India, Bangladesh ratify historic land swap deal, ink 22 agreements
In a historic move, India and Bangladesh on June 6 ratified an over 40-year-old land border swap agreement and flagged off two new trans-border buses as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina and announced a $2 billion Line of Credit to Dhaka. Both countries also inked 22 agreements, including renewing a bilateral trade agreement, an agreement on coastal shipping, on using of the Chittagong and Mongla ports, and prevention of smuggling and circulation of fake currency notes. Bangladesh also inked two MoUs with Adani Power Limited and Reliance Group to set up 4,600 MW power plants in the country. The deals worth $5.5 billion were inked by Power Development Board of Bangladesh and the Indian companies at the Bidyut Bhaban in Dhaka. Adani Power is to invest $2.5 billion to set up a coal-based power plant with capacity of 1,600 MW while Reliance Group is to set up an imported Liquefied Natural Gas-based power plant with 3,000 MW capacity at a cost of $3 billion. The sites for setting up the plants are yet to be decided. Earlier, Modi along with Hasina and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee flagged off the Kolkata-Dhaka-Agartala and Dhaka-Shillong-Guwahati bus services. Modi, who arrived in the morning on a two-day visit, said his Dhaka visit “is at a historic moment”. “We have resolved a question that has lingered since Independence. Our two nations have a settled boundary. It will make our borders more secure and people’s life there more stable.” He said the Indian parliament’s approval of the Land Boundary Agreement “reflects the consensus in India on relations with Bangladesh”. The formal LBA ratification ceremony was witnessed by Modi, Hasina and Banerjee. The exchange of documents was done by Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar and his Bangladeshi counterpart M. Shahidul Haque. The land swap agreement envisages transfer of 111 enclaves with a total area of 17,160.63 acres to Bangladesh, while Dhaka is to transfer 51 enclaves with an area of 7,110.02 acres to India. A 6.1-km undefined border stretch will be demarcated. The Indian parliament last month unanimously passed the constitution amendment bill to allow operationalisation of the 1974 India-Bangladesh deal and its protocol inked in 2011. Modi expressed confidence that “with the support of state governments in India, we can reach a fair solution on Teesta and Feni rivers”. The Teesta river deal is the other outstanding issue that Bangladesh is keen to see India agree to. Modi, announcing the $2 billion line of credit to support infrastructure and other development activities in Bangladesh, said the three agreements on human trafficking, fake Indian currency and maritime safety were a reflection of their growing security cooperation. Modi said he was conscious of the huge trade imbalance with Bangladesh and that he has assured Hasina that India will do everything to bridge the deficit. Modi said the two bus services flagged off would connect citizens of the two countries more easily and “our two nations more closely”. He said power supply from India to Bangladesh would grow from 500 MW to 1,100 MW within two years, and added that the 1,320 MW Rampal power project was making progress. Stressing on connectivity, Modi said Bangladesh’s decision to allow transit of power equipment and foodgrain to the Northeast “echoes the strength of your human values and our shared economic opportunities”. Speaking of the sub-regional connectivity, Modi said “we will deepen regional connectivity and cooperation between Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal. There is a natural logic to this arrangement”. Hasina in her statement termed Modi’s visit a “historic moment for Bangladesh” and that it would take bilateral ties on a higher trajectory. She said ratification of the LBA would resolve the problems of the people living in the enclaves for decades. “We are very grateful,” she said. She praised the leadership of Modi and said the LBA became possible under his leadership. She also expressed thanks on behalf of the people of Bangladesh. Hasina said Modi’s visit has instilled new dynamism confidence in the bilateral relationship. Earlier, Modi visited the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum to pay tribute to the founder of Bangladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. He also went to the National Martyrs’ Memorial, or the Jatiyo Sriti Shoudho, to pay tribute to the soldiers who gave their lives in the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971. Modi was received by Hasina in a special gesture after he landed at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in a special Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft, Rajdoot. Modi on Saturday said his two-day “historic” visit to Bangladesh will “strengthen ties” between the two countries. In a tweet, Modi thanked Sheikh Hasina for the warm welcome. In the evening, Modi attended a special dinner banquet hosted by Hasina and was treated to a vegetarian cuisine and a cultural programme.
