chamber intouch

Vol Vol 28 28 Nos. Nos. 33 && 44 –– June June 2014 2014 –– July July 2014 2014

N.Venkataraman, Senior Advocate addressing the audience in the Workshop on Union Budget and Finance Bill, 2014-15. Others in the picture: L to R : K. Vaitheeswaran, T. Shivaraman & S.G. Prabhakharan

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T H I S

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X President’s Message X Chamber’s Activities: -

178th AGM Function – Chief Guest - U.K.Sinha, Chairman, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) delivering Chief Guest Address

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Discussion on Labour Laws with EFSI Interactive meeting with the Consul General of Islamic Republic of Iran REnergy International Conference MCCI – KPL Trade Meet Meeting with Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, GOI

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Training Programme on Effective Business Communication and Relationship Management

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FFT on Balancing Environment and Economic Development Seminar on Directors’ and Officers’ Liability Insurance Interaction meeting with Delegation from France South East CEO Conclave Awards 2014 Workshop on Union Budget and Finance Bill 2014-2015

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MCCI & MMA Felicitation function to honor Mr. N.Srinivasan, Chairman, ICC 178th Annual General Meeting Launch of Certificate Course on TNVAT Act & CST Act MCCI – ICICI Bank - CEO knowledge forum

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X General Committee X SPOT LIGHT

Smart Cities X Policy Watch Felicitation of Mr. N.Srinivasan on being appointed as Chairman, International Cricket Council (ICC). T.Shivaraman, President MCCI and Raju Venkatraman, President, MMA handing over the memento to N.Srinivasan

X Representations & Press Releases X Economic Review

President’s Message and Dutch Ports.

Dear Members All is well that ends well!

My tenure as President of the Chamber has come to a close.

It has been a great privilege to be the President of this great organization for the last 2 years. I am honoured to have had this opportunity to meet and interact closely with industry captains, bureaucrats, international delegations and thought leaders, and also contribute in a little way to the growth of the business in our State.

The last two years have been eventful and satisfying for me and for the Chamber. It is time to reminiscence on some of the important occasions of the Chamber.

The Chamber has had many luminaries as our guests in the past, but we had one vacuum that no sitting president of India had addressed us. This void was also filled last year when we had the unique privilege of honoring the President, His Excellency, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee. Ours was the first Chamber, the President addressed soon after assumption of office as President.

He congratulated the Chamber for its contribution to the progress of this prosperous and forward looking State.

Then as part of our regular in bound and out bound delegations, the Chamber had the opportunity to shake hands with Her Royal Highness Princess Astrid of Belgium during the 300 member delegation’s visit to Chennai led by the Princess. I was privileged to sign a MoU with the Port of Antwerp in the presence of Her Royal Highness. This could happen because of our strong relationship with Port of Antwerp built over the last few years of working closely with each other. I should also mention here the successful delegation from the Chamber to Belgian

The Chamber has always been involved in the development of Ports which plays a vital role in the economic progress of the Nation. This was reiterated when the South East CEO Conclave Award was awarded to the Chamber for its outstanding contribution to the Exim Trade. The Chamber is proud of its achievement as this is the first time that the award which is meant for those in the maritime, cargo and logistics Industry has recognized the pivotal role played by the Chamber and thought it fit to recognize it. I was proud to receive it on behalf of the Chamber.

Another major activity which the Chamber undertook is the Study of ease of doing business or rather as I often put it, the “unease of doing business”. We took up the study with a special focus on the manufacturing industries, as they form the backbone of the Economy. The study titled – Manufacturing in Tamil Nadu – A Regulatory Roadmap was commissioned to Athena Infonomics. The study looked at various regulations like the labour, environment and taxation laws and how these regulatory processes impact the growth of manufacturing sector in the State. The study was released in a function attended by more than 150+ industrialists, economists, government representatives

by Mr. Arun Maira, Member, Planning Commission. The Chamber now is taking up the findings and recommendations with the concerned authorities. This study and the occasion will always remain close to my heart as I strongly feel that we need to improve our business eco system if we want to achieve not only our economic goals , but even our social goals.

The Chamber has recently taken up the Chairmanship of the Consultative Committee of City Chambers of Commerce.

(CCCCC). I have passed on the mantle to the new President to conduct coordinated activities between the city chambers to more effectively communicate our issues.

The Chamber also had the honor of felicitating two of its Past Presidents for their achievements. Ms. Mallika Srinivasan, CMD, TAFE, for being awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of

India for her outstanding contribution to Trade and Industry and Mr. N.Srinivasan, Vice Chairman and MD, The India Cements Ltd for being the First Chairman of the revamped International Cricket Council (ICC).

It is not very often that we get to meet the highest authority to give our views and opinions for consideration. The Chamber had the privilege of having an exclusive interaction with Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State, Department of Commerce & Industry wherein the concerns of the Industry were escalated to her. The meeting and presentation made to the Tax Administration Reforms Commission headed by Dr. Parthasarathy Shome was also very effective.

Apart from these major events, regular flagship events on Power, Taxation, Corporate Laws and similar subjects, many Conferences and seminars, interesting discussions under Food For Thought programs were all organized . Many delegations and high profile visitors kept us busy throughout the year. Timely representations and Memorandums to the Government on immediate issues of concern for Industry and Commerce, suitable policy advocacy, interactions with policy makers and many such activities kept the Chamber in limelight. I was fortunate to be part of almost all of them and it was a rewarding experience personally.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank and extend my appreciation to all my colleagues in the General Committee and various Expert Committees who have contributed immensely to the Chamber and extended unstinted support to me in steering the Chamber forward. I should also place on record the excellent support by the Chamber Secretariat ably led by the Secretary General.

I congratulate Mr SG Prabhakharan for taking over as President of the Chamber and I wish him and the Chamber all success.

Best Wishes,

T. Shivaraman President

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CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES 5th June 2014

6th June 2014

Discussion on Labour Laws with EFSI Representatives

Interactive meeting with Consul General of Islamic Republic of Iran

The Chamber released the Study on Manufacturing in Tamil Nadu – A Regulatory Roadmap on 20th February 2014 and made a presentation to the Labour Department, Government of Tamil Nadu. Based on the outcome of the discussion with the Labour Department, the Chamber is in the process of doing an extended study on Labour Laws. Hence a meeting with EFSI representatives and HR Experts were held on June 5, 2014.

Mr. T. M. Jawaharlal, Secretary, EFSI and Senior HR persons from Rane, Saint Gobain, Sanmar group took part in the meeting.

It was suggested that instead of going through all the sections in Factories Act, only the most critical sections which impede the business could be considered. Mr.S.Ramasubramanian, Sr. Advocate, SRS Associates highlighted the provisions which can be taken from his notes on the recommendations of the National Commission of Labour, under the Chairmanship of Mr.Ravindra Varma, former Minister of Labour which was submitted to the Government in June 2002.

After a detailed discussion, it was agreed that the Chamber and EFSI would consolidate only the crucial points which need to be addressed in the Factories Act and Contract Labour Act under Labour Laws by analyzing the sections in both the acts and splitting it into Regulatory and Statutory procedures. The current approach of Rajasthan Government would also be closely looked at while preparing this consolidated report. An internal meeting would be held again to finalize the proposal to be given to the Government . The final report will be prepared and submitted to the necessary authorities and would be followed up intensively.

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An interaction meeting with H.E. Mr. Hassan Noorian, Consul General of The Islamic Republic of Iran was held on 6th June 2014 in the Chamber’s premises. The objective of this meeting was to understand the current economic situation and to explore opportunities to increase the trade relations between India and Iran.

The Consul General addressed the Members and stressed that Indian businessmen should make use of the opportunities that Iran presented. He requested them to shed the fear of antagonizing U.S. He further invited the Chamber Members to take a Delegation to Iran, so as to understand more about doing business with Iran. He informed that their office would be happy to assist in the process of getting visas, meeting potential business representatives etc. to strengthen trade relationship between India and Iran. Further, it was agreed during the interaction that India’s participation in the up gradation of the Chabahar Port is definitely a positive move towards improving trade relations between India and Iran.

The Consul General was accompanied by Mr.Ali Nirmood, Senior Public Relations Officer. The interaction session was followed by hi tea.

12th to 14th June 2014

REnergy International Conference by TEDA – participation by MCCI REnergy International Conference had been organized by TEDA from 12th June to 14th June at Chennai Trade Centre, Nandambakkam, Chennai. The Madras Chamber being one of the supporting organizations as part of its Sustainable Chennai Forum (SCF) activities, had been

allotted a stall to showcase its activities under Sustainable Chennai Forum (SCF).

There was a good response from the participants and new contacts were made.

13th June 2014

2nd Trade Meet with Kamarajar Port Limited The 2nd Trade Meet with Kamarajar Port Limited (KPL) was organized at Hotel GRT Grand on 13th June 2014. The objective of the Meet was to facilitate interaction between the port authorities and the port users, understand the facilities and expansion plans of KPL and to provide a platform for the Trade members to review the actions of the previous trade meet and convey their expectations and the demands from the port.

Mr. T.Shivaraman, in his welcome address briefed about the close linkage the Chamber has with the Ports and how the Chamber has been instrumental in developing the Chennai Port during the British period. He further informed that the Chamber which represents the interest of Commerce, and Industry, focuses on Port Logistics and its efficiency in contributing to the growth of the Trade.

As Trade is increasingly becoming global with every manufacturer importing a portion of raw materials and exporting their finished products, the efficiency of the Logistics sector is of paramount importance. He added that in the last few years, though manufacturing has taken a dip, it is expected that in the next few years there is tremendous potential for business in India. India is in a far better position compared to China where the labour cost has become high and the demographics are not its favour. To take advantage of this situation and to go forward, India needs good connectivity between the local produce and the global reach. Seamless and efficient connectivity through Ports is the need of the hour.

The Chamber had taken Delegations to

CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES International Ports – European ports such as Antwerp, Rotterdam and to Dubai, mainly to understand the good practices followed and to move up the scale in our operations.

He added that we had done the First Trade Meet in 2013 and that the Chamber is happy to organise this Second Meet.

He further stated that the under the leadership of Mr. Bhaskarachar, who understands the need of the Port users, KPL will definitely move to the next level.

Mr. M.A. Bhaskarachar, Chairman & Managing Director, KPL, in his address stated that it is not sufficient to have a product. Marketing plays an important role. He stated KPL has the products which are to be marketed. He informed that when the First Trade Meet was organised, the impression of the port users were that the KPL is handling only Coal. But it has changed. KPL is a multicargo port which has plans for a mega container terminal in less than 2 years from now.

He informed that around 650 acres of land just adjacent to the Port have been purchased by KPL. This land would be utilised for common ware housing facilities and the like. He welcomed suggestions / ideas for optimum utilization of this land.

He proceeded to elaborate on the connectivity status to the port and on the going projects towards the same.

He further informed that the Container Terminal is being developed by Adani group and it will be completed within the next few years. He said that they have kept up their promises given in the last meet and will continue to work towards providing the best services to the users.

Mr. Jayakumar, Deputy Chairman of Chennai Port Trust thanked MCCI for organising this meet. He stated that ChPT and KPL have a good relationship and hoped it would continue. He stated that road congestion at ChPT which is the only negative aspect are being addressed now.

Mr. R. Senthil Kumar, General ManagerCorporate Planning & Business Development, KPL, made a detailed presentation on Kamarajar Port Limited (KPL) covering the following:- The vast change in the Traffic from 2007 -08 till date, growth of automobile handling by the port, capacity augmentation by the end of 12th plan, Development in 12th plan, Road & Rail connectivity, Land acquired from the Salt Department etc.

interacted and answered all the questions of the participants. The Meet was well attended by 70 participants and ended with Lunch.

