive and vibrant fiscal for the country. •

After battling the COVID-19 crisis over the past few months, India is showing signs of a rapid recovery in economic growth with analysts predicting healthy expansion over the coming months

“It is actually slightly above the average for

emerging markets. Emerging markets

on average have provided six per cent of the GDP. In India, this is slightly above that. Good for India is that there is still

space to do more.”

Kristalina GeorgievaManaging Director, IMF

By Ashok Kumar

| 14 | | 15 |

CURTAIN RAISER — DAVOS AGENDA

Davos Agenda SummitPrime Minister Narendra Modi to address top global meet

A pioneering mobilisation of global leaders to shape the principles, policies and partnerships needed in this challenging new context

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is among the top world leaders who will participate in the online Davos Agenda Summit of the World Economic Forum (WEF). The online event, being held from January 25 to 29, will also

see participation by other political and business leaders. Union ministers who will be participating include

Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce & Industry, and Minister of Railways; Narendra Singh Tomar, the Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare; Nitin Gadkari, the Minister for Road Transport and Highways; Smriti Irani, Minister of Women and Child Development; and Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Steel.

Business leaders including Mukesh Ambani, Anand Mahindra, Sanjiv Bajaj, Sunil Bharti Mittal, Ajit Gulabchand, Shobana Kamineni, Hemant Kanoria, S.P. Lohia, Pawan Munjal and Sumant Sinha are registered participants in the event.

Interestingly, the online Davos Agenda Summit will see many heads of state and government address top political and business leaders from around the globe and engage in dialogue with business leaders.

According to WEF, leaders who have confirmed their participation include, besides Mr Modi, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, South Korea President Moon Jae-in, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong.

Crucial Year to Rebuild TrustThe theme of the event is: A Crucial Year to Rebuild Trust. The meeting will focus on creating impact, rebuilding trust and shaping the policies and partnerships needed in 2021.

“In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need to reset priorities and the urgency to reform systems have

been growing stronger around the world,” said Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the WEF. “Rebuilding trust and increasing global cooperation are crucial to fostering innovative and bold solutions to stem the pandemic and drive a robust recovery. This unique meeting will be an opportunity for leaders to outline their vision and address the most important issues of our time, such as the need to accelerate job creation and to protect the environment.”

According to him, the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that no institution or individual alone

can address the economic, environmental, social and technological challenges of our complex, interdependent world. “The pandemic has accelerated systemic changes that were apparent before its inception. The fault lines that emerged in 2020 now appear as critical crossroads in 2021. The Davos Agenda will help leaders choose innovative and bold solutions to stem the pandemic and drive a robust recovery over the next year.”

The five programme themes are: Designing cohesive, sustainable, resilient economic systems (25

January); Driving responsible industry transformation and growth (26 January);

Enhancing stewardship of the global commons (27 January); Harnessing the technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (28 January); and Advancing global and regional

cooperation (29 January).The first day, January 25, sees

Special Addresses, Leadership Panels and Impact Sessions on Designing cohesive, sustainable and resilient economic systems. The second day will focus on

Driving responsible industry transformation and growth.

Special addresses, Leadership panels and Impact sessions on

Enhancing stewardship of our global commons will be the theme on January 27. The next day will see, besides special addresses and leadership panels, sessions on Harnessing the technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. And the final day features sessions on global and regional cooperation.

“In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the

need to reset priorities and the urgency to

reform systems have been growing stronger

around the world”— Klaus Schwab

Founder and Executive Chairman of the WEF

| 16 |

Time to rebuild trust“The fault lines that emerged in 2020 now appear as critical crossroads in 2021,” says a WEF spokesperson. “The time to rebuild trust and to make crucial choices is fast approaching as the need to reset priorities and the urgency to reform systems grow stronger around the world.”

The Davos Agenda is a pioneering mobilisation of global leaders to shape the principles, policies and partnerships needed in this challenging new context, adds the spokesperson. “It is essential for leaders from all walks of life to work together virtually for a more inclusive, cohesive and sustainable future as soon as possible in 2021. To this end, the World Economic Forum has served for more than 50 years as a trusted platform where leaders from business, government, international organizations, civil society and academia convene to address critical issues at the start of each year.”

The week-long global programming by WEF will be dedicated to helping leaders choose innovative and bold solutions to stem the pandemic and drive a robust recovery over the next year.

The Davos Agenda will also mark the launch of the WEF’s Great Reset Initiative and begin the preparation

of the Special Annual Meeting in spring. Each day will focus on one of the five domains of the Great Reset Initiative:

The event aims to inform the global public and its 25 million-plus social media followers on the key issues shaping the year ahead. It will also engage over 430 cities in 150 countries that host Global Shapers, a network of young people driving dialogue, action and change. More than 20,000 members of TopLink, its digital interaction platform, and over 400,000 subscribers to Strategic Intelligence, its world-leading knowledge app, will also be active online throughout the week’s programme.

And the Forum’s core communities, including its International business council, will share their insight and recommendations from global, regional and industry initiatives in impact sessions.

Over 1,500 government, business and civil society leaders from more than 70 countries are expected to join the online summit.

The Davos Agenda will also mark the launch of several WEF initiatives to accelerate the race to net-zero emissions, champion new standards for racial justice, ensure artificial intelligence is developed ethically and in the global public interest and to close the digital divide. •

Over 1,500 government, business and civil society leaders from more than 70 countries are expected to join the online summit.

All of this is possible not only for developed economies but also for emerging ones. These developments are happening at such a fast pace because of four fundamental technology shifts that got established last year:• Edge – Gartner says by 2025, 75% of enterprise-

generated data will be created and processed at the edge – as against 10% in 2018.

• Converged – FTTH council claims that the extra investment needed to make FTTH network ready for 5G (even for high density cells) is only 1% to 7%

• Compute – Global market insights estimates that Micro data center market will leap from $3 Bn in 2018 to nearly $15 Bn by 2025.

• Disaggregated – Many operators around the globe firm up ORAN plans – like Dish which plans to connect 70% of US population with ORAN based networks.The technology foundation is ready and now is

the time to start building these networks, which will be fibre-rich, open, disaggregated, virtualized, and programmable, at a scale that we never imagined before.

India’s role will be critical.The foundation for 5G rollout has been laid and now is the time to start building the future. What the world needs is a new ecosystem and network architecture. India represents the second half of the world in a much better way than many other countries. India has 900 Mn rural population waiting to be connected, a huge, affordable workforce with high skill sets, the advantage of scale and an innovation mindset. This can be seen from India’s early wins in nation-wide digital programs like Aadhaar for providing digital identities to 1.23 billion citizens and Jandhan bank accounts for the poor. We have enabled robust digital payment platforms like BHIM-UPI that connected 134 banks to offer UPI services to their customers and UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New Age Governance) for giving citizens access to 339 government services. We have proven our leadership in scientific innovation by showing our vaccine manufacturing capability to defeat the COVID-19 pandemic.

We have the right skill sets, workforce, and technology in place to roll out 5G technology in the years to come. Today, some of the established operators are looking at solutions for openness and disaggregation and India is perfectly positioned to lead the transition from legacy to next-gen.

STL, an Indian tech player at the forefront of creating a 5G ecosystem.

STL is playing a bigger role in enabling digital infrastructure in the country. We are building an end to end working subsystem that integrates design,

hardware, software, artificial intelligence, and security as a comprehensive 5G ecosystem. Recognizing these major shifts, STL focused on strengthening its core capabilities in optical solutions, network software, and system integration, while establishing new solutions in next-gen wireless access. Our solutions are Open, Disaggregated and Virtualized for developing network solutions that are vendor neutral, programmable, and scalable. We have high quality wired backhaul and agile fronthaul, which will allow customers full mobility.

We are shaping the larger Make in India ecosystem for 5G.• Leading fiberisation from the front: According to

CRU, the Indian OFC demand is likely to grow to 20.08 million fibre kilometers by 2021 and 24.48 million fibre kilometers by 2022. STL is planning to invest ~INR300 crores to increase its capacity for optical fiber cables from 18 to 33 million kms.

• Create Next-Gen Digital Network ecosystem: via specialized technological confluences (i) wired and wireless; (ii) software and hardware; (iii) connectivity and compute; and (iv) open source - all at the edge of the network.

• Developing Indian technology innovation ecosystem: Align with open innovation platforms like AGNIi, Start Up India and Invest IndiaIndia used to be behind the technology curve for

the last few centuries. In the last few decades, we have seen it catch up and contribute to the world. In the next decade of connecting the world, we believe that India will become the most significant contributor, not just by having exciting use cases and the widest range of population, but with technology that is open, respects privacy, and is affordable. India has got nothing to lose in this quest for connecting everyone. And companies like STL are going to make sure that everyone wins. •

| 18 | | 19 |

VIEWPOINT

Indian tech:Driving the next decade of network creation.

Come 2030, every person on earth will be connected.2021 has just started. The world has now entered the final phase of global connectivity. Sixty per cent of the global population is now connected and the upcoming decade of network creation will connect every person on the planet. 5G will dominate the connectivity landscape and bring in human-technology interactions that the world has never seen. Never has the world seen a greater equalizer. But now, as data gets democratized, it will not only make waves in technology, but will shape everything from daily living, to socioeconomics to even cultures. If we look at 2020, a decade worth digital evolution happened in this landmark year and this is what made network creators roll-up their sleeves and get to work!

