Global India Business Meeting22-23 June 2014, Liverpool, United Kingdoma Horasis-leadership event

Co-hosts:Liverpool City CouncilInternational Festival for Business

Report

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Global China Business Meeting Lake Como, Italy, 13-14 October 2014

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Knowledge Partners: CaptivewayMetricStreamStandard CharteredTMF Group

Media Coordination:Pulse Nation Media

Global India Business Meeting22-23 June 2014, Liverpool, United Kingdoma Horasis leadership event

Co-hosts:Liverpool City CouncilInternational Festival for Business

Co-chairs:Nazir Alli Chief Executive Officer, South African National Roads Agency, South Africa

Rahul Bajaj Chairman, Bajaj Auto, India

Subodh Bhargava Chairman, Tata Communications, India

Lord Karan Bilimoria Chairman, Cobra Beer Partnership, United Kingdom

Ashish Chauhan Chief Executive Officer, Bombay Stock Exchange, India

Jochum Haakma Director, TMF Group, The Netherlands

Mikael Hagström President International, SAS, USA

Rajive Kaul Chairman, Nicco Group, India

Naina Lal Kidwai Immediate Past President, FICCI and Country Head, HSBC India, India

David Landsman Director, Tata Limited, United Kingdom

Sunil Kant Munjal Jt Managing Director, Hero MotoCorp, India

Ajay Piramal Chairman, Piramal Group, India

Rajendra S Pawar Chairman, NIIT, India

Niraj Sharan Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Aura, USA

Bhav Singh President, Pearson English, United Kingdom

Gunjan Sinha Chairman, MetricStream, USA

Jyotsna Suri Senior Vice President, FICCI and Chairperson, Bharat Hotels, India

Harshbeena Zaveri President, NRB Bearings, India

Co-organizers:All India Management Association (AIMA)Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI)

Strategic Partner: PwC

The meeting took place at Stanley Dock – a conservation area characterised by massive port-related structures

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The Titanic Hotel – venue of the Global India Business Meeting

The Global India Business Meeting is ready to start

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Table of Contents

Foreword 6

UK urges India to ease stance in talks on EU FTA 32

Gregory Barker, Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change, United Kingdom, keynoting the Global India Business Meeting

ForewordOn 22-23 June 2014, the sixth HorasisGlobal India Business Meeting took placein Liverpool, United Kingdom. The eventwas the first international business meetingon India held after the 2014 elections. Themeeting’s leitmotif was to engage partici -pants to provide a timely perspec tive onthe future direction for India. The GlobalIndia Business Meeting gathered a collectiveaudience of 250 Indian and global entre -pre neurs, business leaders and governmentofficials.

The 2014 elections have produced a stunningvictory for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)and its allies in the National DemocraticAlliance (NDA). The coalition has securedan absolute majority in India’s lower houseof parliament. Fueled by a strong anti-incumbency sentiment across the country,it was the biggest victory for a single partyin decades, and has given the BJP’sNarendra Modi and his administration aclear mandate to move forward with thereforms he promised voters throughoutthe five weeks of polling. Narendra Moditook oath as India’s fourteenth primeminister on 26 May 2014.

With this Global India Business Meeting,Horasis aimed to present an interdiscipli -nary and systemic view of the majoreconomic, societal and technologicaldrivers currently at work in India and theworld. The location of the meeting rotatesannually, and was held so far in Munich(2009), Madrid (2010), Naples (2011),Antwerp (2012) and Belfast (2013). The 2014 Global India Business Meetingwas part of The UK’s International Festivalfor Business, a series of global businessevents held in Liverpool to celebrateentrepreneurship and economic growth.The event was organised by Horasis inpartnership with the Liverpool City Council.

N.K. Singh, Former Secretary to the Prime Minister of India, speaking during the opening dinner

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This report – which builds on the outcomeof the meeting – is an attempt to sum ma -rise the discussions which took place at theGlobal India Business Meeting. Also, it shallserve as a catalyst that stimulates furtherthinking on the issues and questions thatwere raised. Being a business-focusedgathering, valuable opportunities for busi -nesses were identified during the variouspanels as well as on the sidelines of theevent.