Mr. J.Krishnan, Chairman, Expert Committee on Logistics MCCI was the moderator for the technical session that followed

The Madras Chamber of Commerce Delegation with more than 25 Senior Representatives of the member companies had an exclusive interaction meeting with Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of Commerce & Industry, Government of India during her visit to Chennai on 14th June 2014 at Hotel ITC Grand Chola. Mr. T.Shivaraman, President, MCCI made a presentation wherein the critical issues relating to EXIM, Direct Taxes, In Direct Taxes, Companies Act were highlighted to the Minister with a request to review the same to ensure the seamless growth of Trade and Commerce. The Minister interacted with every member who represented the Chamber.

Mr. R.Naresh, Tirumalai Chemicals Ltd spoke on Petro Chemical Products exports. He elaborated about their company, imports and exports and their requirements and expectations from the Port.

Mr. Yanagida Hiroyuki, Vice President – SCM, Renault Nissan Automotive India Pvt.Ltd., spoke about Car Exports.

He expressed happiness about KPL handling automobiles exports. He gave the requirements and expectations with respect to Car exports which is bound to increase in the near future.

Mr. Pankaj Gadhia, CEO, Lee & Muirhead Pvt. Ltd., made a presentation on Project Cargo. He detailed on the consumers and future of Project Cargo, parameters for selection of Port, expectations from Power Project and the importance of Project Cargo.

Mr.V.Ramanan, Divisional ManagerC o m m e rc i a l , B ra ke s I n d i a w h i l e addressing on the Expectations of the Auto Components Sector, described the activities of Brakes India and detailed on the Operations mapping – Exports – current scenario and expectations, bottlenecks in imports, expectations from Auto Components Sector.

The Deputy Chairman of Chennai Port Trust Mr.Jayakumar was present throughout the meet. Mr. Atulya Mishra IAS, Chairman, Chennai Port Trust joined the Meet at the end of the session. The KPL officials

14th June 2014

Meeting with Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State(IC) , Ministry of Commerce& Industry, GOI

Some of the critical issues highlighted to her during the meeting were: Main Issues in Commerce & Exim which includes FTAs, Anti dumping duties, etc.

Issues under Direct Tax which includes Domestic Transfer Pricing, Tax assessment and related litigation among others.

Issues under Indirect Tax which includes review of CENVAT and Service Tax. Issues under Companies Act. For more details, check our website www.madraschamber. in.

17th June 2014

Training Programme on Effective Business Communication and Relationship Management with Eduquest The Madras Chamber in association with Eduquest organized a Training programme on Effective Business Communication

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CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES and Relationship Management in the Conference hall of the Chamber on 17th June 2014.

The response from members for the programme was overwhelming. As there were more than 50 participants, the session was divided into two batches and it was conducted in the forenoon and afternoon with 25 participants in each batch.

Mr. Zafrullah, a Master Trainer of Eduquest, Singapore conducted the training and the feedback has been positive requesting the Chamber for more of such programs.

25 June 2014

FFT on Balancing Environment & Economic Development The Madras Chamber, as part of its initiative “Food for Thought, organized a workshop on “Balancing Environment & Economic Development” on June 25, 2014 at Hotel My Fortune, Chennai.

This was to commemorate the World Environment day celebrated on June 5th and to highlight the fact that environment and economic development are two sides of a coin and a right approach has to be evolved to balance economic growth while protecting the environment Mr. T.Shivaraman gave the welcome address and stated that we need development and simultaneously, we will need to protect the environment for our future generation The event had the following 3 eminent speakers addressing on the above mentioned topic.

Dr. Nandita Krishna, Honorary Director, CPR Environmental Education Centre elaborated on Biosphere, eco systems, food chain and ecological balance to enable us to understand the importance of environment. She also talked about the environmental licenses required for setting up an industry, how it is not being implemented, trees being cut for infrastructure development, food production coming down, leading to a secondary treatment for environment when it comes to development.

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She emphasized that though it is an accepted fact that we would need development, destroying forests should be stopped. Our trees, water bodies should be protected and it is an appeal to all Industries to keep that in mind while progressing towards development.

Mr. N. Ranganath, MD, Grundfos Pumps India (P) Ltd said he agreed with Dr. Nandita that we should not destroy our water bodies, forests etc., He stated that his view was different when it comes to Industries. He pointed out that Industries consume only 8% of the water resources and definitely do not contribute to the entire pollution, as often claimed.

He further added that it would be difficult to strike a perfect balance between economic development and environment.

We should always keep in mind as to whether we are leaving a world which is better that what we are living in today for the future generation in terms of development and conservation of our resources.

Industrial economic growth is the need of the hour for this generation to lead a decent quality life with all the necessary comforts. Though the Corporates and Government have plans for development and conservation for the next 15 to 20 years, there is a dearth in the execution of plans. Hence the onus is on each individual to preserve the environment. It should start with every individual, in every home and offices to have a better world for the next gen, he said.

Mr. N. Venkatraman, Director, Nandini Consultancy Centre made a presentation wherein he stated that both economic development and environment are vital needs and there is definitely no conflict of interest. He elaborated on why problems arise and gave examples of Kochi LNG gas pipeline project, Coal bed methane project near Kumbakonam, Koodankulam nuclear power project and the land acquisition issues. He also gave statistics on India’s waste land area and State wise distribution.

There was a good interaction after the presentations and the feedback from the participants was positive.

26th June 2014

Seminar on Directors’ & Officers’ Liability Insurance The Chamber, in association with Zeal Direct and Reinsurance Broking Services Pvt Ltd, organised a programme on Directors’ & Officers’ Liability Insurance on 26th June 2014 at Hotel GRT Grand.

It was organised as part of the series of programmes on the provisions of New Companies Act to create awareness to the members. The Companies Act makes it essential for companies and their employees to secure against personal liability claims and this programme had experts throw light on what needs to be done.

Mr. T. Shivaraman gave the welcome Address.

Mr. N.Srinivasan, Senior Partner, Fraser & Ross and Deloitte Haskins & Sells (Retd.,) was congratulated for getting the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Institute of Directors.

He gave the special address on his experiences as Director. He stated that the Board of Directors, Independent Directors have not been defined clearly in the Companies Act. In the eyes of law, there is a no distinction between a Managing Director, Whole time Director, and Independent Director. Everybody falls under the ambit of the Independent Director. In the court of law, more particularly in criminal proceedings, a Director is only a Director. The Director cannot say that he plays only an advisory role.

Mr. Srinivasan elaborated on a case wherein in spite of his advice as Head of the Audit Committee, the Company had not paid their Service tax due to financial constraints. All the Directors had submitted their resignations and hence he was called to appear before the tax authorities to explain as to why the company had defaulted in its payments.

Similarly, he described about being questioned for a case under Sec 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act which had been filed 14 years ago, as he was the only Director available for questioning. One

CHAMBER’S ACTIVITIES more case which he discussed was on the Legal Meteorology Act 2009, of which he was not aware, till he was summoned as a Director of the Company, for questioning on the weights and measurements disclosure of a carton He stated that as Directors, it is not possible to know what they are bargaining for as the Corporate World is surrounded by plethora of legislations. Further, the definition of Fraud in the new Companies Act is all prevailing and any act of the Director can be brought within its preview.

There are more Do not’s than Do’s for the Directors. He concluded by stating that Directors who take responsibility in Corporates should face the challenge and come forward to help the companies with their experience and expertise and should not be deterred by laws.

Mr. T.N. Manoharan, Past President of ICAI, New Delhi delivered the keynote address.

He congratulated the MCCI for organising this meaningful program which is the need of the hour in the emerging scenario. He stated that there is a paradigm shift in the approach, direction and the landscaping of the laws and regulations across the globe, and more so in India.

He elaborated on the need for the Directors’ and Officers’ Liability. He shared his views on few of the corporate scams in India. Further, he covered the objective of the D & O Insurance Coverage, the actions which constitute wrongful act, how the D & O insurance gains significance under Companies Act 2013. The Global and Indian scenario were compared and the advantages of D & O insurance coverage were elaborated apart from giving the common D & O exclusions.

Mr.Kiran Sharma, Head Underwriter, Raheja QBE General Insurance Co. Ltd.,made a presentation on the Directors’ and Officers’ Liability Insurance and its features.

His presentation covered the potential plaintiffs, allegation types, what the D & O Liability Insurance does, who does it cover, the liability triggers, what went wrong in

a few companies with examples, steps to protect their position and that of the company. He further stated why Raheja QBE should be considered.

It was followed by a Panel Discussion moderated by Ms.Bhavani Balasubramaniam Partner, Deloitte Haskins & Sells & Chairperson, MCCI Expert Committee on Company Law/ Corporate Matters wherein the following speakers presented different perspectives of this concept.

• Mr. N. Ramanathan, MD, Ponni Sugars Ltd - Industry Perspective • Mr. K.Vaitheeswaran, Advocate & Tax Consultant – Legal Perspective • Dr.B.Ravi, Practicing CS – Company law perspective Mr Srinivasan Rangarajan, Zonal Head, Raheja QBE General Insurance Co.Ltd., delivered the Vote of Thanks.

The programme was attended by more than 50 participants and ended with lunch.

26th June 2014

Interaction meeting with Delegation from France At the request from the Office of the Pay de la Loire, France, an interactive session with the Delegation from the Region was organized on 26th June 2014 in the Conference Hall of the Chamber. The objective of this interaction is to explore business opportunities between India and France in general and with the region of Pays de la Loire in particular.

Mr. S.G.Prabhakharan, Vice President, MCCI welcomed the Delegation.

Ms. Ina Sys, Regional Councillor, Pays de la Loire introduced the Delegation from France. She was accompanied by Ms Kamala Govindarajan - Director, Pays de la Loire Office in India, Ms Armelle Rebuffet - Director, CCI International and Ms Nadia Chibouti - Program Coordinator - International Development, Agence Regionale.

The Delegation expressed interest to know

about the Overview of Agriculture and Food Processing in Tamil Nadu. Dr. Ashok Iyengar, a Food Technologist and Managing Director of Sudarsan Foods Ltd., made a detailed presentation on the above topic.

He discussed about the cultivable land in Tamil Nadu, Horticultural produce, fruit and vegetable production, availability of milk, fish, and meat. Further, he gave statistics of food processing Industries in Tamil Nadu and areas of cooperation.

Dr. Iyengar ’s presentation was well received by the participants.

Ms. Nadia Chibouti, the Contact person for Pays de La Loire region in Western France, made a presentation on “Invest in Western France” which included a video clipping of the facilities in Pays de la Loire. It was followed by a presentation on Pays de La Loire as the heart of European cluster for food production and innovation. She gave details about Pays de la loire being the leader in farm equipments, the details of their milk and meat production. The other area which was covered in the presentation included Education and Innovation networks and their advance logisitics support by their airlines .The presentation ended with their assurance to provide all necessary support for the Indian Companies willing to explore business opportunities.

The presentations were followed by an interaction and hi tea.

27th June 2014

South East CEO Conclave Awards 2014 The Chamber has always been actively involved in the development of Ports which play a vital role in the economic progress of the Nation. The Chamber’s service to the Maritime Sector was specially acknowledged and recognized when the South East CEO Conclave Award by the Exim India Shipping Times was awarded to the Chamber for its outstanding contribution to the Exim Trade.

This is the first time that the award which is meant for those in the Maritime, Cargo and Logistics Industry has recognized the pivotal role played by the Chamber

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and thought it fit to recognize it.