The entire world is coming together to make this happen. Telcos are making a huge effort for digital connectivity – Telcos are leaving no stone unturned for adopting innovative technologies and expanding networks. They are making huge investments for rolling out 5G; its subscriptions account for ~138 mn or 1.5% of the entire global mobile market (as on Oct’20). As of November 2020, globally 146 operators have launched commercial 5G services. While telcos are making all these efforts, they are still viewing people as customers. This is where the government needs to step in.

Governments are making digital inclusion a priority – Governments, globally, are putting massive investments and resources to connect every nook and corner. They are undertaking large scale programs to build digital

infrastructure en masse. They are going beyond the business case, to provide digital access and to the largely under-served rural population. Some of the global digital connectivity initiatives which are focused on bridging the digital divide are UK Openreach program, National Ultra-broadband plan, Italy, National Broadband Scheme, Finland and Digital India Program, India.

Regulators are developing new-age frameworks – Infrastructure policy and regulation is critical for 5G. Policy makers and regulatory bodies are synergizing with the industry and the government to set up workable frameworks for testing and commercial readiness.

Digital citizens are batting for privacy and security - While this ecosystem is being built, the online citizens are already working towards ensuring that everyone has a digital identity and a voice, but with the highest standards of privacy and security.

5G brings the next phase of human connectedness5G is much more than a technology evolution, it is the advent of the next phase of human connectedness. Digital connectivity is expected to bring more than 3 billion internet users online [2]. 5G is a powerful technology waiting to be tapped for innovative use cases. Not only telcos, government and regulators but the whole community is working towards making digital identity happen for all, of course with privacy protection.

A solid technology foundation has been laid.Everybody, right from the private enterprises to governments to hyperscalers, is investing in 5G technology. While Chinese companies have made investments of more than $12bn in H12020, the US is likely to invest $250bn between 2020-25. Some of the PE investments in 5G include KKR buying 37.5% stake in Telecom Italia Broadband project for 1.8bn euro; EQT and OMERS jointly acquiring Deutsche Glasfaser (DG) for 2.8bn euro.

But these investments will only yield results when technology behind 5G is robust and can be easily implemented. Globally, academia and research bodies are building testbeds and prototypes so that the technology is implemented on-ground with meaningful use cases. Even regulators are busy laying regulatory frameworks.

Dr. Anand AgarwalGroup CEO, STL

We feature an interview with Dr. Anand Agarwal, Group CEO, STL. Excerpts:

| 20 | | 21 |

BANKING & FINANCE

Infrastructure sectorto fuel demand for funds

By Ashok Kumar

F or the banking and finance sector in India, the coming years will see a huge demand

for funds, especially from the infrastructure segment. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently reviewed the progress of projects worth `3.6 lakh crore under the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP), which are being implemented by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation.

According to a government spokesperson, despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the NIP has managed to achieve substantial progress. Launched with 6,835 projects, it has now been expanded to more than 7,300. Importantly, between 2020 and 2025, a whopping `111 lakh crore will be invested in these projects. Despite the slowdown caused by the pandemic, ministries and departments have shown substantial progress in project implementation and expenditure, especially in the second quarter of 2020-21.

The massive amounts being invested in infrastructure will provide huge opportunities for the banking sector to expand operations. The Indian banking system includes a dozen public sector banks, 22 private sector lenders, 46 international banks, 56 regional rural banks, 1,485 urban cooperative banks and 96,000 rural cooperative banks, besides several cooperative credit institutions. And millions of Indians are utilising the services offered by the banks.

According to estimates, there were more than 2 lakh ATMs in India in August, and this is expected to more than double in 2021. Public sector bank assets added up to nearly `108 lakh crore in FY20. Bank credit grew at a CAGR of 3.57 per cent between FY 2016 and 2020, while deposits grew at a much higher rate of 13.93 per cent.

Bleed size : 21.6cms (W) X 30.3cms (H) Non bleed size : 20cms (W) X 28.7cms (H)

Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT)Deemed to be University

(Established U/S 3 of UGC Act, 1956), Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India

KIIT (Deemed to be University) has only one permanent campus in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. It has no other campus / off campus anywhere else in the country and globe.

Winner of 'Awards Asia 2020' in the category 'Workplace of the Year' by Times Higher Education

Recognized as an "Institution of Eminence" by the Govt. of India

KIIT is among India's most sought-after universities, attracting students from all over India and more than 50 countries to pursue professional and technical education. It has built its reputation as the most student-friendly university, anchored on the principles of Compassion and Humanity, and is on its way to become an international hub for quality professional and technical education.

th24st1

School of Civil Engineering | School of Computer Engineering | School of Electrical Engineering | School of Electronics Engineering | School of Mechanical Engineering | School of Computer Application | School of Architecture | School of Law | School of Applied Sciences | School of Management | School of Rural Management | School of Biotechnology | School of Public Health | School of Chemical Technology | Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences | Kalinga Institute of Dental Sciences | Kalinga Institute of Nursing Sciences | School of Fashion Technology | School of Film & Media Sciences | School of Humanities & Commerce | School of Yoga

KIIT is a member of prestigious national and international organizations such as International Association of Universities (IAU), Association of Indian Universities (AIU), Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU), University Mobility of Asia and the Pacific (UMAP), Association of Universities of Asia and the Pacific (AUAP), United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) and Eurasian Silk Road Universities Consortium (ESRUC).

NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION

SCHOOLS

world-class campuses spread

over sq. km. 25of area

23115+Academic

Programmes

30,000 students

stRanked 1 among self-financing institutions of India

by the Ministry of HRD, Govt. of India in Atal Ranking of

Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARIIA)

First Indian university to get Internationalization

Strategies Advisory Service (ISAS) Badge from

the International Association of Universities (IAU)

Website: www.kiit.ac.in | Email: kiit@kiit.ac.in

Academic partnership with over 192 International

Universities across the globe

Accredited by NAAC with 'A' Grade'

A' Category as per notification of Ministry of HRD,

Govt. of India.'

Tier1' Accreditation (Washington Accord) by NBA for

Engineering Streams.

Accredited by IET, U.K. (B.Tech Programme)

For admission details please log on to kiitee.kiit.ac.inKIIT, At/PO-KIIT, Bhubaneswar-751024, Odisha, INDIA, Tel. : +91 674 2725113, 2741998

Fax : +91 674 2740326, Email : kiit@kiit.ac.in, Website : www.kiit.ac.in

| 22 |

Backing economic revivalShaktikanta Das, Governor, Reserve Bank of India (RBI), pointed out recently that the banking sector was supporting the ongoing revival in economic activities. The central bank had taken several measures to the tackle the pandemic, stabilise the economy and ensure financial stability. Banks have to be vigilant and take proactive measures to strengthen their resilience and lending capacity by raising capital and making provisions proactively, he noted.

“India, with a large section of population in the working age group, is already the third largest economy in the world in terms of purchasing power parity and is aiming to become a $5 trillion economy,” he said. “The Government has been undertaking a series of calibrated macro measures through wide ranging structural reforms. We need to harness the demographic dividend by meeting the aspirations of a large young population. This necessitates creating an enabling environment and infrastructure in the form of education, training and opportunity. Among all the prerequisites for achieving demographic dividend and accelerated growth, quality of human resources, greater formalisation of economy, a higher credit to GDP ratio and greater financial inclusion are the differentiating factors that would elevate our economy to the desired level.”

The significant initiatives of the Indian government and the RBI have seen leading international and domestic players responding well. WhatsApp, for instance, launched its UPI (Unified Payments Interface) service in the country after getting approval from the National Payments Corporation of India. UPI recorded more than two billion transactions worth nearly `4 lakh crore in October.

The government has also launched the process of consolidating the public sector banking segment, reducing the number of state-owned banks to eight. Importantly, technology including mobile and internet banking are now to the fore and millions of people do their banking transactions on their phones. India’s digital payments system has witnessed rapid evolution; it is the highest among 25 countries, with its Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) being the only one at level five in the Faster Payments Innovation Index.

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) noted recently that the recovery in rural demand is expected to strengthen further, while urban demand is also gaining momentum as unlocking spurs activity and employment, especially of labour displaced by COVID-19. Consumers remain optimistic about the outlook, and business sentiment of manufacturing firms is gradually improving. “Fiscal stimulus is increasingly moving beyond being supportive of consumption and liquidity to supporting growth-generating investment,” it noted.

Financial inclusion is expected to grow exponentially in India with digital savvy millennials joining the workforce, social media blurring the urban-rural divide and technology shaping the policy interventions. •

“India, with a large section of population in the working age group, is already the third largest economy in the world in terms of purchasing power parity and is aiming to become a $5 trillion economy”

Shaktikanta DasGovernor, Reserve Bank of India

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INTERVIEW

Jindal Steel & PowerSteeling up during tough times

When the COVID-19 lockdown began last March, many manufacturers shut down their operations across India. But Jindal

Steel & Power Ltd (JSPL), an industrial powerhouse with a dominant presence in steel, power, mining and infrastructure sectors opted for a different path.

“When lockdown was enforced, the domestic market for steel was closed,” recalls V.R. Sharma, managing director, JSPL. “There was no other option – either shut down our plant, or export.” The company, with a 10 MTPA iron-making capacity and 5,034 MW of power generating capacity, opted to continue with production and export steel.

There was good demand for its products in Italy, France, Denmark and Germany, recalls Mr Sharma. All these European countries were suffering as COVID-19 wreaked havoc and their steel mills were shut. “Many of the farsighted traders placed orders on us. In fact,

the first international orders began flowing in from the fourth week of March.