List of 22 agreements inked by India, Bangladesh
India and Bangladesh on June 6 inked 22 agreements, including on extending a $2 billion Line of Credit to Bangladesh, and on India using the Chittagong and Mongla ports. The agreements are as follows:
- Exchange of Instruments of Ratification of 1974 Land Boundary Agreement and its 2011 Protocol
- Exchange of letters on Modalities for implementation of 1974 Land Boundary Agreement and its 2011 Protocol
- Bilateral Trade Agreement (renewal)
- Agreement on Coastal Shipping between Bangladesh and India
-- Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade (renewal)
-Bilateral Cooperation Agreement between Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) and Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) on Cooperation in the field of Standardization
- Agreement on Dhaka-Shillong-Guwahati bus service and its Protocol
- Agreement on Kolkata-Dhaka-Agartala Bus Service and its Protocol
- Memorandum of Understanding between Coast Guards
-Memorandum of Understanding on Prevention of Human Trafficking
- Memorandum of Understanding on Prevention of Smuggling and Circulation Fake Currency Notes
- Memorandum of Understanding between Bangladesh and India and for Extending a New Line of Credit of $2 billion by government of India to government of Bangladesh
- Memorandum of Understanding on Blue Economy and Maritime Cooperation in the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean
- Memorandum of Understanding on use of Chittagong and Mongla ports
- Memorandum of Understanding for a Project under IECC (India Endowment for Climate Change) of SAARC
-Memorandum of Understanding on Indian Economic Zone
- Cultural Exchange Programme for the years 2015-17
- Statement of Intent on Bangladesh-India Education Cooperation (adoption)
- Agreement between Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Limited (BSCCL) and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) for leasing of international bandwidth for internet at Akhaura
- Memorandum of Understanding between University of Dhaka, Bangladesh and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research,India for Joint Research on Oceanography of the Bay of Bengal
- Memorandum of Understanding between University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh and University of Jamia Milia Islamia, India
- Handing over of Consent Letter by Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA), Bangladesh to Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), India to start operations in Bangladesh.
Shell looks to expand retail network in India
Global oil & gas giant Royal Dutch Shell Plc, a $421-billion company, is eyeing investment opportunities in the Indian downstream segment, especially with the recent deregulation of diesel prices and opening of the market. The company is planning to expand its retail outlet network utilising its existing licence to set up 2,000 fuel stations. The Netherlands-based energy and petrochemical group might also look at the upstream exploration and production segment and is pinning its hopes on the indications that the government would introduce an open acreage licensing policy (OALP). “We are looking to expand retail outlet network. The price deregulation happened not so long ago. There are many things we have to get in place. Running a retail station starts with land acquisition, and that takes time. We are doing some work to devise a realistic growth plan,” Yasmine Hilton, country chairman, Shell Group of Companies in India, told Business Standard. “We have the potential to grow. We are looking at the right opportunities,” added Harry Brekelmans, member of the company’s executive committee and director (projects & technology), who was also present. Brekelmans had arrived in India last week, as part of a business delegation, along with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. The visit included meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. India had deregulated diesel prices in October last year, linking the domestic rates of the transport fuel with global benchmarks. Since then, multiple companies, including Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), Essar and ONGC subsidiary Mangalore Refinery and petrochemicals (MRPL), have announced plans to set up retail pumps, even as existing retailers - public-sector firms Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum - brace for competition. Brekelmans also said, with the government actively reviewing its new exploration and licensing policy (NELP), the company was hoping the policy “develops to an extent where it is competitive”. Hilton added: “We are quite interested in the new policy which suggests the open acreage licensing policy (OALP) will come. We think that will give us a different opportunity to look at.” OALP, which gives companies the freedom to choose which blocks they want to bid for and the time of applying for a block, is generally preferred by investors. Commenting on the domestic debate over production-sharing versus revenue-sharing models of development of oil & gas blocks, Hilton said Shell could work in any regime as long as there was stability across that regime. “Stability means that once we enter into an agreement, it is a long-term agreement. We do not want changes over the period of the agreement. The new government is giving all the right signals,” she said. Shell has already invested close to $1 billion in India and is the only global major to have a fuel retail licence in the country. Against its licence from the Centre to set up a network of up to 2,000 outlets, it has around 75 outlets currently operational. Shell also operates the Rs 3,000 crore Hazira LNG storage and regasification terminal. Besides being a major private supplier of crude oil products, chemicals and technology to public- and private-sector oil companies, it has interests in the lubricants and bitumen segment. Brekelmans said, as a long-term investor, Shell remained committed to business opportunities in India. These, he said, included gas, as there was significant growth likely in gas demand in India. “This is why we are currently in discussions to further expand the Hazira LNG terminal. We have also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the Kakinada floating R-LNG facility. This shows our confidence that gas in the Indian market is a sound proposition for the long term,” he said. Asked whether the Modi government had done enough in its first year in office to spur large investments, Brekelmans said: “The direction of reforms is, no doubt, positive and optimistic. We have been committed to India since 1928 and it is hard to see discontinuity. India is an attractive market. The reforms that have been set in motion will aid that attractiveness. And, with this growth will come additional investments over time.” Royal Dutch Shell was recently in the news for its $70-billion acquisition of the BG Group. The announcement, which came in April, was the first major oil-sector merger in about a decade. The deal is yet to be closed. The company had also recently announced setting up an information technology project development centre in Bengaluru, in addition to a research & development technology centre in that city.