Mr. T.Shivaraman, President, MCCI Mr. S.G.Prabhakharan, Vice President, MCCI and Mr. J. Krishnan, Chairman, Expert Committee, Logistics, MCCI received the award on behalf of the chamber.

15– 12th July 2014

Workshop on Central Budget & Finance Bill 2014 As is the practice of the Chamber, a Workshop on Central Budget & Finance Bill 2014-15 was organised on 12th July 2014 at Hotel GRT Grand, following the release of the Union Budget on 10th July by the Finance Minister, Government of India.

Mr. Sriram Seshadri, Partner, BMR Legal and Chairman, MCCI Expert Committee on Direct Taxes made the analysis on Direct Taxes Mr. M.R. Venkatesh, Partner, GSV Associates & Chairman,MCCI Expert Committee on Economic Affairs analysed the budget from the economic angle.

Mr.K.Vaitheeswaran, Advocate & Tax Consultant and Chairman, MCCI Expert Committee on Indirect Taxes presented the analysis of the budget on Indirect Taxes Dr. Subir Gokaran, Former Dy. Governor, RBI and Director, Research of the Brookings Institution, New Delhi made a special presentation on the budget and interacted with the audience through skype and the session was greatly appreciated by the delegates.

The programme was very well attended despite the fact that many similar events

24th July 2014

The 178th AGM of the Chamber was held at Hotel Hyatt Regency, (Ball Room), Teynampet, Chennai – 18.

The Business session conducted in the fore noon, had a few important resolutions passed and newly constituted Committee for the year 2014-15 was announced.

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have been happening around the same time organised by different Chambers.

15th July 2014

MCCI & MMA – Felicitation function to honour Mr.N.Srinivasan, Chairman ICC Madras Chamber of Commerce & Industry (MCCI) and the Madras Management Association (MMA) have had the privilege of having Mr. N. Srinivasan, Vice Chairman & MD, The India Cements Ltd, associated with them and hence considered it fit to jointly organize a Felicitation function to honour Mr.N. Srinivasan, who had been appointed as the First Chairman of the revamped Interactional Cricket Council (ICC) The function was organized on 15th July at the Ball room Hall, Hotel Hyatt Regency, Teynampet, Chennai – 600 018 The Felicitations were offered by • Mr. A. Vellayan, Executive Chairman, Murugappa Group • Mr. Anirudh Chaudhary – Hon. Treasurer, BCCI • Mr. Gopal Srinivasan, Chairman & Managing Director, TVS Capital Funds Ltd • Mr. P.S. Raman – Vice President ( C h e n n a i ) Ta m i l N a d u C r i c ket Association • Mr. Venky Rajgopal, Managing Director.

Indian Terrain Fashions ltd • Mr. V.V.S. Laxman, Former Indian Cricketer Mr Srinivasan K Swamy, Past President MCCI & MMA presented the citation to

After lunch, the Public Session was held.

The Chief Guest, Mr.U.K.Sinha, Chairman, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) addressed the audience and the special address was given by Mr. Sunil Subramaniam, Dy CEO, Sundaram Asset Management Co.Ltd. Both the Business and Public sessions were well attended by nearly 200+

Mr. N.Srinivasan We l c o m e s p e e c h w a s g i v e n b y Mr T. Shivaraman, President MCCI and vote of thanks was proposed by Mr Raju Venkatraman President MMA. Mr. N.Srinivasan is his acceptance speech stated that he was overwhelmed by the kind sentiments expressed by his friends and in a lighter vein stated, not to believe in each and every word of what they said, as they are all friends after all.

He emphasized that it was a long journey to the top and was not as easy. He stated that the BCCI is an extremely misunderstood body. It has generated more revenue from 2004 and it has ensured returns for all its State Members. 25 State Members share the money generated through media rights and sponsors. He made it clear that the BCCI is not for profit organization and committed to its members, association and players. He stated that BCCI had taken steps to make cricket a profession to earn livelihood. Further, he mentioned that the money generated is given back to the game for creating more play ground, more facilities, more infrastructure (for Indian cricket). Focus is not only in cricket but also that surrounds everything, such as the infrastructure, the spectator etc.

He said that bringing people back to the cricket ground and making cricket more competitive would be a major focus area for the ICC. He thanked the support from members of BCCI and thanked MCCI and MMA for organizing this felicitation.

The programme was well attended by 250+ elite participants

participants. The TN VAT course was also launched during this session.

Also Mr. T.Shivaraman, the outgoing President was honored by the Chief Guest and his contribution to the Chamber in the last two years have been greatly appreciated and lauded by everyone present.

178th ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Proceedings of the Business Session Time : 12.00 noon, Date : 24th July, 2014 Venue : Hyatt Regency (Ball room), Teynampet, Chennai 600 018 Present:

Mr T Shivaraman President Mr S G Prabhakharan Vice President Ms K Saraswathi Secretary General

Mr N Srinivasan Mr M R Venkatesh Mr V Thirumalrao Mr S V Narasimha Rao Mr P Mugundan Mr T Jitesh Mr L Ashok Mr Mohan Sidhan Mr S Venkatachalam Mr M V Ananthakrishna Mr R Soundararajan Mr P R Subramaniyan Ms V G Aravindanayagi Mr G Kimanmayi Mr A Dinesh Mr J Krishnan Mr K Murali Mr V Ramanan Mr K Ramkumar Mr K Suresh Mr L Sabaretnam Mr Srinivasan K Swamy Mr Bilash Agarwal Dr K V Rajendran Mr R Sridhar Mr S Arun Kumar Mr K Suresh Mr P Kaniappan Mr A P Ashok Mr Manikam

Mr N Shankar Mr K Chandrasekar Mr Krishnan Mr Clynton Almeida Mr K Vaitheeswaran Ms Mahathi Parashuram Mr S Padmanabhan Mr G Sundararajan Dr D V R Prakash Rao Mr G V Raman Mr S Mohan Mr M V S Srinivas Mr G Balakrishnan Mr R Nagarajan Mr S Vijay Mr R Srinivasan Mr John Santosh Kumar Mr U Udayabhaskar Reddy Ms Bhavani Balasubramanian Mr Ram Venkataramani Mr S Subramanian Mr Vijayakumar Jadhav Mr R Narasimhan Mr R Sriram Mr V Ranganathan Mr R Anand Mr R Balaji Mr K Sivarajan Ms S Sournalakshmi Mr Gopakumar

Mr T Shivaraman, President chaired the meeting and conducted the proceedings. Before taking up the agenda items for discussion, he apprised the members about the various initiatives and activities of the Chamber during the year.

The full text of his address is given below: “I welcome you all for this 178th Annual General Meeting and I am happy to reminiscence the past one year activities of the Chamber.

This year has been another extremely satisfying year for the Madras Chamber of Commerce & Industry. The Chamber’s

Mr S Krishnaswamy Dr M Suresh Babu Ms Haripriya Suresh Babu Mr Christie Cherian Mr N K Ranganath Mr J Raghunathan Mr Vijay P Chordia Mr P N Srikant Mr T A B Bharathi Mr Vittal Raj Mr V Murali Mr Jeeva Rajagopal Mr G Shanker Mr S Lal Mr Partha Bandhu Mr B Ravishankar Mr Muthusamy Mr Jevan S Selvaraj Mr T Amarnath Mr S Karthik Mr R Sundararaman Mr V Srinivasan Dr K Nirmala Prasad Mr A R Subramanian Mr P Rajaraman Mr P Viswanathan Mr V Srinivasan Mr Vijayakumar Mr Praveen Mr J Venkatesan

activities have been diverse, ranging from two delegations abroad, an MOU signed in the presence of The Princess of Belgium, more than 120 seminars and meetings catering to the different needs of various Industries and the Membership crossing a milestone of 500.

One of the major activities of the Chamber for the year was the detailed study taken up by the Chamber on the issues faced by the businesses, more particularly the manufacturing industries.

The Chamber, the majority of whose members are manufacturing industries, thought it fit to study this trend in greater detail.

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The Study titled “Manufacturing in Tamil Nadu – A Regulatory Road Map” was commissioned to Athena Infonomics. The Study which covered nearly 100 industrial samples looked at various regulations like the labour, environment and taxation laws & how these regulatory processes impact the growth of manufacturing sector in the State. The Report very clearly finds that if manufacturing has to revive, a substantial improvement in the regulatory framework including the labour laws is called for.

The study also outlined some of the short term and long term remedial measures both for the State and central Govt.

opportunities such as Doing Business with Indonesia, Investment Opportunities in Italy etc.

The Study was released by Mr. Arun Maira, Member,Planning Commission in a formal ceremony attended by more than 150 Industrialists and Government representatives. The Chamber is now taking the findings of the study to the concerned departments endeavoring to bring some useful reforms. A presentation was made to the senior officials of Labour department government of Tamil Nadu, who have sought some additional information from us and an extension of the study is in the process.

A host of programs, including Workshop on Energy Conservation and Green Practices for SMEs, Seminar on Sustainable Practices in Industrial Waste Management, Workshop on Implementation of TN Energy Conservation Building Codes had been held under the Sustainable Chennai Forum. The Chamber also showcased its activities of SCF at the Water Expo 2014 held at Chennai Trade Centre.

The Delegation to the European Ports and to Dubai from the Chamber was an eye opener and an educative experience. These delegations help us to know about good practices prevailing elsewhere and broaden our vision. Also, the Chamber, through these delegations, is able to tie up with many Chambers abroad and the benefit of such networking is passed on to our members.

On the occasion of the visit of Belgian Economic Mission to India led by Her Royal Highness Princess Astrid of Belgium, Representative of His Majesty the King, the Chamber signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Port of Antwerp (PoA) in the presence of The Princess of Belgium. It was a momentous occasion for the Chamber. This was followed by A Seminar on “Development of Maritime Infrastructure in Southern India: Horizon 2020” wherein the Belgian Trade Minister participated and eminent Speakers from Belgium Companies and from our Key Ports made presentations.

Apart from signing MOU with Port of Antwerp, the Chamber had another significant event – signing a MOU with the Ulsan Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Korea.

The Chamber also had the privilege and honour of high profile bureaucrats across the world, visiting the Chamber and having interactions with the Members, exploring business opportunities between India and their respective countries. Ambassador of Netherlands, Governor of Province of San Luis – Argentina, Foreign Minister of Latvia, senior members from University of Northampton, Ambassador of Luxembourg, British Deputy High Commissioner, Chennai were some of the high profile delegates who visited us recently.

The Chamber’s flagship events, such as Post Budget workshop, All India Workshop on Indirect Taxes, Trade Meet with the Ennore Port were organized successfully this year.

The Chamber also conducted innumerable Seminars & Workshops relating to Energy, Environment, Finance, HR, Taxation & Company Laws and a few Seminars on International

8

Joint programs with ICCI Bank, EXIM Bank, Deloitte Haskins & Sells & FIEO were also held during this year and were well received.

The MCCI Vocational Training and Skill Development Centre continue to offer its regular training programs on basic Fitter Course, Computer Skills etc. We are slowly expanding our activities under Skill Development

The Chamber, as part of its initiative “Food for Thought” organized two major programs this year, one on the Anti bribery and Corruption, and another on “Glass Ceiling for women -whether a Myth or Still a Reality”, which was to commemorate International Women’s Day. The Chamber was pleased to host a number of VIPs from Government and Industry this year. A special meeting with Dr. Parthasarthi Shome, Chairman of the Tax administration Reforms Commission was arranged to present our considered suggestions on tax related issues.