Similarly, countries in the Gulf region including Saudi Arabia were also dependent on products from China, which had, however, virtually stopped all exports. JSPL, which is headed by Naveen Jindal, the Chairman, got orders from Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain, Oman and Qatar.

In Southeast Asia, it discussed with traders and began getting orders from buyers in the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Taiwan, Even in Australia, many opted for JSPL’s products. “We got orders for 1.5 million tons in April at the height of the COVID-19 crisis,” recalls Mr Sharma.

Globally, there are about half a dozen leading steel-producing nations including India, China, Russia, Iran, Korea and Japan. But the crisis of 2020 saw just Russia, Ukraine and India supplying steel. And with winter setting in, most of the international buyers are

One Indian company which withstood the COVID-19 crisis and emerged stronger is Jindal Steel & Power. Managing Director V.R. Sharma reveals the tough times and how the company managed to overcome it in 2020 in an interview with N. Rao

now depending on supplies from India, he explains. According to him, JSPL has done well through the crisis as the Indian government supported the industry in many ways. “They declared steel as an essential commodity and we were allowed to operate our plants,” explains Mr Sharma. “The downstream industry was also allowed to function.”

Importantly, the government ensured that railway services were in operation, resulting in smooth transport of the products. This helped companies such as JSPL to transfer imported raw materials from ports and also send the finished products to ports around the country. The company took the lead from the initial days of the crisis.

Many ships were waiting in the high seas and when they got calls from JSPL, they quickly returned to the ports, picked up the steel and delivered the products abroad. Naturally, sea freight costs also dipped substantially and the company got competitive rates.

“Indian steel mills are very busy these days,” adds Mr Sharma. “The price of raw materials and other costs have also risen and steel prices are at their peak now.” With the lockdown being lifted in many countries, he expects demand for steel to continue over the next six to eight months.

Demand for both steel and cement will be buoyant this year as projects that had been stalled last year get revived. The company has been growing 17 to 18 per cent on a year-on-year basis and profits have also soared. Last year, the company had made a loss, but this year revenues and profits have climbed phenomenally.

JSPL has taken the lead, consolidating its position in the industry. “This will continue over the coming months,” he explains. The company has also launched a 15:15:50 strategy, relating to its debt burden (which should be less than `15,000 crore) and turnover, which is targeted at `50,000 crore. •

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FOREIGN DIRECT INVESEMENT

FDI inflows into India top $500 billion in 20 years

Foreign direct investment (FDI) equity inflows into India topped the $500 billion mark during the April 2000 to September 2020 period,

according to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).

According to Nirmala Sitharaman, the Finance Minister, good inflow of FDI into the country during the COVID-19 period reflected the confidence of foreign investors in India’s commitment to economic reforms. Global investors believe India to be a very desirable destination, reflecting in the surge in FDI, she said recently.

The DPIIT report notes that 29 per cent of the FDI into India came through the Mauritius route. Next came Singapore (21 per cent), followed by the US, the Netherlands and Japan (seven per cent each) and the UK (six per cent). Key sectors attracting the

maximum FDI inflow include services, computer software an d hardware, telecommunications, trading, construction development, automobile, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

In the first seven months of the current fiscal (April-October), FDI equity inflows shot up by 21 per cent to $35.33 billion, according to government figures. In 2020, India continued to ease restrictions to encourage FDI inflow into sectors including insurance and defence. The DPIIT notes that it cleared 26 FDI applications in 2020.

Gujarat topped the list of states that received the maximum FDI in India between October 2019 and September 2020. It got nearly $18.6 billion in FDI during the period. It was followed by Maharashtra ($10.88 billion), Karnataka ($7.94 billion), Delhi ($6.63 billion), Jharkhand ($2.64 billion) and Tamil Nadu ($1.94 billion), according to the DPIIT.

FDI inflows into India continue to expand at a rapid pace as investors from around the globe look for opportunities in key sectors of the economy

FDI norms to be liberalized furtherAnalysts expect the government to liberalise FDI norms to encourage more inflow over the coming months. “There is optimism around liberalizing the FDI norms in several sectors including single-brand retail trading, contract manufacturing, coal mining and digital media,” Vishal Yadav, CEO, FDI India, a consultancy, was quoted in the media recently.

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) notes that India implemented several policies that have boosted FDI inflows of late. These include relaxing FI limits in the insurance sector, liberalization of rules that have stopped equity caps in sectors including coal and lignite mining, contract manufacturing and single brand retail trading and increase in ceiling for FDI into the defense sector to 74% via automatic approval route.

The report titled “Foreign Direct Investment Trends And Outlook In Asia And The Pacific 2020/2021,” the UNESCAP report pointed out that India drove FDI inflows into the region, accounting for 77 per cent of total inflows to the subregion. In 2019, it received $51 billion in FDI, up 20 per cent from the previous year. A large chunk of the inflows were for the information and communications technology and construction sectors.

“India’s economy could prove the most resilient in the subregion over the long term,” said the UNESCAP report. FDI inflows have been steadily increasing and positive, albeit lower, economic growth after the pandemic and India’s large market will continue to attract market-seeking investment,” the report said. It cited Facebook and Google’s investment in Jio Platforms in 2020 worth $5.7 billion and $4.5 billion respectively as testaments to this trend.

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INFRASTRUCTURE

“Estimates suggest that by 2025, core digital sectors such as IT and business process management, digital communication services, and electronics manufacturing could double in size,” said the report. “In addition, the pandemic has only further increased the tendency of many sectors such as agriculture, education, energy, financial services, logistics to digitalise, as COVID-19 has pushed many individual and companies to adopt digital solutions and processes.”

Land of opportunitiesPiyush Goyal, India’s Minister of Railways, Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution recently welcomed foreign investors to be a part of India’s growth story. Addressing the inaugural session of CII’s Partnership Summit 2020 through virtual means, he welcomed them with open arms and assured complete assistance, partnership and involvement for their journey in the land of opportunities.

“During the first nine months of 2020, at the peak of COVID-19 pandemic, our FDI grew,” said the minister. “We have one of the most facilitative FDI policies in the world. During the April-September period, FDI inflows were at $40 billion”

Piyush GoyalMinister of Railways, Commerce & Industry,Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution

“During the first nine months of 2020, at the peak of COVID-19 pandemic, our FDI grew,” said the minister. “We have one of the most facilitative FDI policies in the world. During the April-September period, FDI inflows were at $40 billion, which has been higher than last year by about 13%. We announced one of the most attractive tax rates available anywhere in the world at 22% tax for businesses in India and 15% tax for new manufacturing facilities set up after October 2019.”

Referring to the continuous growth of FDI into India, Mr Goyal pointed out that the country has been systematically opening new sectors of the economy to global investors and encouraging businesses through strategic relationships with different investment partners, strengthening its economic plans for the future. •

Developing world-class infrastructure

IT is a sector that is expected to transform India over the coming years. The Indian government under its National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) plans

to invest a whopping `111 lakh crore in infrastructure projects in the country. The NIP for FY 2019-25 is a first-of-its-kind, whole-of-government exercise that aims to provide world-class infrastructure to citizens and improving their quality of life.

It covers nearly 7,500 projects with the total project cost exceeding $1.8 trillion. The most ambitious are the 3,660 transport projects worth nearly $750 billion. They include roads and bridges, railway tracks, urban public transport and ports.

The ambitious projects include the Delhi-Gurugram SNB BRTS development project worth almost $5 billion and covering three states – Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan. Two other equally ambitious projects are the Navghar-Balavli multi-modal corridor development

The ambitious National Infrastructure Pipeline project of the Indian government plans to transform the country’s infrastructure, both in urban and rural areas

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project worth $4.77 billion in Maharashtra and the Delhi-Panipat RRTS development project worth over $4 billion.

The next major infrastructure project under the NIP relates to water and sanitation. About 1,325 projects are estimated to cost more than $280 billion. They include irrigation, water treatment, sewage collection and solid waste management.

The JJM rural implementation project, costing nearly $50 billion, includes water treatment plants to be set up across the country.

In terms of social infrastructure, there are more than 1,100 projects worth $230 billion. The government aims to build an extensive social infrastructure covering education, medical, affordable housing and sports related. The most important is the nearly $35 billion worth Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana (Gramin phase II project) costing nearly $35 billion. An affordable housing construction project in Maharashtra, valued at nearly $7 billion is also part of this project.

There are about 630 projects in the NIP relating to commercial infrastructure including common infrastructure for industrial parks, post-harvest storage infrastructure, tourism infrastructure and terminal markets. The India International Convention and Expo Centre in Delhi is the most important one, expected to cost $1.18 billion.

More than 500 projects feature in the Energy portfolio of NIPs costing more than $400 billion. They include the Chandikhol strategic petroleum reserve construction project in Odisha, the third jetty project for an LNG terminal at Dahej in Gujarat and solar power projects across the country.

Logistics will see investments of more than $38 billion in over 150 projects. They include the Kandla Gorakhpur pipeline project ($1.38 billion) straddling across Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, and the IMLH Nangal Chaudhary development project in Haryana (nearly $800 million). The communication sector accounts for nearly 40 NIP projects valued at $11.5 billion.

According to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), construction development and infrastructure activities sectors saw FDI inflow of $25.69 billion and $16.97 billion, respectively, between April 2000-June 2020. •

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UTTAR PRADESH

‘We are extremely optimistic about UP’s economic potential’Investments in UP:India is led by one of the most able Prime Ministers. Uttar Pradesh has embarked upon the herculean task of becoming a $1 trillion economy. It is basically an agricultural economy but we have a large base of 9 million SMEs (small and medium enterprises). We are adding 2 million every year and have given over `1,800 crores to over 49 lakh MSMEs in the past three years. With such investments and potential, there is hope that we can reach the target. Uttar Pradesh recently emerged as top destination for investment and as the second best state for Ease of doing business.