Microsoft sets up 3 data centres in India
Microsoft on June 5 said it had set up three data centres in this country. With these, the Redmond-headquartered software major expects to be better equipped to target sensitive sectors like government and financial services. Where there is always fear on data privacy. Every year, Microsoft invests around $5 billion in setting up data centres and towards their operations. The centres have the ability to scale up further without much of physical expansion. Microsoft intends to host its Azure (its cloud platform), Office 365 and CRM Online out of these centres. The company said starting next month, customers will be able to participate in the private preview of Microsoft Azure from its India data centres. The private preview is expected to introduce about 150 customers to run trials of their apps on Microsoft Azure, to start with, from local infrastructure. This will be followed by the private preview of Office 365 and CRM Online. Commercial cloud services from the local data centres are expected to go live by the end of 2015. “The growing interest in the cloud space from India, coupled with the huge potential for cloud services in the country, drove us to open these data centres at two distinct locations here,” said Scott Guthrie, executive vice-president, Microsoft Cloud and Enterprise Group. “Services from local data centres will open infinite computing capacity for Indian government departments, BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance), health care and manufacturing sectors.” The availability of local data centres is expected to scale up public and hybrid cloud adoption in India, especially with more and more start-ups. Githrie said the data stored in these data centres would not be taken out of the country. The company is already working with the government in cloud space and the Digital India campaign. According to Microsoft, its cloud services in India have doubled in revenue the past financial year.
Medtronic to launch portable haemodialysis machine in India
Global medical equipment manufacturer Medtronic will soon launch a portable haemodialysis machine, which will facilitate patients suffering due to the lack of dialysis centres in the country. The machine is also expected to reduce water consumption during haemodialysis sessions in comparison to the existing machines. “Currently the machine is being developed at the organisation’s Bengaluru-based research and development set-up. This new portable haemodialysis machine will cater to the need of the region. This will be a boon for the people,” Milind Shah, managing director, India Medtronic, told IANS. Recent studies stated that India imports roughly 70 percent of its medical devices from medically advanced countries such as the USA, the UK, Japan and China. Shah, who is also the vice president for Medtronics South Asian region, said that Medtronics has also launched a product named Carelink, a bedside setup that allows the physician to remotely monitor an implant device in a secure mode via Internet. Through the device the patient is in contact with his physician 24/7 and information of any irregularity is sent to the doctor immediately. Citing that the focus of Medtronic was to develop healthcare in India, he said people here were not aware of new medical technologies or even if they knew they intentionally didn’t want to access the technology considering it full of risk. Shah said that affordability and accessibility to proper health care facilities is still a significant challenge in India. “Rural India is often marginalised in terms of the availability of advanced medical facilities. Hence, there has been a significant increase in the number of patients suffering from cardiovascular diseases and end stage renal diseases in the rural areas,” he said.
D-Link to set up Rs.350 crore R&D centre in Hyderabad
D-Link, global leader in connectivity for SME and large enterprise business networking, will set up a global research and development and network training centre in Hyderabad with an investment of Rs.350 crore. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between D-Link and the Telangana government in Taipei. Jayesh Ranjan, secretary, Information Technology in Telangana, and Yang Yao Chuan, Managing Director, DLink, signed the MoU in the presence of IT Minister K. Tarakarama Rao. The delegation from Telangana is on a visit to Taiwan and Hong Kong to invite investment in electronic hardware manufacturing. The collaboration will develop local IT industry and cultivate local talent, a statement from the minister’s office said on Friday. The facility is expected to create 1,000 jobs. “In 1990, D-Link entered the Indian market, and in 2001, we were listed on the NSE. Now, we have over 80 distribution channels and more than 2,000 sales partners in India,” a statement quoted D-Link CEO Douglas Hsiao as saying. “India’s potential as an emerging market is immense, and Hyderabad is quickly becoming a major tech hub. “By supporting its growth and fostering talent, we believe we can open up new opportunities for both India and D-Link, creating a win-win situation. “As part of the collaboration, D-Link will work together with the state government to provide public Internet access by deploying Wi-Fi hotspots that will provide wireless access to all citizens and institutions. “D-Link will also upgrade government networking infrastructure to meet the latest security standards, reducing the risk of vulnerabilities and cyber-attacks,” it added.