The Chamber is proud of its achievement in receiving the South East CEO Conclave Award from the Exim India Shipping Times for its contribution to the Exim Trade right from its inception for 178 years.

This year has added another responsibility to the Chamber. The Chamber has taken over the Chairmanship of the Consultative Committee of City Chambers of Commerce. (CCCCC). It comprises of 6 Chambers namely, Andhra Chamber of Commerce, Hindustan Chamber of Commerce, National Chamber of Commerce, Southern India Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Tamil Chamber of Commerce and MCCI. They act as a collective forum for taking up common issues of the Trade and Industry and the Madras Chamber will be taking lead from the front this year.

On the whole, it was another vibrant year for the Chamber and I wish the Chamber success in its future endeavors. a. To adopt the Report for the year 2013-14 : The President referred to the Annual Report for the year 2013-14 which had already been forwarded to the Members, detailing the activities of the Chamber during the year 2013-14. He mentioned that the report is fairly exhaustive and gives details of the various meetings, seminars, etc. organized during the year.

In the absence of any queries, he proposed that the Report be adopted.

Mr.M.R.Venkatesh seconded the proposal. Put to vote, the general body unanimously adopted the Annual Report.

b. To adopt the Audited Statement of Accounts for the year 2013-14: The President referred to the audited Statement of Accounts for the year 2013-14 sent to members as part of the Annual Report.

Since there were no questions, he suggested that the audited accounts be adopted.

Mr.Srinivasan K Swamy proposed that the Audited Statement of Accounts for the year 2013-14 be adopted. This was seconded

by Mr. G.V. Raman.

President thanked M/s RGN Price & Co. for auditing the accounts of the Chamber. c. To determine the rates of subscription payable by different classes of members for the year 2014-15.

The President informed the General Body that the Chamber has a proposal to revise the subscription fees in respect of Affiliated Members and the Professional Firms. He informed that there would be no change in the subscription for other category of members and they would continue to pay as per the slab system and their voting rights would continue as per the existing rules.

The President further informed that while the last revision was done in 2007, the Affiliated Members subscription was not revised. The proposal is to increase their subscription from Rs.1500/- to Rs.5000/- per annum with effect from 1st August 2014. The Affiliated members do not have voting rights.

He informed that the Professional firms are seeking membership in the Chamber in large numbers as the Chamber is providing variety of services to them. To manage the total number of Professional Firms in the membership fold and to bring uniformity, the proposal is to increase their subscription from Rs.7500/- to Rs.10000/- per annum with effect from 1st August 2014.

The President sought the approval of the General Body. After considerable discussions, the General Body unanimously approved the new revision of subscription rates for Affiliated Members and Professional Firms. After obtaining the approval of the General Body unanimously, the following Resolutions were passed.

1. Resolved that at the General Body meeting of the Madras Chamber held on 24th July 2014, the General Body approved to increase the subscription for the Affiliated Members from Rs.1500/- to Rs.5000/- per annum with effect from 1st August 2014 onwards. The General Body also approved that for the existing members under the Affiliated Members category, the new rate of subscription would be applicable from 1st April 2015.

2. Resolved that at the General Body meeting of the Madras Chamber held on 24th July 2014, the General Body approved to increase the subscription for the Professional Firms category from Rs.7500/- to Rs.10000/- per annum with effect from 1st August 2014 onwards. The General Body also

approved that for the existing members under this category, the new rate of subscription would be applicable from 1st April 2015.

Entrance Fee: The President also mentioned to the General Body that the Chamber is currently charging Rs.1000/- as entrance fee for the new members at the time of admission as a onetime fee.

The Chamber had not revised the entrance fee for more than a decade and it is found to be the lowest compared to other similar organisations.

The President sought the opinion of the General Body in revising the entrance fee. After considerable discussions, the General Body accepted to increase the Entrance fee and the General Body uniformly decided to charge 50% of the subscription rate as entrance fee for all categories of members.

The following Resolution was passed unanimously.

Resolved that at the General Body Meeting of the Madras Chamber held on 24th July 2014, the General Body has unanimously agreed and approved to increase the Entrance fee with effect from 1st August 2014. The revised Entrance fee would be 50% of the applicable Subscription rate and it would also be applicable to all categories of members.

The President thanked the Members for their excellent support and cooperation for passing the above Resolutions.

The President brought to the notice of members the rule which needs to be modified to suit to current requirements In the present Rule 3 of the Chamber, the services of the Chamber is confined to Southern India.

The Rule 3 reads as follows: “The Membership of the Chamber shall be open to any person above the age of twenty one, firm or company, engaged or interested in the trade, commerce and industry within Southern India”.

The President informed the General Body that in the recent times, there have been enquiries from companies having their offices outside Southern India, expressing their interest to become Members of the Chamber.

As per the present Rule, the Chamber is constrained to accept their membership.

The President suggested that, to expand the Chamber’s scope of activities and also the membership base, it may be considered to open up the membership to companies from anywhere in India and not restrict to southern India.

The President informed the General Body that if the above suggestion is accepted the word “Southern’ could be deleted and mentioned as “India” in Rule 3. The General Body approved the suggestions by the President and the following Resolution was passed unanimously.

‘Resolved that at the General Body meeting of the Madras

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Chamber held on 24th July 2014, the General Body approved to remove the word “Southern” under Rule 3 and now Rule 3 will read as follows: The Membership of the Chamber shall be open to any person above the age of twenty one, firm or company, engaged or interested in the trade, commerce and industry within India. Also, in the Memorandum of Articles of Association, the word “Southern” wherever it appears will be substituted by the word “India”.

Mr Srivats Ram Mr A R Subramanian

Mr K Vaitheeswaran Mr Vijay Sankar

President thanked the members and took up the next item of the agenda.

Dr Vinod Surana

d. To declare the election of Members of the General Committee for the year 2014-15

Mr P Viswanathan

The President informed the General Body that the Chamber’s activities have been growing phenomenally in all areas and also a number of new companies across various sectors were taking membership in MCCI. In view of this, the composition of the General Committee had been increased and accordingly nominations were called for from the Members.

He requested the Secretary General to announce the results of the election to the General Committee for 2014-15.

The Secretary General read out the names of the elected members for the respective offices for the year 2014-15 as follows: President

Vice President Committee : Mr R Anand Mr M V Ananthakrishna

Mr.S.G.Prabhakharan, Chairman, XS Real Properties Pvt. Ltd. Mr Ram Venkataramani, Managing Director, IP Rings Ltd.

Partner, Ernst & Young LLP Director, M.K.Raju Consultants P Ltd. Mr N S Balachandra Datta Asst.Vice President, Hyundai Motor India Ltd. Mr K Balasubramanian Chairman, Precision Equipments (Chennai) Pvt.Ltd. Ms.Gayathri Sriram Managing Director, Ucal Auto Pvt. Ltd. Mr P Kaniappan Managing Director, Wabco India Ltd. Mr J Krishna Partner, S Natesa Iyer & Co Mr V Murali Senior Partner, Victor Grace & Co., Mr S Parthasarathy CEO, Rane (Madras) Ltd. Mr G V Raman Executive Chairman, Shriram Transport Finance Co.Ltd. Mr R Ramkumar Senior Vice President, Cognizant Technology Solutions Indian Pvt. Ltd. Dr K V Rajendran Advisor, Neophyll Agrisciences Pvt. Ltd.

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Managing Director, Wheels India Ltd. Executive Director – Finance & Company Secretary, Schwing Stetter India Pvt.Ltd. Advocate & Tax Consultant, M/s K.Vaitheeswaran & Co., Deputy Chairman, The Sanmar Group Managing Partner & CEO, Surana & Surana International Attorneys Secretary & Compliance Officer, Sundaram Finance Ltd.

The General Body congratulated the President and other members of the General Committee on being elected for the period 2014-15 . e. To appoint auditors for the year 2014-15 : The President informed that M/s RGN Price & Co., have been auditing the accounts for the Chamber for many years and they may continue as auditors for the current year 2014-15.

He proposed that RGN Price & Co. may be re-appointed as auditors for the Chamber for the year 2014-15 on a remuneration of Rs. 35000/- per annum plus out of pocket expenses & service tax. This was seconded by Mr. K. Vaitheeswaran. f. To declare the appointment of Members of the Expert Committees for the year 2014-15: The president informed the General Body that the Expert Committees have been a great source of strength to the Chamber. They have been doing excellent work. There were many programmes organized by various expert committees on topics of current relevance.

To deal with major subjects of importance and to broad base the activities of the Chamber and to have more sector specific interactions, the Chamber had identified 15 expert Committees and had invited nominations for those expert committees. As usual, substantial number of nominations was received for core expert committees.

He further said the Chairmen and Co-Chairmen for some of the Expert Committees have been selected on the basis of their seniority, knowledge of the subject and ability to represent the Chamber before the concerned authorities, meetings etc. For rest of the Expert Committees, the Chairmen & Co-Chairmen will be selected at the first meeting of the respective Committees.

The Secretary General then read out only the names of the Chairmen and Co-Chairmen of the Committees as follows : Committee

Chairman

Co-Chairman

Company Law/Corporate matters

Ms Bhavani Balasubramaniam Partner, Deloitte Haskins & Sells

Mr.P.Viswanathan Company Secretary & Compliance Officer Sundaram Finance Ltd.

Direct taxes

Mr.Sriram Seshadri Partner, BMR Legal

Mr.S.Vijay Vice President-Taxation Scope International

Economic Affairs

Mr.M R Venkatesh Partner, GSV Associates Education

Mr V Balasubramanian Vice President – Corporate Communication The India Cements Ltd.

Education

Prof Sriram CEO & Executive Director Great Lakes Institute of Management

Dr S Venkataraman Vice President (Education & Training) The India Cements Ltd.

Energy

Mr.S.Venkatachalam Managing Director Orient Green Power Co.Ltd

Environment, Pollution Prevention & Control

Mr.R.Kulothungan Sr.Vice President Orient Green Power Co.Ltd.

Financial Sector

Mr.G.Sundararajan Chief Financial Officer, Sundaram BNP Paribas Home Finance Ltd

Mr.V.Sriram Chief Operating Officer ICRA Management Consulting Services Ltd.

HRD/CSR

Mr.K S Pasupathi General Manager - HR Wheels India Ltd.

Mr.PN Srikanth Head-Personnel Sundaram Finance Ltd.

Indirect Taxes

Mr.K Vaitheeswaran Advocate & Tax Consultant, K Vaitheeswaran & Co.

Mr.K K Sekar Dy General Manager – Indirect Taxes Ashok Leyland Ltd.

IT & ITES

Mr.Clynton Almeida Chief Information Officer Redington India ltd.

Mr.J Raghunathan Founder-Director Knowledge Captial Investment Group

Legal affairs

Mr.Anand Gopalan Partner, TS Gopalan & Co.

Logistics

Mr. J Krishnan Partner, S.Natesa Iyer & Co.

Manufacturing

Mr D.Muruganandam Sr Vice President- Mfg. The India Cements Ltd.

VAT

Mr.P R Subramaniyan Mr.T.Amarnath Dy General Manager-Corp. Indirect Taxes General Manager L & T Construction (Indirect Taxes) TAFE

Mr.U Udaybhaskar Reddy Wholetime Director, Sanco Trans ltd.

The President said that the Chamber Secretariat will soon convene the first meeting with the nominated members and then decide the plan of action for the respective expert committees.

Since there were no other issues for discussion, the President thanked the Members of the Chamber, Members of the General Committee, Members of the Expert Committees and the Chamber Secretariat for the excellent work done during the year and requested for their continued support.