It has jumped from the 12th position in Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP) 2017-18 to the second position in BRAP 19. UP has left behind several leading states such as Gujarat, Telangana, Rajasthan, Maharashtra etc in the EoDB annual rankings. It has implemented 186 of the 187 reforms suggested by the Union government’s department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) under BRAP 19

We are extremely optimistic about the state’s economic potential. A minor example is the tech giant Samsung leaving China to set up its plants in the state. The state government will be providing financial incentives to the South Korean giant Samsung

Electronics to set up a display factory in the region, which is expected to cost about $655 million and will also help boost the Make in India initiative that aims to project the country as a manufacturing hub. It’s noteworthy that Samsung already has the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturing plant in Uttar Pradesh. PepsiCo has invested a sum of ` 8,000 crore to start a plant in Mathura to manufacture potato chips.

Employment opportunitiesIt is Uttar Pradesh’s endeavour to provide opportunities of employment or self-employment to every youth as per their skills and participate in the development of the state. In such a situation, it also becomes necessary that the youth develop themselves as skilled and talented competitors.

‘Mission Rozgar’ was recently launched by the state government which aims to provide jobs to at least 50 lakh youth till March 2021. Under this, along with providing integrated employment and self-employment to youth through various departments and organisations, arrangements for skill training and apprenticeship will also be made so that by the end of this financial year, 50 lakh youth are enabled for employment and self-employment.

Sidharth Nath Singh, the senior Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister and government spokesperson, discusses the growth potential of India’s largest state.His views on:

To ensure special participation of women in every department and also to honour them, the government is moving in the direction of making women self-reliant by appointing 58,000 Banking Correspondent Sakhis for providing banking facilities at the grassroots level.

Backbone of state economyChief Minister Yogi Adityanath further aims to make UP a $1 trillion economy. If we look closely at the micro-economic situation, the backbone of the state economy is the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). They are not only the drivers of growth but also the basis of inclusive and welfare-oriented development. Therefore, the UP government has given a lot of encouragement along with preference to the sector. During the trying times of the pandemic, the state government distributed loans worth `39,390 crores to more than 14.05 lakh MSME units. Out of these, more than 3 lakh units are new ones.

According to the estimates of econometrics, one MSME unit generates between 10 and 100 jobs. Hence, it can be estimated that due to these units more than 30 million jobs will be created in the new MSME units.

The MSME department has played an important role in boosting

UP’s economy during the Covid-19 pandemic. Both the prime minister

as well as the UP chief minister have a positive approach towards promoting small-scale industries,

the atmosphere prevailing in UP’s MSME sector has already been

transformed. Thus, the image of UP as an investment option has also been transformed. Now, UP

is on course to become a major manufacturing hub.

The central government is also adopting ‘One District One Product’ (ODOP). There’s also an initiative called the Mukhyamantri Swarojgar Yojana (CM self-employment scheme). In the MSME sector, loans worth `36,000 crore have been

disbursed to seven lakh units, new and old. UP’s economy is coming on track.

It should be noted that Micro, Small and Medium enterprises have so far provided employment to 52 lakh people. In addition, 1.25 crore people have been provided employment under the Atmanirbhar Uttar Pradesh Rozgar Programme. About 33 lakh people have been given jobs in the industrial projects initiated with an investment of around `3 lakh crore. Investment of `50,000 crore in Defence Corridor will not only develop the infrastructure in the state but will take Uttar Pradesh towards defence manufacturing and defence economy.

Rapid transformationUttar Pradesh is undergoing rapid transformation and will continue to expand at a robust pace. Even amidst the pandemic, the state was able to attract an investment of `53,000 crore which speaks volumes. Uttar Pradesh’s total collection of tax and non-tax revenue have witnessed an increase of about `2,522 crore in December 2020 compared to same month in the previous year.

Further, the state’s total collections in the first three quarters of 2020-2021 have also improved considerably and we are hoping for a turnaround in the last quarter. If the economic position is good, then all the other sectors also fall into place automatically. Therefore, increasing revenue collection has been among our top priorities. •

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IT-BPM SECTOR

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T he IT-BPM sector in India reflects this buoyancy. The government estimates that the segment is expected to grow to $350 billion by 2025. It

is the largest contributor to total exports from India, accounting for nearly 45 per cent of services exported from the country. It also contributes eight per cent to India’s GDP. Total revenues from IT services and BPM (business process management) for 2019-20 added up to $135 billion. The data centre segment has attracted investments of nearly $400 million in 2020.

The software and hardware sector have attracted cumulative foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow worth $45.97 billion between April 2000 and June 2020. The sector ranked second in FDI inflows according to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade.

With Covid-19 raging across the globe including in India, there has been an acceleration in digital adoption and a major shift to online transactions. Consumers, traders, commercial

outfits and small, medium and large enterprises are increasingly opting for online transactions, ordering

everything from services, raw materials and finished products through various

apps that are offering excellent service.

By N.B. Rao

Growingat a

vibrant pace

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country. Overall tele-density in the country was 86.38 per cent. There were 735 million broadband internet subscribers. With half a million digitally skilled people, India has an enormous talent pool.

The robust IT-BPS segment has several fast-growing sub-sectors. They include IT services, BPM, packaged software (including software as a service – SaaS), hardware and engineering R&D. There are several major IT parks across the country including in Chandigarh, Gurgaon and Greater Noida; the Noida special economic zone; Infocity Gandhinagar; Magarpatta satellite township, Pune; ITPL, Bengaluru SEZ; Techno Park, Thiruvananthapuram; SIPCO IT park, Chennai SEZ; Hyderabad HITEC City; and Millennium City IT Park, Kolkata.

All the leading global IT players have a strong presence in India with hundreds of thousands of employees at offices spread across India. The top names include Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, Wipro, Google, IBM, Amazon, Microsoft, SAP, Oracle, Cisco, Intel. Tech Mahindra and Accenture. Indian IT majors are diversifying their offerings and showcasing ideas in blockchain and artificial intelligence using innovation hubs and R&D centres. Just four top Indian companies (TCS, Infosys, Wipro and HCL Tech) have more than a million employees. With 75 per cent of global digital talent present in the country, it has also emerged as the digital capabilities’ hub of the world.

Interestingly, the global sourcing market is expanding at a much higher pace compared to the IT-BPM sector.

Global Digital Capabilities’ HubIndia has emerged as the global digital capabilities’ hub, accounting for 75 per cent of global digital talent. The government believes that the sector is headed towards achieving $1 trillion digital economy by 2022. The country is today the world’s number one sourcing destination and has the second-largest start-up ecosystem in the world. It is also the number one destination in Asia for new innovation centres and ranks number two worldwide. India is also the second-fastest growing data center region in Asia-Pacific.

According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), there were 1.15 billion wireless telephone users in the country on October 31, 2020. By next year, there will be 825 million smartphone users in the

14% of total investments in 2020 were in Deeptech Startups, up from

11% in 2019

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“The Indian tech startup ecosystem’s

performance in 2020 has demonstrated the

resilience and can-do spirit of the

Indian entrepreneur”

Debjani GhoshPresident, NASSCOM

India accounted for 55 per cent market share of the $250 billion global services sourcing business in 2019-20. Indian companies have set up over a thousand global delivery centres in 80 countries.

Rapid Digital AccelerationCOVID-19 has also accelerated digital adoption and the shift to online creating new opportunities for tech start-ups that are capitalizing on it with rapid digital acceleration and a shift to SaaS-based solutions. Deeptech is also getting deep-rooted into start-ups’ DNA with 19 per cent of tech startups leveraging these solutions to build product competencies for market expansion. Venture Capital firms and funding agencies are investing in deeptech startups; 14% of total investments in 2020 were in deeptech startups, up from 11 per cent in 2019. Further, 87 per cent of all deeptech investments were in AI/ML (artificial intelligence/machine learning) startups, in 2020.

“The Indian tech startup ecosystem’s performance in 2020 has demonstrated the resilience and can-do spirit of the Indian entrepreneur,” Debjani Ghosh, president, NASSCOM, pointed out recently. “The continued innovation, right decision-making and strong investor commitment have positioned the Indian startup ecosystem as a key contributor in accelerating digital economic growth. With the continued addition of new startups, booming unicorns and increased adoption of deeptech, the ecosystem shows an even more promising future.”

According to her, depending on headwinds, 2021 promises to be a positive year for Indian tech startups, marching steadily towards the $1 trillion digital economy goal. With the country leaping forward to become a digitally transformed nation, the technology

startup ecosystem continues to witness a significant growth trajectory on the back of rapid digitalization and tech adoption. NASSCOM, in partnership with Zinnov, a global management and strategy consulting firm, recently launched “Indian Tech Start-up Ecosystem – On the March to Trillion Dollar Digital Economy.”