Honor opts for offline route to strengthen presence in India
Honor, the e-only smartphones brand under Chinese telecom equipment company Huawei, on June 4 announced it was taking the offline route to strengthen its presence in India. As part of the new strategy, Honor has partnered with Sangeetha, arguably one of the largest mobile phone retailing chains in south India. “The deal reiterates the importance of India as its priority market for Honor and is expected to catalyse Honor’s goal of clocking 10x sales in 2015,” the company said. Honor’s Holly smartphones will be available offline at a price of Rs.7,999 while the company keeps selling its other products online via Flipkart. The announcement asssumes significance as Honor seems to have broken the trend of Chinese brands that are only selling their smartphones online. Commenting on the new strategy, Allen Wang, president of consumer business group, Huawei India said: “To reinforce our commitment towards our customers in India we have decided to introduce Honor Holly in brick-and-mortar retailer shops where customers can get a hands-on experience of our smartphone. “We are glad to exclusively partner with Sangeetha mobiles as they have a strong presence in the southern market in India.” Sangeetha has a network of 320 stores present across four states -- Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerela -- with 60 percent of the stores present in Bangalore. “Holly will be available at an inaugural offer of 20 percent cashback, also allowing customers to get a brand new reliance dongle along with the phone at an additional Re.1,” the company said. Commenting on the tie-up, Subhash Chandra, managing director of Sangeetha Mobiles, said: “With this association, our customers will be able to enjoy privileges of our 41st anniversary sale which presents exciting offers on Honor products, and the Happiness Pack that covers aspects like liquid and physical damage, theft, extended warranty and pick-up and drop service for the Honor devices.” In 2014, Honor smartphones clocked 20 million units which were approximately 1.5 units sold every second of sales.
Sweden’s Gripen back on IAF’s radar for light combat planes
Swedish defence minister Peter Hultqvist will be visiting India from June 9 to June 12, and it is likely that discussions between him and defence minister Manohar Parrikar will include the possibility of India re-looking at Saab’s Gripen NG single- engine light combat planes for the Indian Air Force (IAF). What has led to the possibility of Gripen being back on the circuit is the fact that while the government has ordered 36 Rafales from French Dassault Aviation, outside the tender for the 126 MMRCA tender, Parrikar has been saying that the IAF may get low-end, light combat planes to replace its MiG-21 fighters. Meanwhile, MoD’s official spokesperson Sitanshu Kar tweeted: “Swedish Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist to visit #HAL and #BEL in Bengaluru during his visit to India next week.” Ahead of President Pranab Mukherjee’s visit to Sweden last week, secretary (West), ministry of external affairs, Navtej Sarna, had told mediapersons that “Swedish Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist, would be in India for two days beginning June 10 during which he would explore the possibility of engaging with New Delhi in the defence sector.” With changed FDI rules and the ‘Make in India’ campaign, it is expected that the Swedish government would look at India as a manufacturing base, Sarna said. During Mukherjee’s recent visit to Stockholm, the Swedish government had discussed the possibility of Gripen filling the gap in the IAF’s depleting fleet strength, owing to plans to phase out MiG-21s from 12 combat squadrons beginning 2016- 17. Both countries have decided to restart the bilateral strategic dialogue after four years, besides finding ways for investment by the Nordic country in India’s defence sector under ‘Make in India’.