Mr.S G Prabhakharan, President-Elect delivered the acceptance speech at the Business Session.

Members were requested to join for lunch and stay on for the Public Session scheduled at 2 pm.

Chennai 24th July 2014

K.Saraswathi Secretary General

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Public Session In the Public Session of the 178th AGM, Mr. T.Shivaraman, President gave the welcome address He extended a warm welcome to Mr. U.K. Sinha, Chairman, Securities and Exchange Board of India,(SEBI) and Mr. Sunil Subramaniam, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Sundaram Asset Management Co. Ltd. He touched upon a few activities keeping in focus the Chamber ’s efforts for championing the cause of Industry.

He elaborated on the meeting with Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State, Department of Commerce & Industry and the Chamber’s presentation on the concerns of the Industry.

He made it clear that as a Chamber, we never advocate for subsidies, sops or freebies as we are aware that the Industries can stand on their own feet to meet the competitive global environment.

He stated that the IT Industry which has not been taxed or controlled by the Government Departments have grown phenomenally and have instilled the confidence that India can take on the world. Thanks to its development, that India is recognized globally, he said.

India has the advantage of the demographic dividend, when compared to China.

However what is worrisome is the ease of doing business in India. He mentioned that the Labour laws are needed but the outdated laws which are not relevant to current times create a lot of hurdles for the business to grow. Multiple regulations and excessive regulation diverts the focus of companies from business and hence India lags behind when it comes to global competition.

He appreciated a recent headline which read that the Government is Pro Growth and Pro Poor. He added that if Industry grows, poverty would automatically decline.

He mentioned about the dichotomy between Companies Act and SEBI

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Regulations, especially with respect to Qualification of Independent Directors, Women Directors etc and requested for straight forward and clear laws that can be easily understood by a businessmen to comply with the same.

He thanked the members for the tremendous support and expressed the eagerness to hear Mr. Sinha’s views on the dichotomy between Companies Act, SEBI Regulations and excessive regulations.

Mr. Sunil Subramaniam, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Sundaram Asset Management Company Ltd. delivered his address on the present economy, impact of budget and markets.

His address covered how the recent past has been challenging and the elections results being a game changer. On the development agenda, the focus of the Government was elaborated apart from giving details of delivery agenda.

A comparison of Mr. Chidambaram’s budget and Mr. Arun Jaitley’s budget was made and the positive budget impetus on the Banking/PSU Sector, Infrastructure, sector was discussed in detail. Mr. Subramaniam made a graphical representation of the Demand and Supply side impetus. Further, he touched upon the Markets wherein he outlined how small and mid caps tend to outperform in upcycles.

Mr. U.K.Sinha,Chairman, Securities and Exchange Board of India, (SEBI) delivered the Chief Guest address. On issues of compliance with regulations by the Corporate Sector, he compared the State of Regulation in the Country with the regulation in developed markets.

He stated that regulations in other countries were stricter than in India with regulators penalizing the management and executives of violating companies in addition to penalizing the company.

He stated that the SEBI will pursue aligning corporate governance guidelines with that of the Companies Act to see that investors/ shareholders are protected in a major

way. He informed that the legal position is very clear. As far as listed companies are concerned, when there is a conflict of interest between SEBI regulations and Companies Act, SEBI regulations will prevail. He admitted to some amount of confusion when it comes to to-be-listed companies and agreed to sort out those issues on a case to case basis according to the merits of the case.

He added that he was happy to hear that the Union Cabinet had passed the crucial Securities Laws (Amendment) Bill and hoped the same will be passed in the Parliament session. This Bill will empower the market regulator to not only crack down on ponzi schemes, but also those companies collecting unauthorized deposits in unscrupulous manner as well as investment frauds. Further, it would give SEBI sweeping powers like attachment of properties, launch of recovery proceedings, seeking call data records to investigate cases and ordering search and seizure against manipulators and fraudsters.

He added that the SEBI would come out with guidelines on Real Estate Investment Trusts(REITs) and Infrastructure Investment Trusts at the earliest which would certainly witness a lot of activities on both the real estate as well as infrastructure development fronts in the Country.

The Board will further come up with ESOP guidelines which would enable ESOP trusts to buy shares in the secondary market, but will not be allowed to sell the same.

His message was clear to the Industries that it is essential to spend time on compliance than in defending violations later. His address was appreciated by the participants and the media devoured every word uttered by Mr. Sinha.

Mr. S.G.Prabhakharan, President, MCCI delivered the vote of thanks.

24th July 2014 Launch of Certificate Course on TNVAT Act & CST Act –

25th July 2014

The speakers on exclusive topics include

MCCI – ICICI Bank – CEO Knowledge Forum

The Certificate Course on TNVAT Act and CST Act was launched during the Public Session of the AGM held on 24th July 2014.

The Chief Guest Mr.U.K.Sinha, Chairman, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) released the course material and it was received by Mr. P.R.Subramaniyan, Deputy General Manager, Corp. Indirect Taxes, L & T Construction and Chairman, VAT Committee, MCCI.

Mr. R.Sridhar, CEO, Ideas - RS on 5 ways to make sure your innovation delivers business results

CEO Knowledge Forum is one of ICICI Bank’s Flagship programmes in the Beyond Banking Space. The Chamber in association with ICICI Bank organized the second edition of ICICI Bank-CEO Knowledge Forum on 25th June at the Hotel Park, Chennai – 2014. The first edition was also organised by the Chamber last year , which was a great success. Encouraged by the response the second edition with the main theme as Innovation was organized.

Mr.N.K. Ranganath, MD, Grundfos Pumps India (P) Ltd – Success story in Innovation.

The Course commences from July 25, 2014 and the duration is 36 hours primarily during weekends and is expected to end on 30th August 2014.

Mr.S.G. Prabhakharan. President, MCCI gave the Welcome Address.

The Panel discussion on How to build the culture of Innovation in your company included the following speakers Mr. S.G Prabhakharan, President, MCCI Mr. Dinesh R, Zonal Head – South, ICICI Bank Mr. R. Balaji, VP – Finance, Technip, India Mr. Shirish, Head- Products – Rediff Mail.

Around 35 participants have joined the first batch.

GENERAL COMMITTEE The First meeting of the General Committee of the reconstituted Committee was held on July 28, 2014. A few of the issues discussed by the Committee is as follows:Port Study for SPC. The General Committee was informed about the Study done by the Chamber on the “Pre feasibility of setting up a

non- major port in Tamil Nadu. The Chamber has suggested Silambimangalam in Cuddalore District as the ideal location for setting up a large multi user non major port in Tamil Nadu and stated that substantial investment should be made for setting up the port and it would work with a PPP Model. It was stated that a presentation would be made to the State Planning Commission shortly.

Delegation to Iran Consequent to the visit of the H.E. Mr. Hassan Noorian, Consul General of The Islamic Republic of Iran to the Chamber, few members had expressed interest to explore business opportunities in Iran. Hence the Chamber has sent out a circular requesting for the members to send their interests so that a Delegation to Iran can be considered and necessary action taken.

EXPERT COMMITTEES The First meeting of the Chairmen and Co-Chairmen of the Expert Committees with the President, Mr. S.G. Prabhakharan was held on July 28, 2014.

Mr. T.Shivaraman, outgoing President thanked the Expert Committee Chairmen and Co-Chairmen for the tremendous support extended to him during his tenure and for organizing the programmes of the Chamber.

Mr. S.G. Prabhakharan extended a warm welcome to the Chairmen and Co- Chairmen of the Expert Committees, especially some of the new Chairmen of the Committee.

The Chairmen of the Expert Committees elaborated on the work done earlier and their plans for the future. Some of them stated that they would prepare a

detailed action plan and present in the first committee meeting.

It was agreed that a similar meeting would be organized in the month of January/ February to review the work done and to be done by the Expert Committees.

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OTHER MEETINGS • Ms Saraswathi met Ms. Mythili Rajendran, MD, Tamil Nadu Corporation for Development of Women on 25th June 2014 and briefed her about the skill development initiatives of the Chamber and discussed the ways of collaborating with the Corporation through their schemes.

• M e e t i n g w i t h M r. A s h o k , Lavasa, Secretary, Civil Aviation.

Ms. Saraswathi and Mr Krishnan attended the meeting on 2nd July, 2014. On behalf of the Chamber our

concerns on the delay on delivery of import consignments by the Airport Authority of India was highlighted.

• Mr.Shah Nizam Ahmed, Trade Consul, Malaysia met Ms Saraswathi on 7th July 2014 at the Chamber and discussed about possible collaborative programs for the future.

• Ms Saraswathi attended a small group meeting at the British Deputy High Commission on 22nd July, 2014 with Mr.David & Mr.Bala,Basildon

Council. Chamber’s skilling initiatives were greatly appreciated by the members and a proposal for possible collaboration is under preparation.

• Mr. Arun Joseph Ranjith, DHL Express India Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi called on the Chamber on 31st July 2014 to have an informal discussion with the Chamber on their development plans.

He was accompanied by his colleagues Mr. Vasudevan Rajagopalan, Head Customs Compliance & Mr.Dinkar Singh, Head Regulatory Services, DHL Express India Pvt Ltd.

THE MADRAS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY Membership Subscription Fees with effect from August 2014

Rs.

Rs.

Rs.

Rs.

Cheque / DD to be drawn in favour of : The Madras Chamber of Commerce & Industry.

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Interactive meeting with Consul General of Islamic Republic of Iran

T. Shivaraman presenting Coee Table Book to HE Hassan Noorian, Consul General of Islamic Republic of Iran

REnergy International Conference

by TEDA - participation by MCCI

Members visiting MCCI stall in RENERGY 2014 conference at Chennai Trade Centre

2nd Trade Meet with Kamarajar Port Limited

Bhaskarachar, CMD, Kamarajar Port Ltd., addressing the gathering. L to R : K. Saraswathi, J. Krishnan, T. Shivaraman, Sanjay Kumar & R. Senthil Kumar

J. Krishnan answering the queries of the participants.

Other panelists (l to r ) Yanagida Hiroyuki, Pankaj Gadhia, R. Naresh, V. Ramanan & R. Senthil Kumar.

South East CEO Conclave Awards MCCI – ICICI Bank CEO Knowledge Forum

Bhaskarachar presenting the South East CEO Conclave Award to T.Shivaraman. Others seen in the picture are J. Krishnan & S.G.Prabhakharan

16

S.G.Prabhakharan addressing during the Panel discussion.

Others seen are Dinesh.R, R. Balaji and Shirish

N.K.Ranganath, MD, Grundfos Pumps addressing the audience

Interaction Session with Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State (IC), Ministry of Commerce & Industry, GOI

Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State (IC), Ministry of Commerce & Industry interacting with MCCI Members

T. Shivaraman making a presentation

FFT on Balancing Environment & Economic Development

Dr. Nandita Krishna, Honorary Director, CPR Environmental Education addressing the gathering.

N.Ranganath, MD, Grundfos Pumps India (P) Ltd addressing

Training Programme on Eective Business Communication and Relationship Management with Eduquest

Zealous Zafrullah, Master Trainer, Eduquest, Singapore interacting with participants

N. Venkatraman, Director, Nandini Consultancy Centre making a presentation

Interactive session with Delegation from France

S.G.Prabhakharan, Vice President, MCCI interacting with delegates from Pays De La Loire, France

17

General Committee 2014-15 PRESIDENT

VICE PRESIDENT

S. G. Prabhakharan Chairman XS Real Properties Pvt. Ltd.

Ram Venkataramani Managing Director IP Rings Ltd

MEMBERS

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R. Anand Partner - Tax & Markets Ernst & Young LLP

M. V. Ananthakrishna Director M K Raju Consultants P Ltd.

N. S. Balachandra Datta Asst.Vice President Hyundai Motor India Ltd.

K. Balasubramanian Chairman Precision Equipments (Chennai) Pvt.Ltd .

Gayathri Sriram Managing Director Ucal Auto Pvt.Ltd.