With over 1,600 tech startups and a record dozen additional unicorns added in 2020 – the highest ever added in a single calendar year – the Indian tech startup base is witnessing a steady 8-10 per cent year-on-year growth. Investor sentiment is also recovering with H2 2020 funding up by 2X over H1 2020. According to NASSCOM, Fintech, HealthTech, EdTech, AgriTech, and Enterprise Tech sectors are witnessing rapid digital adoption. •

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VIEWPOINT

‘Telecom has never been more relevant than it is today’

Could you share your views on the prospects for the telecom and 5G sector in India? Is 5G definitely being launched in 2021?There is a lot of euphoria around the changes that 5G and 5G-enabled technologies can enable. Telecom has never been more relevant than it is today - connecting families, communities, keeping businesses and educational institutions relevant, and most importantly facilitating their true potential. Especially during COVID, India’s investment in telecom and mobility was key to ensuring continuity in all these areas. 5G is key to achieving India’s digital transformation and the government’s ambitious Digital India vision in the real sense, enabling Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) to offer innovative applications across verticals from manufacturing, retail, educational, healthcare, agricultural, to financial and social sectors.

5G will open up a plethora of possibilities, and preparations for the same are underway. The nation is keenly looking forward to the announcement of 5G spectrum bands and the roll out is expected to happen soon.

Is this sector likely to expand at a rapid pace over the next two to three years? Definitely … The telecom sector is entering an exciting era. The confluence of new-age digital technologies has transformed connectivity, building connected experiences in a disconnected world and telecom is at the centre of every such development.

According to GSMA report, 5G will account for as many as 1.2 billion connections by 2025 globally. So, I would say that yes, indeed, the telecom sector driven by 5G will witness rapid expansion over the next few years.

However, in order to unlock the 5G era, there is a need to address the financial stress to the sector, Spectrum Usage Charges (SUC), along with addressing infrastructure requirements and network congestion. The sector has witnessed exponential growth over the years. The pandemic made us realize how important the sector is, proving to be a lifeline living up to the challenge thrown by the lockdown, while adjusting

to the unprecedented demand for services due to an exponential increase in traffic and data consumption.

What according to you are the challenges before the sector?A challenge only becomes an obstacle when we choose to bow down to it! The industry at this point of time is facing many financial and operational (infrastructure) challenges, that need to be resolved in order to decode the world of opportunities that 5G technology has to offer.

Governments will need to set industry-specific regulations and a policy framework to enable seamless interconnectivity, and to ensure that the devices and networks are well-secured to mitigate digital and cyber risks across the ecosystem. The implementation of 5G will require collaborations and partnerships, at the local, state, and private sector levels, considering the mammoth-size of the telecom sector. Heightened investment commitments from funding institutions will help in establishing a worthy investment model for this massive opportunity to be captured. Availability of suitable spectrum is a key aspect for 5G-ready networks to provide service. Tech Mahindra is now at an advanced stage of sharing technology with ITI (Indian Telephone Industries) Limited, to provide the ecosystem needed for the 5G roll out.

What are the challenges confronting the Indian telecom sector?We must incentivise Research & Development (R&D) to ensure we are not left behind in the IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) game, thus taking a step towards making ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’. Given the financial pressure on the sector and the fact that ARPU [Average Revenue Per User] and tariffs of the Indian telecom sector are at the lowest in the world, floor pricing is imperative to ensure that the sector is sustainable, and is in a position to bear the deferred spectrum and adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues, while continuing to invest in world-class networks and services.

We feature an interview with C.P. Gurnani,Managing Director & CEO, Tech Mahindra. Excerpts:

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Adoption of 5G by industry will drive demand and therefore, service evolution and investment by telecom service providers. CII can play a role in helping various sectors define the right 5G use cases to drive adoption. Tech Mahindra is keen to work with CII in enabling this.

Could you share your company’s activities and future plans?5G continues to be an important part of Tech Mahindra’s portfolio, and we are leveraging next-generation technologies to deliver an enhanced experience to our customers. We are currently engaged with multiple service providers globally to accelerate their network transformation journey. Hence, from media to medicine we believe 5G is “The NXT of Everything”.

At Tech Mahindra, we have divided 5G into three groups – 5G for the communications service provider, 5G for enterprise, and 5G for the ecosystem. We are working towards outlining plans based on business and market opportunities while also providing a range of services that enable enterprises to establish a private wireless network to span areas of operations and enable a plethora of IoT use cases. Our services remove inefficiencies related to slow, insufficient wireless connectivity and have a strong roadmap to support growing traffic demands for 5G establishment.

What is your perspective on the IT and IT-enabled sectors in India? The growth of the Indian IT (Information Technology) sector circles back to the 1980s when the domestic market gained momentum with the materialization of

new computer and software policies. Since then, there has been no looking back for the sector. IT has played a crucial role in fuelling the growth of the Indian economy and putting the country on the global map. According to NASSCOM, the installed talent base of digitally skilled professionals in India across all emerging technologies stood at 6,80,000 in FY2019 and is estimated to reach 8,84,000 in FY2020. Remarkably, as this sector became one of the significant growth sectors for the Indian economy, it simultaneously positively influenced the lives of people through direct or indirect contribution to various socio-economic parameters such as employment, standard of living and diversity.

The Indian IT sector is poised to become a USD 350 billion industry. It used to be about 5% of the GDP

(Gross Domestic Product) and expect to increase our contribution to about 10% of the overall GDP. Hence, the Indian IT industry has only one way to look and that is upwards. Since ‘virtual’ has become the new normal, IT and related sectors are bound to become the pivotal point of this new normal.

The sector has been able to convert the challenges posed by the pandemic into an opportunity for the industry to dwell on for the years to come. Robust IT systems in place had made almost everything possible during the lockdown; from enabling employees to access all applications from home securely and producing quality work, to creating EdTech and health-tech. It was the IT sector that built a bond which carried us beyond the uncertainties and eventually, built a new normal for the government, industry and individuals. As I always say, technology is at the core of everything we do, be

C.P. GurnaniManaging Director & CEO,

Tech Mahindra

it solving the skill problem or sustainability issues, and thus I foresee the coming years spelling growth as industry invests aggressively in digital. The future is now, and it is all about being agile and being able to use technology to drive economic recovery. A $181-$182 billion Indian IT industry shows that industry is doing well and since the need for technology digitalization is on a high, I do see a rapid expansion of this sector in the coming years.

How will the IT sector ensure Digital Transformation in India?India has been on a digital-first trajectory for a few years, spurred on by its goal of becoming a trillion-dollar digital economy by 2025. This was further accelerated due to pandemic-induced lockdown and remote working which pushed businesses across sectors to incorporate digital tools and technologies in their business strategies. Furthering this digital transformation are the opportunities in technology-powered development and their impact on key sectors like healthcare, education, media & entertainment, and manufacturing. For example, the pandemic has already helped mainstream telemedicine with over 5 crore Indians accessing e-healthcare services from March 2020, marking a 500% increase in online consultations. Again, this is a watershed moment for us to transform the state of education in the country with technology and the IT sector is leaving no stone unturned in aiding this as well. The information technology industry has been the hallmark of the Indian growth story since long and I see it standing tall in the future as well, supporting digital transformation all the way ahead.

Do you see Indian companies expand their international presence over the coming years?Excellence is the best ink with which Indian companies make their mark in the world. With technology proving to be the core of business operational and tactical strategies, the proliferation of Indian organizations particularly in consumer and technology segments, has significantly expanded across international markets. Again, COVID-19 has been an opportunity for Indian companies to prove to clients that a remote workforce can be very effective, and to expand their customer base to overseas markets through Mergers & Acquisitions (M&As).

Companies with strong balance sheets are now chasing attractive assets and valuations through overseas deals & acquisitions. We expect new-age organizations, IT firms and consumer firms to see healthy M&A activity throughout the year in areas such as digital, education, health, cloud and security among others. •

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See change to manage

Sea ChangeBy Vasudevan Easwaran

We live in a world which is driven by commercial and technological disruptions. This fast-paced change that has dominated the current decade

has led to an over-competitive business environment, which is far different from the stability of the past. With relentless change, leaders need to have the ability to look beyond the events of today and into the possibilities of tomorrow - those who can visualise new ideas about customers, products, services, strategies and business models. This article dives into what it takes for leaders to not only “See” change but also manage it when the scale brings about a “Sea” change.

Leaders who “See Change” look at things with a different perspective and question the norm. They constantly challenge status-quo by asking questions like: • What, if the most important resource your company

is dependant upon, were no longer available? What if aviation fuel is no longer available for airline? What’s plan B?

• What if your biggest strength were to become your biggest weakness? Remember Kodak’s film technology or Nokia’s Symbian operating system? Do you see a similar pattern?

• What if you had to stop selling product/service that is most important for your company? Samsung Galaxy note 7, Segway with a price tag of $5000…etc. What Else?

• Can you think of that one super idea that will revolutionise the world for your customers, therefore your company? Mass transportation on land at a speed of 760 miles per hour? Does it sound insane?These ideas may sound farfetched or crazy for some.

It’s said that when you’re one step ahead of the crowd you’re a genius, but when you are two steps ahead, it makes you insane! Visualizing an unpopular or a bold stance might not be madness after all, as these leaders truly believe in possibilities of a different future. They practice certain behaviours that not only helps them

“See change” but also manage the “Sea Change” that it brings along. Here a few characteristics of such leaders:

Crave to ChangeThese leaders are not comfortable with status quo; they consistently “Crave” for change. Whether it is systemic, technological, conceptual or even ideological. They have a keen sense of observation and uncontainable curiosity. Curiosity coupled with craving to change, place these leaders in a high action zone where they use the fine art of balancing action with perfection.

Larry page, Cofounder of Google is a great example of a leader who was not comfortable with status quo. According to him, “The biggest competitor for Google is Google itself”. He truly believed in inventing and reinventing. Google today boasts of products like Chrome, Android, Play store, Maps, YouTube and more.