Netherlands to offer help for Mumbai metro,Coastal Road
The Netherlands will offer technical expertise pertaining to the feasibility of combining the Mumbai Metro line 3 and the proposed Coastal Road, giving a speedy north-south connectivity in the city. Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte said here at a meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on June 6 that worldwide, from Jakarta to Panama to New York, their experts advise governments on how to deal with these challenges. “I am delighted that they are now doing the same here in Mumbai and that we can share our water expertise, gained over centuries, with you. I hope it will lead to visionary projects in which infrastructure and environment can go hand in hand,” Rutte said. Last month, a two-member team of Dutch experts had visited Mumbai to study how best to execute the Mumbai Metrocum- Coastal Road, applying their knowledge of international best practices. Given the experience the Netherlands has with sustainable land reclamation and the use of the sea, where there is shortage of land, the Dutch government is keen to share its knowledge in this field. As per the feasibility report by the Dutch experts team, the recommendation involves a new Coastal Road meandering along the city coast and touching it where road and Metro connections with the existing infrastructure are required. The metro could be connected to newly planned stations of line 3 by underground tunnels with moving walkways, akin to airports, the feasibility report recommends. Besides drastically reducing the travel time between north and south Mumbai, such a strip of land in the sea has other advantages. These include no need to acquire land along the present coast, the Coastal Road would serve as a barrier against rising sea levels, lagoons between the present coast and the Coastal Road would serve as buffers to protect the city during monsoon flooding, developing of marinas, parks, beaches, etc. It would help set up new fishing harbours, construct waste water treatment plants to keep the lagoons clean and supply additional water to Mumbai, with virtually no traffic disruption during construction. Earlier on June 6 morning, Prime Minister Rutte paid tributes to the victims of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack at Hotel Taj Mahal Palace and signed the visitors book.
India-US trade at $103 bn, can reach $500 bn: US envoy
The India-US bilateral trade in goods and services has crossed the elusive $100 billion threshold and now stands at $103 billion, US envoy Richard Verma said here on June 6, adding that both countries still have a long way to traverse to reach the goal of $500 billion. Addressing the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Verma said the goal of $500 billion is achievable. Both sides have restarted the Trade Policy Forum, “which is bringing together Indian and American trade experts to address concerns across a variety of sectors”, he said. On intellectual property, a technical team of Indian experts will visit Washington for further discussions on how to improve IP protection. “We continue to look for ways to enhance the environment for innovation in a way that promotes our shared interests,” he said. He said through the US State Department’s Indo-Pacific Economic Corridor (IPEC) initiative, “we are also supporting greater regional economic connectivity between India and its neighbours, complimenting Prime Minister Modi’s ‘Act East’ policy”. “Through programs aimed at enhancing energy cooperation, building closer people-to-people ties, stimulating trade facilitation and transportation and easing customs and borders, IPEC seeks to strengthen links among South Asian countries and with Southeast Asia,” he said. He said under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign policy “India has been on the move. In the past year the prime minister has reached out not just to the United States, but has visited over 18 countries and 33 cities. “He is signalling that India will be a player on the global stage for years to come and we welcome and support that global leadership role - politically, economically and in global institutions”. “We have also been heartened and grateful for the leadership India has shown in the face of recent crises. India’s response to the devastating earthquake in Nepal has been remarkable. When disaster struck, India spared no time in mobilizing its sophisticated crisis management mechanisms, providing crucial support to a neighbour in need. In a similar gesture, India rushed to provide fresh water assistance to the Maldives when its water treatment facility ceased operating,” he noted, according to a US embassy statement. He said India and the US are “partnering more closely than ever before”. “We are tracking 77 different initiatives that came out of the January Obama-Modi Summit, in fields that range from defense cooperation to health and renewable energy. Our collaboration is broad-based and global in nature. Our doctors and health experts are working together with African medical communities to fight HIV/AIDS,” he said.
India likely to sign CECA with Australia this year
Australian High Commissioner Patrick Suckling on June 5 said the proposed Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) with India may be concluded by the end of 2015 which would help boost trade between the two countries. “The prime ministers (of India and Australia) have agreed that we should finish it off this year,” he told media persons on the sidelines of an event organised by MCC Chamber of Commerce and Industry here. He said the present bilateral trade volume with India is nearly Australian $15 billion (Rs. 735.01 billion) while with China, it is to the tune of Australian $160 billion (Rs.7,840.15 billion). The envoy said about $10 billion dollar (Rs. 641 billion) investment is in the pipeline in India and the CECA will widen the scope of boosting the bilateral trade and investment between the two countries. The agreement, once signed is expected to cover goods, services and investments. Suckling also said that the Chinese have made huge investments in the agro sector in Australia and there is scope for India too on this front. The island continent has earlier concluded such agreements allowing free trade with China, South Korea and Japan.
Acquisitions to contribute $1.5 billion:Infosys
Indian IT giant Infosys on June 7 said it aims to realize revenues in the range of $1.5 billion from its acquisitions and also reach the milestone of $20 billion by 2020. The company’s mission is to prepare the company to reach the aspirational goal of $20 billion in revenue by 2020 with a 30 percent operating margin, said CEO Vishal Sikka in the company’s annual report. Infosys, which acquired Skava and automation technology firm Panaya for