P. Kaniappan Managing Director Wabco India Ltd.

J. Krishnan Partner S. Natesa Iyer & Co.

V. Murali Senior Partner Victor Grace & Co

S. Parthasarathy Chief Executive OďŹƒcer Rane (Madras) Ltd.

General Committee 2014-15 MEMBERS

G. V. Raman Executive Chairman Shriram Transport Finance Co. Ltd

Ramkumar Ramamoorthy Sr.Vice President Corp.Marketing, Research & Communications Cognizant Technology Solutions

Dr. K. V. Rajendran Advisor Neophyll Agrisciences Pvt.Ltd.

Srivats Ram Managing Director Wheels India Ltd.

A. R. Subramanian Executive Director – Finance & Company Secretary, Schwing Stetter India Pvt.Ltd

K. Vaitheeswaran Advocate & Tax Consultant Vaitheeswaran & Co.

Vijay Sankar Deputy Chairman The Sanmar Group

Dr. Vinod Surana CEO & Managing Partner Surana & Surana International Attorneys

P. Viswanathan Secretary & Compliance OďŹƒcer Sundaram Finance Ltd.

EX OFFICIO

T. Shivaraman Managing Director & CEO Shriram EPC Ltd.

MCCI Congratulates you on your election to the respective offices and looks forward to your active support and co-operation to take the Chamber to greater heights.

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Workshop on Central Budget & Finance Bill 2014-15

Sriram Seshadri making a presentation on Budget Analysis on Direct Taxes

M.R. Venkatesh addressing on Economic Analysis

K.Vaitheeswaran presenting Budget Analysis on Indirect Taxes

Dr.Subir Gokarn interacting with audience through Skype

A view of the audience

Seminar on Directors & OďŹƒcers Liability Insurance

N.Srinivasan, FCA., addressing the participants.

Others seen (l to r) Nataraja Murthy, T.Shivaraman, T.N.Manoharan and Kiran Sharma

20

Bhavani Balasubramanian welcoming the panelists and gathering. L to r : N.Ramanathan, K.Vaitheeswaran, Kiran Sharma and Dr.B.Ravi

MCCI & MMA - Felicitation function to honour Mr. N. Srinivasan, Chairman, ICC

Srinivasan K Swamy presenting a citation to N.Srinivasan.

Mr. A. Vellayan, Executive Chairman, Murugappa Group

Mr. Gopal Srinivasan, Chairman & Managing Director, TVS Capital Funds Ltd

Mr. Venky Rajgopal, Managing Director

Mr. V.V.S. Laxman, Former Indian Cricketer

Indian Terrain Fashions ltd N.Srinivasan addressing the participants

Mr. P.S. Raman Vice President (Chennai) Tamil Nadu Cricket Association

M r. A n i r u d h C h a u d h a r y Hon. Treasurer, BCCI

A view of the audience

21

MCCI 178th Annual General Meeting

T Shivaraman addressing during the Business Session others in the picture are K. Saraswathi and S.G. Prabhakaran

T Shivaraman welcoming the newly elected Vice PresidentRam Venkataramani with a bouquet of flowers

Sunil Subramaniam, Dy.CEO,Sundaram Asset Management making a presentation

T.Shivaraman presenting a memento to the Chief Guest

22

T Shivaraman welcoming the newly elected President S G Prabhakharan with a bouquet of flowers

T Shivaraman interacting with U.K.Sinha

U.K.Sinha releases the MCCI TN VAT Act & CST Act Course. First copy received

by P.R.Subramaniyan, Chairman, MCCI’s Expert Committee on VAT.

A view of the audience

REPRESENTATION & PRESS RELEASES

Date: 1st July 2014 Mr. KMS Narayanan Assistant - (Policy) Ministry of Corporate Aairs New Delhi Dear Sir, Greetings from MCCI! Sub: Notice inviting comments for the Draft Notification under section 462 of the companies act, 2013 for private companies The Madras Chamber of Commerce & Industry (MCCI) is the second oldest Chamber of Commerce in India and the oldest in Southern India. We are also one of the five Promoter Chambers of the Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), New Delhi.

Established in 1836, the Chamber has been an integral part of the growth of commerce and industry in the southern region. The Chamber has Expert Committees with domain experts on varied subjects such as Taxation, manufacturing, Industrial Development/Infrastructure, IT and boasts of a strong committee on Company Law and Corporate Aairs.

The Chamber had detailed discussions with the Company Law committee and a few select members regarding the notification.

We have attached the consolidated suggestions of our members for your kind consideration. Apart from the sections for which comments were sought by the MCA, we have also given our suggestions, for a few other sections, which are highlighted in blue, for your consideration.

Regards

K.Saraswathi Secretary General

Chamber in the News

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REPRESENTATION & PRESS RELEASES MCCI’S COMMENTS FOR THE DRAFT NOTIFICATION UNDER SECTION 462 OF THE COMPANIES ACT FOR PRIVATE COMPANIES S.No

Chapter/ Section number/ Subsection(s) in the Companies Act, 2013

Exceptions/ Modifications/Adaptations

Our suggestions for consideration

1

Chapter IV, section 43 and section Shall not apply 47 [Both whole]

We agree and welcome this suggestion

2

Chapter IV, clause (a) of sub- Shall apply with the following modification:section (1) of section 62) and Words ‘not being less than fifteen days and sub-section (2) of section 62 not exceeding thirty days’ shall be substituted with ‘not being less than seven days and not exceeding fifteen days’

We are of the opinion that increase in share capital should have no restrictions for private limited companies and therefore section 62, (1 to 6) should not made applicable to private companies, as these pertain to further issue of share capital to existing shareholders and employees only.

3

Chapter IV, clause (b) of sub- Shall apply except that instead of special We are of the opinion that increase in share capital section (1) of section 62 resolution, ordinary resolution would be should have no restrictions for private limited required companies and therefore section 62, (1 to 6) should not made applicable to private companies, as these pertain to further issue of share capital to existing shareholders and employees only.

4

Chapter V, sub-section (2) of Shall not apply to private companies having section 73 50 or less number of members if they accept monies from their members not exceeding twenty five per cent of aggregate of the paid up capital and free reserves or one hundred per cent of the paid up capital, whichever is more, and which inform the details of such monies to the Registrar in the prescribed manner.

5

Chapter VII, sections 101 to 107 Shall apply unless - We agree and welcome this suggestion and section 109 [All whole] otherwise specified in respective sections or - unless articles of the private company otherwise provide.

5a

Chapter X, Rule 5 of subsection b of Section 139

6

Chapter X, Clause (g) of sub- Shall not apply in respect of appointment of We agree and welcome this suggestion section (3) of section 141 auditors by private companies.

7

Chapter XI, section 160( Whole)

Shall not apply

We agree and welcome this suggestion

8

Chapter XI, section 162 [Whole]

Shall not apply

We agree and welcome this suggestion

9

Chapter XII, Section 180

Shall not apply to private companies having We agree and welcome this suggestion 50 or less number of members

9a

Chapter XII Section 184

10

Chapter XII, section 185

10a

Chapter XII Section 186 (other than 186 (1)

11

Chapter XII, section 188

Shall not apply.

We agree and welcome this suggestion

12

Chapter XIII, section 196, sub- Shall not apply section (4) and sub-section (5)

We agree and welcome this suggestion

13

Chapter XIII, sub-section (3), Shall not apply section 203

We agree and welcome this suggestion

We suggest that the limit of the number of members of 50, should exclude employee shareholders and the other cap on quantum of deposits accepted is recommended to be removed.

We submit that the criteria for prescribed class of private companies under rule 5 (b )should be paid up capital of Rs. 100 crores and for 5 ( c) should be borrowings of Rs. 500 crores

We feel that the restriction on Interested Director to participate or vote in Board’s proceedings is not practical and hence this section should not be applicable to private companies Shall not apply to Private companies - (a) which have borrowings from banks or financial institutions or any bodies corporate not more than twice of their paid up share capital or Rs. 50 crore, whichever is lower; a nd (b) in whose share capital no other body corporate has invested any money”.

a. We submit that the criteria for prescribed class of private companies under Section 185 (a) should be paid up capital of Rs. 100 crore s b.

With regard to clause b, we recommend the clause to be “ In whose share capital no other companies has invested an amount greater than 26% of the paid up share capital” We feel that the restriction on loans and investments for private companies is not practical and hence this section should not be applicable to private companies

The Chamber is working on a detailed representation to be given on Companies Act to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

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REPRESENTATION & PRESS RELEASES MCCI’s response to the Union Budget 2014-15 – Press Release The Madras Chamber of Commerce & Industry (MCCI) feels that the Budget presented by the Finance Minister, Mr. Arun Jaitley, may not be a Big bang budget, but a balanced and growth oriented budget.

The Chamber is happy to note that some of the recommendations submitted by the Chamber to the TARC headed by Dr.Parthasarathi Shome have been considered in the Budget.

Welcome points: •

The Chamber welcomes the importance given to improve Tax Administration which would reduce uncertainty and litigation. The Single window clearance concept for EXIM trade is a progressive step in line with the Tax Administrative reforms.

•

The assurance that there would not be any retrospective law which will create fresh liability is a solace.

•

Boosting investments through foreign investment which is the need of the hour to revive the Indian economy, is to be appreciated.

•

Thrust on Industrial corridors and industrial clusters including a few new ones for Tamil Nadu and the proposal to relook and strengthen SEZs would help in boosting manufacturing growth.

•

The significance given to increase the air and road connectivity and investment in port sector will augment the inadequate infrastructure. Raising the funds through banks for infrastructure projects is a welcome move.

•

• •

The Government’s move towards GST will be a real game changer welcomed by the business fraternity as it has the potential to transform the entire business scenario and promote the economic prosperity of the nation. The necessary thrust given for education, skills training to increase the literacy level andemployment opportunities is laudable.

E-visa, clarification on service tax on tour operators will definitely boost tourism in the Country.

Integrating all Central Government offices and ministries through e-commerce within aspecified period is an effective measure to reduce corruption and improve governance.Advance ruling to residents is an admirable move. Setting up an Expenditure Committee for expenditure control is in the right direction.

• 24x7 measures such as customs clearance facilities is to be welcomed.

On the flip side: •

Silence observed in the area of corporate laws is a matter of disappointment for the Chamber.

•

While the corporate are sailing through difficult times with regard to labour issues, export and import loss, increase in compliances, no reduction in the Corporate tax comes as a disappointment.

•

Further, the salary exemptions provided is not at the expected levels.

On the whole, the budget’s intent to improve fiscal discipline, rationalize taxation and subsidies and focus on infrastructure and manufacturing besides the social sector, are to be welcomed . Achieving the targets set would depend on proper implementation.

10th July, 2014 Chennai

T.Shivaraman President

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SPOT LIGHT

SMART CITIES

India is one of only two countries in the world with a population of more than 1 billion people. The second is China. The rate of population growth in India has slowed considerably in recent years, although it is still growing more quickly than its neighbour China. A recent report from the UN suggests that India’s population will surpass China by 2028, when both India and China will have populations of 1.45 billion.