Positive about possibilities When Reed Hoffman founded LinkedIn way back in 2002, market confidence was unfavourable due

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to the dotcom bust and the presence of other social networking sites like Facebook. Despite this, Hoffman saw possibilities; starting a business during an economic downturn, he said, is the “exact right time to do it because it gives you runway.”

Leaders like Reed understand that while change may bring with it some challenges and adversities, it also offers opportunities and possibilities. For them, it is not about a silver lining to the cloud, but about always seeing the big bright sunny day. Their positive energy is contagious and propels people around such leaders to surge forward during times of change

Raring to risk itSuch leaders love to take risks experiment. They learn from their mistakes or setbacks and do not get into the blame game. They practice and imbibe a culture of “Fail fast-learn soon” which is essential to manage change. All of this requires the leaders to need to display radical candour and transparency, which they do effortlessly.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos famously called the e- commerce giant “the best place in the world to fail”. It has a list of close to 20 products that have either failed or have been stopped. He says: “What really matters is companies that don’t continue to experiment, companies that don’t embrace failure, they eventually get in a desperate position”. Bezos credits the success of his company to the risk-taking culture it is built upon.

Tenacious with teamsDavid Kelly CEO of IDEO a global award-winning design firm believes that teamwork improves innovation and creativity. At IDEO there is a visible lack of title or status for group members, team leaders are selected not because they are superior, but because they are good with groups. They love diversity of thoughts in their teams. In the words of Kelly: “We have found out that many of our best ideas come from collaborating with other people, from make-a-thons to multidisciplinary teams, we treat creativity as a sport”.

They are aware that any change can be accomplished only if the team strives together, they are passionate about their teams and love to keep them together. Therefore, they invest in building trust with the team, display emotional intelligence and act with empathy. This helps them to move away from the traditional predict and control mechanism. Rather, they believe in empowering the team by treating them as equals. Their style of leadership is sensing and responding which helps them to manage ‘sea’ change

Renew with resilience Change may not take you in the direction you want to go. It may, at times shake you up or beat you down to the ground. These leaders display immense resilience, which enables them to bounce back with renewed vigour. They do this by displaying a high degree of self-composure The author is Senior Leadership Coach and Behavioral facilitator, Wipro Ltd.

and control; they don’t buckle under pressure, thereby managing disruptive change effectively.

Born in an impoverished family in Mississippi, to becoming the co-host to a local evening news to risking it all to start her own television channel, to becoming one of the most influential and powerful woman of 20th century according to Forbes, Times and CNN - Oprah Winfrey is the lady we are talking of, who not only kept bouncing back in life but also reached the skies.

Passionate about purposePurpose is the driving force for change and this ignites the undying passion that energizes and triggers emotions in leaders. They genuinely love what they do, and their passion generates an infectious environment of enjoyment, engagement and caring. Their purpose is like the North Star that guides actions by providing them with a clear view of why they do what they do. They are authentic and make a difference through their personal examples. Being passionate about their purpose makes them set bold visions and motivate others to join their journey to a more desirable future state.

Dr. G. Venkataswamy wanted to bring about a change in the way curable blindness was treated in India and set up the Aravind Eye Hospital in Madurai, Tamilnadu to provide high quality and compassionate affordable eye

care for all. Since its inception, Aravind Eye Hospital has handled more than 60 million patients and performed more than 7.8 million surgeries, making it the largest in the world. New York Times once mentioned, “Aravind can practice compassion successfully because it is run like McDonald’s with assembly-line efficiency, strict quality norms, brand recognition, standardization, consistency, ruthless cost control and above all, volume”. Dr. V has been conferred the Padma Shree - one of the highest civilian award to any citizen of India and his case studies have been written in esteemed journals like HBR, Mckinsey, Forbes and many more.

Managing change is neither about the speed of response, nor about the result. It is about the leader’s sustained effort to foresee change; it is about the ability to think beyond. It is also about the ability to take unrelenting, effective actions amidst chaos, the aptitude to steer ahead of change and manage it well. Leaders of tomorrow need to be like surfers; surfing on a choppy sea of change. They should be the ones who can surf ahead of the wave of change and catch it before it catches them. The “Sea” of change and its waves can be harsh and unforgiving sometimes - leaders can stumble and fall. But their resilience, appetite for risk, positivity, passion for purpose, tenacity all can hold them in good stead as they continue to “See” Change to manage “Sea” Change. •

“We have found out that many of our best ideas come from collaborating with other people, from make-a-thons to multidisciplinary teams, we treat creativity as a sport”

— David Kelly, CEO of IDEO

Born in an impoverished family in Mississippi, to becomingthe co-host to a local evening news to risking it all to start

her own television channel, to becoming one of the most influential and powerful woman of 20th century

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‘We must ensure that 2021 is a watershed in experiential tourism’

The Principal Secretary to the Government of Odisha, Department of Tourism and Sports & Youth Services, focuses on the emerging new trends in the tourism sector in this fascinating Indian state

By Vishal Dev, IAS

While the tourism sector’s health will take another couple

of years to revive completely, we in Odisha have witnessed positive signs. Our flagship product, Eco Retreat Odisha has received a healthy response, with all five glamping sites witnessing almost 100% occupancy during the last two weeks of December 2020. Even our niche birding event, the National Chilika Bird Festival witnessed 55 participants, representing nine states, including Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and West Bengal, besides Odisha.

We must collectively ensure that 2021 is a watershed in experiential tourism. We strongly believe that domestic tourism is going to dominate and building a positive ecosystem for long duration multi-state itineraries, especially by road, will bode well. Odisha has been championing

interstate cooperation in tourism for over a year now, especially at the National Tourism Ministers’ Conclave that we hosted last year at the Marine Drive Eco Retreat. If states work regionally to develop experience rich and thematic itineraries and promote them well, tourist footfalls will get a fillip.

Challenges before the sectorThe challenges are both hygiene and development oriented. From the hygiene perspective, the key challenge is ensuring sustainability of destinations after opening up. At no point can we let our hair down, despite the rollout of the vaccination programme. We must together with hospitality units, tour operators and the entire sector, be diligent in our SOPs in sanitisation, social distancing, food and beverage service management.

Moreover, it is important to boost tourism livelihood at the grassroots through community projects and encouragement

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of entrepreneurial ventures, while optimising the use of technology in contactless tourist experience – be it in ticketing or logistics.

Assuring tourist safety: While Odisha presents its exciting offerings, the Department of Tourism has ensured utmost safety for the state’s visitors. The Government of Odisha has been scrupulously implementing risk mitigation guidelines issued by the Indian Government and the hospitality industry is adequately adopting technology and SOPs to ensure that every tourist is served with safety.

Despite the looming apprehensions in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government has considerably succeeded at convincing tourists of the proactive safety protocols instituted at each Eco Retreat, including good practices in contact-less check-ins and check-outs, PPE kits for staff, safe procurement of consumables, regular disinfection of all rooms, facilities and contact surfaces, thermal screening, provision of a comprehensive sanitation package for each checked-in guest, luggage sanitisation, social distancing norms, etc.

Detailed below are some critical aspects of sector survival and revival, and the initiatives of the Department of Tourism in this regard:• Capacity Building: DoT conducted COVID-19 Risk Mitigation and

Hygiene training sessions for OTDC and Ecotour Odisha community managers and staff collaboration. These sessions were conducted in collaboration with premier hospitality training institutions such as IITTM and IHM in batches so as to enable properties to open up and operate in compliance with health and safety guidelines. Post opening up of tourism in October, DoT has in collaboration with IITTM organised an all-inclusive Series of Workshops on “Facing the New Normal” – with over 300 participants in person and thousands participating virtually. Two workshops familiarized participants with post-pandemic preparedness, housekeeping protocols and SOPs for travel trade intermediaries.

• Opening up strategy: In the run up to October, when Chief Minister Mr Naveen Patnaik declared tourism open, barring places of worship, we progressively opened up destinations and products with protocols.

• Information dissemination: We have developed a comprehensive “Safety

best kept secret’ is to enrich the experience, towards which each of our initiatives is oriented. The most outstanding outcome has been the Eco Retreat, eastern India’s foremost glamping festival., Eco Retreat Odisha has been stepped up to cover five unique locations – Bhitarkanika National Park, Daringbadi Hill-station, Hirakud Reservoir, Konark’s Ramchandi Beach and Satkosia Tiger Reserve till February 28, 2021.

Offering luxurious stays with a host of activities included in its itineraries, Eco Retreat Odisha has received

a bumper response, with the last two weeks of December witnessing 100% occupancy. We have ensured that our vibrant event calendar is not disrupted by the pandemic.

The Konark Festival and Sand Art Festival 2020 were among the first cultural festivals of the country to be organised post opening up, and in complete adherence to COVID safety protocols. So are the iconic Mukteswar Dance Festival and Rajarani Music Festival.

The calendar will be further enriched this year onwards. The most enjoyable route to discovering Odisha’s hidden jewels is through the state’s excellent road network. The Odisha By Road campaign offers tourists diverse itineraries ranging from two to five nights, through beaches, forests, hill-stations, tribal hinterlands, waterbodies, cities and promising experiences in cuisine, heritage, adventure, ethnic encounters, arts and handicrafts, leisure, wildlife and ecotourism.

Holidays in Odisha promise to be unprecedented in 2021, with the introduction of several niche experiences. Key among them is cruise tourism in the state’s beautiful wetlands – from the

iconic Chilika lake and Bhitarkanika backwaters to the Mahanadi river and Hirakud reservoir.