Participants discussed a set of possiblepost-election trajectories. In a vulnerableglobal economic environment, India re -mains one of the world’s growth engines.Its outward engagement in terms of trade

and investment with the rest of the worldcontinues, and it is viewed as a land ofopportunities. The meeting focused on thenew government’s policies and the relatedchanging paradigm of the Indian economy.Sustained structural reforms aimed atenhancing competitiveness will be neces -sary to bolster and boost India’s economicgrowth and ensure the rising prosperity ofits population going into the future.

The star contingent of participants hasbecome the trademark of the Global IndiaBusiness Meeting. The following co-chairsrepresented the meeting vis-a-vis thegovernment, regional authorities and thegeneral public: Nazir Alli, Chief Exe cu ti ve

Vince Cable, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills,United Kingdom

Opening Plenary – India and World Economic Outlook

Rahul Bajaj, Chairman, Bajaj Auto, India

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Officer, South African National RoadsAgency, South Africa; Rahul Bajaj, Chair -man, Bajaj Auto, India; Subodh Bhargava,Chairman, Tata Communications, India;Lord Karan Bilimoria, Chairman,Cobra Beer Partnership, United Kingdom;Ashish Chauhan, Chief ExecutiveOfficer, Bombay Stock Exchange, India;Jochum Haakma, Director, TMF Group,The Netherlands; Mikael Hagström,President International, SAS, USA; RajiveKaul, Chairman, Nicco Group, India;Naina Lal Kidwai, Immediate Past Presi -dent, FICCI and Country Head, HSBC India,India; David Landsman, Director, TataLimited, United Kingdom; Sunil KantMunjal, Jt Managing Director, HeroMotoCorp, India; Ajay Piramal, Chair -man, Piramal Group, India; Rajendra SPawar, Chairman, NIIT, India; NirajSharan, Chairman and Chief ExecutiveOfficer, Aura, USA; Bhav Singh, Presi -dent, Pearson English, United Kingdom;Gunjan Sinha, Chairman, MetricStream,USA; Jyotsna Suri, Senior Vice President,FICCI and Chairperson, Bharat Hotels,India; Harshbeena Zaveri, President,NRB Bearings, India.

The new government faces a mammothtask to meet India’s soaring expectations.Participants identified four main prioritiesfor the Indian economy:

• There is a great desire for change,especially among business leaders, India’syouth and the middle class. The newgovernment will have to slay thebureaucratic inertia which has for toolong held the country back. The eco no -my has to be actively revived. Reformshave to grow up.

• The key sector to watch is infra structure.Incentives to public-private partner -ships in key infrastructure sectors areessential, to act as stimulus to privateinvestment and faster growth.

• India needs to improve its investmentclimate. If foreign investment is toachieve its full potential as an accele ra torof economic growth, there needs to begreater clarity in the approvals process,and in the legal and tax systems.

• India must create 10 million jobs a year,four times the pace of the last 5 years, toabsorb youth into the workforce. Also,the education and training of futuregenerations is of foremost importanceas a factor in collective development.

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Mac Maharaj, Spokesperson of the Government of South Africa, with Deepak Premnarayen, Chairman, ICS India

Arrival of Vince Cable, UK Secretary of State for Business,Innovation and Skills

Speaking on behalf of the host city, MaxSteinberg, Chief Executive, LiverpoolVision, United Kingdom, welcomedparticipants to both start and continuedialogues to further build on existing linksbetween Liverpool and India. ‘Liverpoolepitomizes the close partnership betweenIndia and the United Kingdom that can betraced back for centuries and has beenunderpinned by deep financial ties over thelast decades. Liverpool has become a gate -way through which business leaders fromIndia and elsewhere go on to experiencethe investment opportunities that we haveto offer,’ he said. He told the audienceabout the story of how Liverpool hasrestored its economic competitivenessduring a time of austerity, attractingconsiderable private sector investment totransform the city into an internationalbusiness hub. ‘The International Festivalfor Business has been a great success so far.We are glad that the Global India BusinessMeeting is part of the festival,’ he said.Spanning 50 days and comprising morethan 200 events, the Festival is a globalshowcase for business and industrychampioning Liverpool and the UK to newmarkets, new products and new partners.

Ranjan Mathai, Indian High Commis sio -ner to the United Kingdom, said duringthe welcome reception that India hadchanged enormously against old Europeanpre-conceptions of it and was ready toengage. He urged the European Union (EU)to take note of India. ‘India has now arrived,’he told delegates. ‘Now is the time foraction. The new Indian government willallay market doubts.’