Urbanization in India has significant implications for the future development of the country. By 2030, India’s urban population will touch 590 million or nearly twice that of the United States, while Indian cities will generate close to 70% of the GDP. This will exert tremendous pressure on urban infrastructure and services. It is, therefore, imperative that we find innovative solutions for the urban challenges of growth and sustainability.

In other words, the next 30-40 years will see an unprecedented transformation in the urban landscape; in fact, impacts

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of this new phase of urbanisation on the existing urban infrastructure and resources are already being felt. Cities face huge challenges: congestion, pollution, blackouts, crime, debt, and rising costs - while competing with each other for investment, jobs, and talents.

Cities and urban places in general now occupy the centre stage in global development. They no longer function as mere spaces for settlement, production and services. They now profoundly shape and influence social and political relations at every level; determining advances and setbacks in modes of production; and providing new content to norms, culture and aesthetics. They are also a major factor in environmental trends and sustainability processes. Urbanization is thus providing the setting, the underlying base, and also the momentum for global change.

This rapid migration will push both current and future urban centre’s to their seams

and expand industrial and residential infrastructures beyond their breaking points. The growth and its challenges raise important questions that must be considered by cities around the world.

Can this growth be done in a sustainable way?

With necessity invariably playing the inventor, the rapid urbanisation has also spurred innovations in urban design, technologies and services, which have together culminated in the concept of Smart City, where synergy of people with space, ecology and infrastructure leads to economic growth and happy living. Even globally, the concept of smart cities – where infrastructure network and delivery of services are more efficient across telecommunication, logistics, water and gas supply—is being looked upon as a possible solution to the swelling urban population and the problems that come along. Cities in the developed world are formulating technology master plans

SPOT LIGHT and then using these plans to develop a citywide command and control network that monitors and optimizes the delivery of services like power, water, traffic and healthcare.

This dramatic growth also provides impetus for the creation of smart cities which leverage information and communications technology (ICT) to greatly improve the productivity, lifestyle and the prosperity of our people. Additionally, green growth strategies can build environmentally sustainable cities.

Today, it is possible to create smart cities with intelligent networks that manage basic citizen services and create living spaces. Though the concept of smart cities is relatively new in India, we are well on the path to creating them.

What makes a city smart?

Smart cities have been the talking point across the country, from tea stalls to social media platforms. Everybody knows who is going to build smart cities but there are only speculations about what exactly is a smart city.

Although definition of smart city is still evolving, currently there is a wide-ranging consensus amongst experts on what constitutes one.

Six broad characteristics are evaluated to conclude an existing city to be a smart city.

Every city can become smarter. Smart cities start with smart systems, working for the benefit of both residents and the environment. Smart cities make urbanization more inclusive, bringing together formal and informal sectors, connecting urban cores with peripheries, delivering services for the rich and the poor alike, and integrating the migrants and the poor into the city.

The basic premise of a smart city is

the sensors that will increasingly be on every building, lamp-post and pipe in the city?

Promoting smart cities is about rethinking cities as inclusive, integrated, and livable.

Singapore – How it emerged as a Smart City?

From transportation and public housing, to energy management and water treatment, Singapore has developed and adapted some of the world’s most advanced urban solutions. Backed by a progressive leadership and firm commitment to sustainable development, the city has managed to turn the challenges of urban development into rewarding economic opportunities.

making infrastructure network and delivery of services more efficient – across telecommunication, logistics, water and gas supply. These include traffic control, using sensors to monitor water leaks, tracking garbage trucks through global positioning systems to ensure they dump their waste at designated landfills, energy management in smart buildings and complexes. Also under development are smart townships that are controlled centrally.

How to Seed Smart Cities?

Furthermore, a smart city has no barriers between sectors like energy, transport, ICT, water, waste management and healthcare, as integration of these sectors can bring benefits to all of those and deliver better living experience to the people. The government is looking at mass systems and digital technology that cuts across power, water, safety and transport needs.

Smart cities should not only be about developing infrastructure. The fact that cities are ultimately about people, not buildings is indeed important. When one thinks of a smart city, well-equipped residential societies, smoother roads, and advanced public transport come to the mind. But this is where we get the definition wrong. The smart cities should be about mixing different ingredients.

Intelligent communication tools will let administrators manage and respond to emergencies quickly as well as provide residents with constant real-time inputs.

Only the hardware (buildings) and wiring (roads) won’t work, the most important thing is whether or not the city attracts the best human capital. It’s about cluster of people. They have to be about improving the quality of life. Infrastructure is only the medium; activities, interactions, cluster of human capital, exchange of ideas bring buzz and life to a city – the smart city.

In the future everything in a city, from the electricity grid, to the sewer pipes to roads, buildings and cars will be connected to the network. Buildings will turn off the lights for you, self-driving cars will find you that sought-after parking space, and even the rubbish bins will be smart.

But how do we get to this smarter future.

Who will be monitoring and controlling

Universities, for instance, are critical to making cities successful and are an essential part of this software. Great cities of the past had great intellectual centres.

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SPOT LIGHT They attracted talent, encouraged the churn of ideas and triggered innovation.

Translated in modern terms, universities do not just attract young people to cities but provide venues for conferences, seminars, cultural and sporting events enabling human interaction that makes for lively urban clusters.

Successful cities are those that can cluster human capital and encourage innovation, creativity and exchange of ideas. To be ‘smart’, therefore, cities need both hardware and software.

Newly successful cities have invested heavily in universities, think tanks and research institutes, not just as centres for intellectual activity but as part of the wider urban ecosystem. The city benefits from the “urban buzz” brought by young people while the university profits from being close to state and corporate institutions.

Unlike India, where universities are spread over an area of hundreds of acres isolated from cities, Cambridge, Oxford, NYU are located in the heart of cities spread over a small area thus allowing for greater interaction and exchange between the students and the rest of the city. Small and big businesses and housing prosper in the city because of universities. The institutions get all the attention from the local Government.

In fact, the concept of smart cities is looked upon as a “technological project” in India whereas in the West, it is considered to be a “management project”. This is due to the high level of technological progress already made by western nations. In India, setting up smart technology in established cities takes a much longer gestation period as most of these cities were not built keeping technology advancement in mind. On the other hand, greenfield smart cities that are coming up in and around metros come with greater potential and

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turnaround time.

India has to face the twin task of improving technology as well as techniques of management. The much publicized publicprivate participation must become a reality within and beyond the role of local government institutions.

Smart cities project must include inbuilt mechanism for smart administration that is responsible, accountable, transparent, and efficient. E-governance cannot be taken as foolproof arrangement to eliminate corruption.

Smart cities will help correct prevailing urban chaos in India for some time.

But, the mess cannot be eradicated without nationwide promotion of basic infrastructure and delivery of services.

In a recent speech delivered by Hon. Prime Minister Mr. Modi, he had said “In the past cities were built on the river bank, along the highways, but in future they will be built based on availability of optical fiber networks and next-generation infrastructure”.

Ponneri – Identified as smart City: In the general budget presented by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in the Lok Sabha a couple of days back, there is also a proposal to create 100 ‘smart cities’ all over the country. Ponneri in Tiruvallur District, Tamil Nadu, is among the planned smart cities.

Located north to Chennai, this satellite town has attracted not only the attention of the Indian government for further development but also Japan investors for their manufacturing industries. The main reason for this innumerous attention from the foreign investors is the strategic location of Ponneri. It is very close to the Chennai metropolitan city and close to the Ennore port which favours both imports and exports.

Located in proximity to the Guntur – Chennai highway and connected by other well established roads, this town is accessible by roads. It is also one of the stations in Chennai suburban railway which connects the town to the interiors of the city.

The focus on Ponneri is another resultant of the Chennai – Bangalore industrial corridor. The town was suspected to become a hub for business development since the proposal of the corridor. With a population of over 25,000 people and splattered with industries like Ponneri steel industry, Nelcast Limited, etc. the locality is all set to become a smart city in ‘Modified’ India.

Currently the city lacks good road connectivity within the town. This has been the main problem for the Japanese investors and is expected to be rectified soon. As for real estate in this area, it can be well expected to see a robust demand for both lands, residential units both for buying and rental soon.

The new investment and development will produce a healthy number of job opportunities and promote the establishment of commercial pockets.

There could possibly be a good amount of immigration from Chennai to this soon-to-be smart city.

To boost the economic development, the best way forward for India would be to come up with Smart Cities.

Source: BBC News & other websites

POLICY WATCH NABARD reduced rates of refinance to boost investment credit The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) reduced the rate of interest by 20 basis points (bps) on long-term refinance facility to banks with an objective to promote farm sector investments. The decision was taken in response of growing demand by farmers and banks and the rates are applicable from 6 June 2014.

As per the notification the rates of refinance for five years and above will be 9.50 percent, whereas for three to five years period it will be 9.70 percent.

For banks availing more than 500 crore rupees in a single drawl will further be incentivized by 10 bps.

Apart from this, further incentive of 50 bps would be available on financing for efficient agricultural technologies to combat food inflation. The list of efficient technologies includes 12 such innovative farm practices which will enhance fruit and vegetable production.

Government may defer GAAR by a year The government is likely to defer implementation of the controversial GAAR provisions by one more year to April 2017 and exempt transactions made up to March 2013 in a bid to improve business sentiment. The finance ministry earlier proposed imposing the General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAAR) from April 1, 2016, for those, claiming tax benefit of over Rs. 3 crore. The rules are aimed at minimizing tax avoidance for investments made by entities based in tax havens.

According to the new proposal, investments made after March 2013, will be covered under GAAR with effect from assessment year 2017-18. Sources said the benefits of grandfathering, or exemptions, would be made for business arrangements entered into up to March 2013.

According to the existing GAAR notification, investments made up to August 30, 2010, were not to be scrutinized. “Tax department needs to work further on GAAR provisions and realign some of the regulations’.

RBI restored the limit of Overseas Direct Investment taken under automatic route The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) restored the limit of Overseas Direct Investment

(ODI) by an Indian company under the automatic route of Foreign Exchange Management Act, 2004.

With this decision now an Indian company can undertake financial commitment or invest up to 400 percent of the net worth in all its Joint Ventures (JVs) and/or Wholly Owned Subsidiaries (WOSs) abroad.

However, RBI decided that any financial commitment exceeding one billion US Dollars or its equivalent in a financial year will require prior approval of the Reserve Bank. This rule is applicable even if total commitment undertaken by an Indian company falls within the eligible limit.

However, the restriction was not applicable on public sector firms like Oil India and ONGC Videsh.

Policy for Growth of Indian Controlled Tonnage The Government has taken a policy decision to allow shipping enterprises based in India to acquire ships abroad and also flag them in the country of their convenience. This decision is aimed at encouraging Indian Shipping companies to have their registered offices in India itself while allowing them to acquire further tonnage without forming subsidiaries out of India to own foreign flag vessels. These companies register their ships abroad without actually opening their registered office or a subsidiary company there. This will enable Indian companies to have access to cheaper sources of funds abroad to acquire additional tonnage while not having to set up multiple enterprises abroad to acquire and maintain such tonnage.

The Government exchequer is expected to gain from this policy decision through tax on the revenues earned from operations of this additional tonnage rather than through dividends from such subsidiaries based abroad. The Indian flagged tonnage (ships) which has stagnated to around 10.50 MGT for quite some time is also expected to get a boost by the decision.

Infrastructure Finance Companies and Infrastructure Debt Fund Non-Banking Financial Companies (ID-NBFCS) to Issue Secured Debentures

up to thirty years. Similarly, Housing Finance companies have been allowed relaxed terms for maintaining Debenture Redemption Reserve on lines similar to NBFCs registered with RBIs. Necessary amendments in Rules have been notified.