Visitors to Odisha will also get to go local, with the state government set to launch a scheme to encourage homestays in key locations so as to personalise Odia hospitality – offering tourists unique cultural experiences in hospitality, cuisine and other local ways of life while dwelling in local family homes.

Cuisine will be among the best aspects of travel to Odisha, with OTDC’s foray into premium fine-dining in Odia Cuisine under the brand name of Nimantran. Three restaurants are set to open in Bhubaneswar, Puri and Sambalpur, which will push up the exotic quotient of the underrated offering.

Not far behind is heritage hospitality, which is seldom associated with Odisha. Several heritage homestays are open to tourists, hosted by erstwhile royal families. We will also launch a scheme to encourage several more heritage hotels to open up in the coming years.

Community-managed ecotourism Odisha’s most championed segment – is set for an aesthetic overhaul, through enhanced quality of accommodations and services, while preserving the sustainability. We are targeting to double its capacity of nature camps from over 300 at present to 600 in the coming years.

Beach tourism has received a fillip, with the Blue-Flag certification of Puri’s Golden Beach. The Government of Odisha has begun a drive to get five other beaches certified – Pir Jahania, Niladri and Muhan in Puri district and Haripur and Pati Sonapur in Ganjam district. •

First” module as a part of the award-winning website odishatourism.gov.in, which informs tourists of safety measures adopted by hospitality units, guidelines and protocols and updates on the opening up of tourist destinations in the state.

• Preserving and enriching the event calendar: Having pioneered risk mitigation and revival strategies, Odisha has bounced back; case in example being the recently organised Konark Festival and Sand Art Festival 2020. It was inaugurated by Mr Patnaik, to emerge as India’s first cultural festival post opening up of the lockdown – in complete adherence to COVID-19 safety protocols – from social distancing in access and seating, to comprehensive sanitisation. Odisha Tourism will in 2021 add the Odissi Music Festival and a few other exciting events to its vibrant calendar.

• Interstate cooperation: Transcending state boundaries, the Government of Odisha has emphasised the need for interstate cooperation to jointly develop, market and manage long duration itineraries spanning the region. The aim is to develop the region comprising Odisha and neighbouring states such as West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh into a tourism hotspot in general and a favourite of road trip explorers and campers in particular.

Future plansCentral to unveiling ‘India’s

Holidays in Odisha promise to be unprecedented in 2021, with the introduction of several niche experiences

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INTERVIEW

‘Hospitality is one of the most resilient industries – it

will bounce back’An interview with Anuraag Bhatnagar, Chief Operating Officer,

The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts

Could you share your views on the prospects for the hospitality sector in India? This pandemic is almost certainly one of the biggest global events and challenges of our lifetime. And the hospitality industry has been perhaps amongst the worst hit. It has not only shifted travellers’ expectations fundamentally but also changed human attitudes and behaviours at a speed we’ve never seen before, ushering in a “new normal”. Our ‘new normal’ now sees health and hygiene at the forefront of our customers’ minds, and we have had to reimagine how we deliver the customer experience in a hygienic yet human way.

In the immediate to medium term, development in the sector is going to be slow. Under-construction projects may face delays on account of financial challenges, labour shortages and issues pertaining to vendors and a disrupted supply chain. Muted market conditions will likely lead to delayed openings while some projects will remain on hold pending recovery.

We know, the world will start to travel again; however, it won’t be at the flick of a switch. While every sector has felt some repercussions, few have been hit as hard by the pandemic as the travel sector. The road to recovery will be slow and bumpy. But we also know from history that hospitality is one of the most resilient industries. It will bounce back.

We remain cautiously optimistic that demand will return and sooner than we expect. And we should be prepared for that when it happens. This is a time for consolidation.

Is it likely to expand at a rapid pace over the next two to three years? Like I said, recovery will be slow and bumpy. Rationalisation is a natural corollary to sustainable growth and brands that have the appetite to invest in times like these are the brands that are here for the long run. The news of the vaccination drive is encouraging and how this pans out waits to be seen.

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What according to you are the challenges before the sector?All the disruption caused by the present circumstances has made us challenge everything we have done so far…. even basic assumptions. Mindsets have shifted and life goals have evolved. When life changes so dramatically and at breakneck speed, the one thing we do know for sure is that something has ended, and a new era has begun. We know that the “normal” we return to will not be the “normal” we knew before. And that the trends and behaviours that were predicted at the start of the decade are no more applicable. So, our strategies and the way we have approached our business needs to evolve.

This is the time for businesses to pivot and reinvent, a time for transformation and innovation. Look for synergies and efficiencies and be agile, smart and bold, to adapt quickly to the evolving needs and dynamic environment.

The current crisis has forced the hospitality sector to come up with innovative ways to utilise their assets to stay afloat, thereby opening newer revenue streams. From food delivery, laundry, housekeeping, and facility management to warehousing and more, hotels will be reimagining ‘hospitality’ by extending their services to customers in the comfort of their offices and homes.

Do you see Indian companies expand their international presence over the coming years?I can’t speak for other companies but for us this is a time for consolidation. We will grow organically when the time is right and our mantra really is the right asset, for the right value, at the right time and in the right location. Also this needs to fit into our overall and long term strategy, be it domestic or international.

Could you share your company’s activities and future plans?At The Leela our focus these past few months has been on four things - safely reopening our hotels in a phased approach and carefully planning for our teams to return to work as hotels reopened their doors and scale back up; gradually and slowly building consumer confidence and trust and engaging with our customers and associates, reassuring them with a relentless focus on the highest levels of sanitisation to ensure our hotels are sanctuaries

of cleanliness; devising strategies and initiatives that will help elevate the guest experience and strengthen the positioning of the brand as a leading luxury hotel brand true to its Indian heritage; driving demand through compelling and meaningful offers with inclusions and value additions built in around what matters most to our guests.

For us the safety and wellbeing of our guests and associates is of paramount importance. We therefore launched SURAKSHA in partnership with Bureau Veritas India. This comprehensive program builds on The Leela’s existing rigorous cleaning protocols and is aimed at elevating sanitisation, hygiene and safety procedures to deliver a safe environment for guests and associates. SURAKSHA redefines our processes so our guests can continue to enjoy our indulgent services and distinctive experiences with peace of mind.

For the last three decades, the brand has come to be known for delivering an uncompromising level of personalised experiences with the true graciousness of Indian hospitality. SURAKSHA further reiterates this commitment and is grounded in genuine care backed by unobtrusive technology, so guests have trust and confidence as they begin to travel again and continue to experience the renowned Leela service.

Health and wellness practices will no longer be a nice-to-have in a post-COVID-19 world. All travelers will expect higher standards to ensure their wellbeing, and digital tools will enable and expand existing “no touch” options. And we have made our check-in experience contactless, replaced menus with e-menus and newspapers with the Press Reader App.

COVID-19 might have changed the way we work, interact, shop and spend time but it will not change who we are essentially and what we want from life. Having had time to reflect, people will value authenticity and purposeful values more than ever before. And finally, after months of isolation and anxiety, customers the world over will want to experience life again. Companies which will figure out how to offer experiences instead of services, will lead the way. Our focus has therefore been on curating offers that are meaningful and resonate with our audiences.

Hotels and resorts that naturally lend themselves to social-distancing and provide expansive settings such

as private pools and private lawns will see a surge of interest. So also private accommodations, such as larger suites, villas and residences, where people can gather with family and friends while social distancing from others and yet feel safe.

COVID-19 has brought family, friends and loved ones closer together. Once things go ‘back to the new normal’ people will have an emotional need to travel with people they know and trust and stay where they feel safe. Personal space has become more important than ever before and we as hoteliers must determine how to give travelers personal spaces they feel they can control.

Sustainability and sourcing locally are going to be

high on people’s minds and so also wellbeing. At The Leela we have been working on launching an inhouse water bottling plant that will provide three types of water. We are also looking at new bath amenities inspired by the Five Elements,

While the new Leela experience, as we embrace the “new normal”, may look different, we want our guests and our associates to know that it is thoughtfully curated so they can continue to feel as welcome and comfortable as they did before. And in doing so we are guided by our governing principle “Atithi Devo Bhava”…. Keeping the guest at the centre of everything we do. •

For us the safety and wellbeing of our guests and associates is of paramount importance. We therefore launched SURAKSHA in partnership with Bureau Veritas India. This comprehensive program builds on The Leela’s existing rigorous cleaning protocols and is aimed at elevating sanitisation, hygiene and safety procedures...

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‘India marching towards becoming one of the world’s largest green energy producers’

Could you share your views on the prospects for renewable energy in India? India is ranked 4th in wind power, 5th in solar energy, and 5th in cumulative renewable energy installed capacity. Through strong and robust policies, regulatory strategies, and fiscal measures, India is marching towards becoming one of the world’s largest green energy producers. As of November 30, 2020, India’s total renewable energy installed capacity had reached over 90 GW. India has witnessed the fastest growth rate in renewable energy capacity addition among the largest economies, with renewable energy capacity growing by 2.5 times and solar energy expanding by over 13 times. Renewable energy now constitutes over 24% of the country’s installed power capacity and around 11.62% of the energy generation.

Under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, India is set to become self-reliant in Solar Manufacturing and Battery Storage. Led by technology enhancement and reforms in labour and land policy, today India is the cheapest Solar power producer globally.

Is the output from renewable energy likely to expand at a rapid pace over the next two to three years?Yes, of course. India is committed to increasing clean energy sources and is already undertaking various large-scale renewable energy projects and heavily promoting green energy. India has set the target to expand its renewable energy portfolio of 450 GW by 2030. It is expected that by 2040, around 49% of the total electricity will be generated by renewable energy as more efficient batteries will be used to store electricity, which will further cut the solar energy cost by 66% as compared to the current price.

INTERVIEW

We feature an interview with Vineet Mittal, Chairman, Avaada Group on India’s rapidly expanding renewable energy segment. Excerpts:

What, according to you, are the financial needs of the sector?New opportunities have emerged and also been created for new businesses. Indian companies have begun to explore foreign stock exchanges as a source of funds. India is progressively becoming the most-favoured destination for investment in renewables. It has attracted over US $ 42 billion in the last four years of which, US$ 9.68 billion is in the form of FDI equity in the non-conventional energy sector during April 2020 – Sept 2020. Foreign investors are entering into a joint venture with an Indian partner to collaborate and set up renewable energy-based power generation projects.

As estimated by IEEFA, India will require an investment between US $500 billion and US $700 billion in the renewable energy sector and the supporting grid network over the next decade to meet its energy targets.

Could you share your company’s activities in this sector?Avaada Group and is one of the largest Solar IPPs in India. “Avaada” is derived from two words – Ayurveda (the science of life) + Vaada (promise), and thus the enterprise stands for the promise of a sustainable future. One of the pioneers in renewable energy, Avaada, was founded to make the world a better place. It has snowballed and has almost 1 GW of Solar Power assets under operation. We have built some of the largest solar projects across India.

Our growth continues with an impressive pipeline of ~4 GW scheduled to be commissioned in the next couple of years. We aspire to be a 10 GW company by 2025 and be one of the business’s largest players. We also have plans for geographical expansion, and following that, we are under advanced stages of PPA finalisation in a few African countries. Also, we are evaluating opportunities in South East Asia in countries like Cambodia, Vietnam, etc.

AVAADA has been a preferred destination for investors because of our professional leadership, strong project execution capabilities, and impeccable debt servicing record. We have received investments from major sovereign funds like ADB, DEG, FMO, and Proparco. Investments by these global financial stalwarts revalidate our ability to set up high performing assets, generating maximum returns for all our stakeholders. •

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INTERVIEW

“I am confident that the coming months will see a revival of the economy and new investments flowing in. I also see many more international students getting enrolled in our varsities.”

Tracing his roots back to the early days, Prof Samanta, who lost his father when he was four and the family was pushed into abject poverty, recalls how he started the chain of institutions in a humble way in a rented house with less than $100 in assets. The KIIT Deemed to be University was recognised as an ‘Institution of Eminence (IoE) by the Ministry of Human Resources Development of the Indian government in 2019.

“Our main focus now is to enhance our international rankings and to compete with global universities,” explains Prof Samanta, who was elected to the Lok Sabha

from Kandhamal constituency in Odisha. “We want to maintain our standards of high quality and excellence in teaching and research.”

Work on starting branches of KISS in different parts of Odisha has begun. KISS has also been operating in Delhi since 2013. Other institutions in the group include the Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences, a medical college with a 2,500-bed hospital and other allied institutes like Dental and Nursing Colleges; KIIT International School (with International Baccalaureate affiliation), Kadambini Media Pvt Ltd (for promoting art, literature, and culture); and Kalinga TV Pvt. Ltd, a 24×7 news channel, which since 2000 of ‘Nanhi Pari,’ a Little Miss India competition to identify and nurture young talent. •

By Anand Desai

The COVID-19 pandemic played havoc around the globe, virtually bringing a halt to multifarious activities including the functioning of schools,

colleges and universities, both at major educational hubs and campuses and in small towns and villages.

“It adversely affected higher education around the world,” remarks Prof Achyuta Samanta, founder, Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) Deemed to be University, with 30,000 students from all over India and 55 countries, and Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), one of the largest free residential KG-PG institute for 50,000 tribal children, among other institutes. “It has affected most other sectors as well.”

Fortunately, most of the university students in Odisha, especially those living in remote rural areas,

could continue with their studies thanks to interactive sessions that were organised. “Right from the start of the crisis last March we had online classes for our students,” says Prof Samanta. “Initially, the faculty members and the students appeared demotivated, but consistent efforts on our part saw the faculty getting motivated. They then urged the students to adapt new technology.”

The results are evident at the campus placements, where 100 per cent students from one batch got jobs, while in the case of technology students, 80 per cent were recruited at these interviews.

Prof Samanta is optimistic and hopeful that the Indian economy will revive very soon. “The Sensex has crossed the 50,000 mark, reflecting that the Indian economy is on the right path and will recover,” he adds.

‘I am confident about India’s recovery’

Prof Achyuta SamantaFounder, Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology

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INTERVIEW

‘Investment and growth of infra sector will get economy back on track’An interview with Hemant Kanoria, Chairman, SREI Infrastructure Finance, one of India’s leading asset finance and leasing institutions.

Could you share your views on the infrastructure and infra finance sectors in India? The infrastructure sector in India employs the largest number of people after agriculture. It also has the largest number of entrepreneurs, contractors, businessman and concessionaries; directly and indirectly almost about 15-20% of India’s population is positively influenced and impacted by the sector. The global pandemic of 2020 certainly impacted this space as it created an unprecedented situation for societies, governments and businesses everywhere.

Our government has worked tirelessly to protect both life and livelihoods. The relief measures, particularly the moratorium on debt payments and the opening of a one-time restructuring window have helped small borrowers, but we need a more sustainable resuscitation of demand. The government has made it clear that an infrastructure-led growth strategy is favoured in order to come out of this recession. We expect some major announcements in that direction from the Union Budget 2021-22.

However, even a sharp relaxation of the fiscal deficit target will not be enough to provide the government the requisite funds to undertake a massive infrastructure expansion programme. Financing for infra cannot be met entirely by the government which is already under stress from the crisis. As the need cannot be met by banks entirely, a broadening of markets is needed. Therefore, resuscitation of private financing - domestic and international, is the need of the hour. The NBFCs specialising in sectors such as infra or others have been playing a significant role in infra financing.

Thus, for a rapid pace of infra creation, having a healthy and vibrant NBFC sector and some out-of-the-box thinking for mobilising resources from private sector, both domestic and international, is absolutely vital. There will be no bigger game changer than investment and growth of the infra sector, to get the economy back on track.

Do you expect the infrastructure sector and infra financing opportunities to expand at a rapid pace over the next two to three years?That will depend on how fast we can do the necessary groundwork. Some administrative reforms are needed at the ground level for improving the ease of implementation of infra projects. The pace of activity can definitely be expected to pick up faster once the projects under the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) start getting implemented. As the sector needs to attract substantive investments, some learnings and lessons from the past experiences can facilitate in restoring future issues. We need to put in place a new work culture where arbitration awards are paid expeditiously, contractor payments are settled in time and all infra projects come with a ‘deemed clearance’ clause whereby any approval or permission, if not provided within a deadline, are ‘deemed cleared’. The state governments and local administrations must partner the central government in order to draw up a pipeline of shovel-ready projects. That should set the pace for at least the next two to three years.

What according to you are the financial needs of the infrastructure sector?A national infrastructure pipeline (NIP) of projects has been identified involving investments of about USD 1.5 trillion needed over five years up to 2025. Sectors such as energy (24%), roads (18%), urban (17%) and railways (12%) will account for 71% of the projected investments.

Between 2025 and 2040, another USD 3 trillion is expected to be invested in India’s infrastructure.

The central government would need to do bulk of the spending, at least initially. However, reviving private investment flows will be the key for which both domestic and international capital is necessary. In recent years, the Government has established new arbitration laws for speedier resolution of disputes, ensured quicker dispensation of awards, fast-tracked clearances for

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setting up new businesses and reworked bankruptcy and insolvency laws to aid distressed establishments. Although more work is admittedly needed to put us on a surer footing, these are indications that we are keen to make India a preferred destination for investments in the coming years and beyond.

Do you see many international players continuing to play a major role?International players have in the past, and will continue to play an important role in India’s infrastructure economy. Since the infrastructure sector is capital intensive with a long gestation period, the only way to grow this at a frenetic pace is with additional long term international capital. Presently, due to the accommodative monetary policy followed in most developed countries, there are several low cost funds on the lookout for decent returns. This is an ideal time to attract such funds into our projects. We need funds, these international fund operators need returns – thus we have a perfect dovetailing situation. The Union Budget 2020-21 allowed 100% tax exemption for Sovereign Wealth Funds for investments in Indian infra projects. These can be the right vehicles for tapping such funds. The opportunities in the infrastructure sector

in India are huge and the international investors can definitely explore investments.

Could you share your company’s activities in this sector?Historically, in addition to the core business of equipment financing, Srei had also been financing infrastructure projects and structured loans, both short term and long term, directly and through SPVs. However, equipment financing has been our core business and we have a dominant presence in the space of construction and mining equipment, healthcare equipment, IT equipment and agricultural equipment. We wish to focus on our core expertise, i.e. equipment financing since we have created a strong franchise that we built over the last 31 years. Our strong OEM relationships, ~100,000 customer base and long standing institutional partnerships with capital providers will be instrumental in consolidating our leadership position.

Keeping pace with the current times, we also adapted to the digital era by becoming the first company to take our core business of equipment financing online so that we can successfully leverage the opportunities and efficiencies that technology can offer. We hope that 2021 will be a defining year for us and the sector. •