It has also been clarified that an independent Merchant Banker who is registered with SEBI or an independent Chartered Accountant in practice having a minimum experience of ten years may be engaged by companies for preparing valuation reports required before making preferential allotment of shares.

RBI keeps key rates unchanged in policy review The Reserve Bank of India in its bi-monthly policy review has kept the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) unchanged at 8.0 per cent. It has also left the cash reserve ratio (CRR) of scheduled banks unchanged at 4.0 per cent of net demand and time liabilities (NDTL).

However, it has reduced the statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) of scheduled commercial banks by 50 basis points from 22.5 per cent to 22.0 per cent of their NDTL with effect from the fortnight beginning August 9, 2014. It has also decided to continue to provide liquidity under overnight repos at 0.25 per cent of bank-wise NDTL and liquidity under 7-day and 14-day term repos of up to 0.75 per cent of NDTL of the banking system.

Consequently, the reverse repo rate under the LAF will remain unchanged at 7.0 per cent, and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate at 9.0 per cent.

Congratulations R. Vittal Raj for being re-elected as International Vice President and Director on the International Board of ISACA

The Ministry has decided to allow Infrastructure Finance companies and Infrastructure Debt Fund Non-Banking Financial Companies (ID-NBFCs) to issue secured debentures for a period

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ECONOMIC REVIEW Green shoots of recovery in business sentiment as well as economic activity in India are visible in select pockets.

Key economic indicators indicate that an early recovery is underway. The uptick in economic activity is evident from the recent stronger IIP numbers, improvement in manufacturing sector growth & inflation control.

Manufacturing PMI: Manufacturing sector growth jumped to 17-month high in July, driven by “flood of new orders” from both domestic and overseas companies on the back of post-election boost to sentiments.

The HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), a measure of factory production, rose to 53.0 in July, up from 51.5 in June, signaling a solid improvement in business conditions. A PMI reading above 50 indicates growth while a lower reading means contraction.

Business conditions in the Indian manufacturing sector improved for the ninth consecutive month in July, as companies scaled up production in response to robust levels of demand. “A flood of new orders from both domestic and external sources has led to a surge in activity, pushing the manufacturing PMI to a 17month high.

Consumer prices rose by an annual 7.31 percent in June of 2014, the lowest rate on record. The inflation rate slowed for the second straight month, due to lower food prices.

Provisional estimates showed food inflation slowed to 7.9 percent in June from 9.4 percent in May. Fruit prices rose at a slower 20.64 percent and cost of vegetables eased sharply to 8.73 percent (15.27 percent in the previous month).

Wholesale Inflation Slows in June The wholesale annual inflation rate slowed to 5.43 percent in June of 2014 from 6.01 percent in the previous month. It is the lowest rate in four months, as prices of onion and vegetables fell further and fuel cost rose at the slowest pace this year.

On a monthly basis, the wholesale inflation decelerated to 0.5 % in June, after rising 0.83 % in May. Balance of Trade A trade deficit of 11763.20 USD Million was recorded in June of 2014.

Consumer Price Index (CPI)

India had been recording sustained trade deficits due to low exports base and high imports of coal and oil for its energy needs.

Consumer Price Index (CPI) in India increased to 141 Index Points in June of 014 from 139.90 Index Points in May of 2014.

Foreign Exchange Reserves

Consumer Inflation Down to Record Low

Foreign Exchange Reserves in India increased to 17464 INR Billion in July of 2014 from 17357.90 INR Billion in June of 2014.

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Highlights of the Survey of Professional Forecasters on Macroeconomic Indicators July 2014 The Reserve Bank has been conducting the Survey of Professional Forecasters since September 2007. The results of the survey represent views of the respondent forecasters and in no way reflect the views or forecasts of the Reserve Bank of India.

Highlights: 1. Annual Forecasts: • Forecast of real GDP growth rate (at factor cost) for 2014-15 marginally declined to 5.3 per cent from 5.4 per cent in the previous round. The growth forecast for Agriculture & Allied Activities is revised downward from 2.8 per cent to 2.1 per cent, while for Industry growth, the forecast is revised upward from 3.1 per cent to 3.3 per cent. Growth for the Service sector is revised upward marginally from 6.9 per cent to 7.0 per cent.

• Real GDP growth rate forecast for 2015-16 is placed at 6.5 per cent.

• The forecasters assigned maximum probability of 0.45 to the range of 5.0-5.4 per cent for GDP growth in 2014-15. For the year 2015-16, maximum probability of 0.34 per cent has been assigned in the range of 6.0-6.4 per cent.

• Private final consumption expenditure at current prices is expected to grow by 12.0 per cent in 2014-15 and by 13.0 per cent in 2015-16.

• Gross Domestic Saving rate is predicted at 31.0 per cent in 2014-15 and is likely to improve to 32.0 per cent in 201516.

• Gross Fixed Capital Formation rate is forecast at 30.0 per cent in 2014-15 and is expected to improve to 30.9 per cent in 2015-16 • Money supply (M3) growth for 2014-15 is forecast at 14.0 per cent and is likely to grow by 15.3 per cent in 2015-16.

• Bank Credit is expected to grow by 15.5 per cent and 16.5 per cent in 2014-15 and 2015-16, respectively.

• Yield of 91-Days Treasury Bills is expected to be at 8.5 per cent and 7.9 per cent at end March 2015 and March 2016, respectively.

• Central Government’s gross fiscal deficit (GFD) is projected at 4.3 per cent of GDP in 2014-15 and is likely to improve to 4.0 per cent of GDP in 2015-16.

• The combined GFD of Central and State Governments is expected to be at 6.6 per cent of GDP in 2014-15 and is expected to improve to 6.1 per cent of GDP in 2015-16.

• Merchandise Exports is predicted to grow by 7.3 per cent in 2014-15 and by 9.3 per cent in 2015-16. Current Account

Deficit is projected at 2.1 per cent of GDP and 2.4 per cent of GDP for the next two financial years, respectively. Capital Account Balance is expected at 3.3 per cent of GDP for 201415.

2. Quarterly Forecasts: • Real GDP growth is expected to improve gradually from Q1: 2014-15 to Q1:2015-16.

• Industrial sector is projected to grow by 2.5 per cent in Q2: 2014-15 and is projected to improve to 4.4 per cent in Q1: 2015-16.

• Services sector is expected to grow by 6.8 per cent in Q2: 2014-15 and is likely to improve to 7.4 per cent in Q1: 201516.

• Forecasters expect average CPI-Combined inflation in Q2: 2014-15 at 7.8 per cent. CPI inflation is expected to decline to 7.4 per cent in Q3: 2014-15 and then increase to 8.0 per cent in Q1: 2015-16.

• Inflation based on WPI is expected to decline to 4.8 per cent in Q3: 2014-15 and then increase to 5.7 per cent in Q1:201516.

• The forecasters assigned highest probability of 0.46 that CPICombined inflation will remain in the range 8.0-8.9 per cent in March 2015. For March 2016, the forecasters assigned maximum probability of 0.43 that CPI inflation will be in the range of 7.0-7.9 per cent.

• The forecasters assigned highest probability of 0.50 that WPI inflation will fall in the range of 5.0-5.9 per cent in March 2015. For March 2016 also, the forecasters assigned maximum probability of 0.51 that WPI inflation will be in the range of 5.0-5.9 per cent.

• The Indian Rupee is expected to remain stable against the US Dollar at around Rs.60/US$ till end Q1:2015-16.

3. Long Term Forecasts: • Average real GDP growth rates for the next five years (2014-15 to 2018-19) and the next ten years (2014-15 to 2023-24), are expected to be 6.7 per cent and 7.5 per cent, respectively.

Over the next five years, inflation based on CPI-Combined and WPI is expected to be at 7.0 per cent and 5.5 per cent, respectively. Over the next ten years, inflation based on CPICombined and WPI is expected to be around 6.0 per cent and 5.1 per cent, respectively

31

Global Developments Indian Prime Minister’s statement in the 6th BRICS Summit on the Agenda: Sustainable Development & Inclusive Growth The global economic environment remains uncertain and challenging. Recovery is still fragile despite improved prospects.

In an environment of political conflict and persisting weakness in major economies; we have to be watchful for signs of a new bout of financial turmoil. Developments in Iraq and the wider region could affect this. Also concerned that tight monetary policy in some countries could undercut investment and growth in ours.

An open, rule-based, international trading regime is critical for global economic growth. It must address the aspirations of the developing world. It must also accommodate the special needs of the most vulnerable sections of our societies, especially in areas such as food security. This is our broad expectation from the negotiations in the Doha Round of WTO. The Agreement towards setting up the BRICS New Development Bank is a significant step.

The initiative announced at the BRICS Summit in New Delhi in 2012, has become a reality. The agreement on the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement is another major achievement.

These initiatives are rooted in our own experience as developing countries. They show our capacity to set up global institutions.

They will open new avenues for supporting development in our countries as well as helping other developing nations. We should ensure these institutions establish a new model for supporting growth and stability.

The theme of this Summit is also the guiding principle of my Government. For us, inclusion is a special challenge and responsibility; given our vast social, regional and economic diversity. Our policies will focus on empowering people with skills and opportunities. We will invest heavily in infrastructure, affordable housing, healthcare, education and clean energy. We will harness all possibilities that advanced technologies open up.

All this will require fast-tracking of Growth.

We will champion, clean and frugal resource use; to maintain the Sustainability of our development process, without constraining our growth. Sustainability has in fact been a core element of the Indian way of life. We have made progress, on the Millennium Development Goals. But wide-spread poverty still haunts us.

We must keep poverty eradication at the centre of the post2015 Development Agenda. It is important to shape the global discourse on the same, especially in forums like the UN. BRICS can be a major voice on the world stage to build consensus towards such efforts. BRICS is in a position today where it wields enough horizontal influence to compel the world to take notice. Our own good, however, lies in deepening our bonds vertically. We must focus on further decentralizing, this powerful forum. We must go beyond Summit and Leader-centric deliberations; and champion Sub-national Level exchanges. We must encourage engagement between our States, Cities and other local bodies.

BRICS should in fact be truly driven by People to People contact.

Our Youth, in particular, must take a lead in this. Popularizing our languages through dedicated BRICS language schools in all BRICS countries could be a beginning in this direction. We could also consider establishing Massive Open Online Courses for making quality education accessible to all. We could even explore the idea of a BRICS University. Today, technology is a transformative tool in every area of social and economic development. The vast pool of talent in BRICS could be combined to cooperate in areas like: health, education, agriculture, resource management and urban development. Perhaps a Young Scientists Forum of BRICS Countries could be explored.

Other initiatives could include: An affordable healthcare platform of BRICS nations, Mechanism to further cooperation, between our Small and Medium enterprises, and, a common framework for promoting Tourism among BRICS countries.

New Members MCCI extends a warm welcome to the following New Members:

New Member

Nature of Business

•

Spearheaders Management Consultants (P) Ltd

Management & Financial Consulting

•

Yes Bank

Banking

•

ASA & Associates LLP

Chartered Accountants

•

Cauvery Power Generation Chennai (P) Ltd

Power & Energy

•

Armstrong International Private Limited

Valves

•

Alpharithm Technologies Private Limited

IT

•

Mitsubishi Elevator ETA India Private Limited

Elevators

•

Anand & Anand

Legal

Published by The Madras Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Karumuttu Centre, I floor, No. 634, Anna Salai, Nandanam, Chennai 600 035 Tel 044-24349452 Fax 044-24349164 Email madraschamber@madraschamber.in URL www.madraschamber.in

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