‘India holds great promise for eco no micengagement with the United Kingdom’ Gregory Barker, Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change, United Kingdom

Max Steinberg, Chief Executive, Liverpool Vision, welcomingparticipants

Virtual Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

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Ranjan Mathai, Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom – ‘India has now arrived’

Addressing participants, Gregory Barker,Minister of State for Energy and ClimateChange, United Kingdom, said that ‘Indiaholds great promise for economicengagement with the United Kingdom.’‘Both India and the United Kingdom beinggreat economic partners that we are willfind the ways to further deepen anddiversify our economic engagement,’ hecontinued. In conclusion, the Ministerexpressed his confidence in the ‘India Story’and shared his belief that Britain could be aspringboard for Indian companies to reachout to Europe and the world. ‘Our partner -ship with India will play an important rolein our economic growth pattern,’ he said.He was also optimistic about the EU IndiaFree Trade Agreement, which he believedwould be signed in the near future.

In his welcoming speech, N.K. Singh,Former Member of Parliament, FormerMember of the Planning Commission,Former Secretary to the Prime Minister,India, said that the Indian government willpush for more economic reforms in themonths ahead, including the easing of limitson foreign direct investment in varioussectors. ‘We want to liberalize trade andengage with the United Kingdom and allother dynamic economies of the world,’the Minister said. Bullish about India’sgrowth, N.K. Singh shared his estimationof double-digit GDP growth in the yearsto come. He announced that the Indianeconomy could be worth as much as USD40 trillion by 2040. This would constitute20 percent of the world economy, up fromthe current two percent. He pointed outthat favourable demographics, technology,and an appreciating rupee were among thefactors which favoured this economic

‘The Indian government will push formore economic reforms in the monthsahead, including the easing of limitson foreign direct investment in varioussectors’N.K. Singh, Former Member of Parliament, Former Member of the Planning Commission,Former Secretary to the Prime Minister, India

Meeting on the sidelines of the event

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Participants gathering for the welcome reception

growth. He recognized the importance ofbureaucratic reform. ‘Better governance iskey,’ he said. ‘We need to curb corruption.And we have to increase the service levelof the public administration,’ he added. Heconcluded by stating that India is forging astrong skills base, which will not only meetthe country’s future needs but also helpbridge the global skills in the future.

‘With India’s economy at crossroads, whatare the prospects for political and economicreforms? How do business leaders advancetheir corporate agenda in an environmentof policy change?’ asked Karan Thapar,President, infotainement Television, India,in a special after-dinner plenary called ‘Is India’s New Government InvestorFriendly?’. As the title suggests, the discus -sion was about the new government andthe steps it has taken or proposes to takethat will make it investor friendly orinvestor unfriendly. Naina Lal Kidwai,Immediate Past President, FICCI andCountry Head, HSBC India, India, empha -

sized the need for a redoubling of reformefforts to promote growth and create jobs.According to Jochum Haakma, Director,TMF Group, The Netherlands, ‘India’s newgovernment needs to assure global inves -tors that the country’s growth story isintact and they can look forward to a stableand transparent policy regime.’ ‘I imaginethat in the days ahead we will have a clearerIndia of what these steps are,’ reasonedAjay Piramal, Chairman, Piramal Group,India. ‘There are still lots of uncertaintiesincluding a possible decision to reverse oramend retrospective tax amendments,increase FDI caps, strict control on the fiscalsituation plus such measures proposed bystate governments like Rajasthan to amendlabour laws,’ reported Niraj Sharan, Chair -man and Chief Executive Officer, Aura, USA.

‘I imagine that in the days ahead we will have a clearer India of whatthese steps are’ Ajay Piramal, Chairman, Piramal Group, India

Ajay Piramal, Chairman, Piramal Group

Naina Lal Kidwai, Immediate Past President, FICCI and Country Head, HSBC India

Karan Thapar, President,infotainement Television, chairing a nightcap plenary

Niraj Sharan, Chairman andChief Executive Officer, Aura, USA

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Participants gather prior to the opening plenary

While the European Union is still experien -cing the aftermath of the economic crisis,India is grappling with the pressures ofinclusive development. ‘How can India andEurope forge a new growth partnership,’asked session moderator Nina dos Santos,Anchor, CNN, United Kingdom? VinceCable, Secretary of State for Business,Innovation and Skills, United Kingdom,

reported that UK firms are the largestEuropean investors in India and there ismore Indian investment in the UK than therest of the EU combined. ‘We have alwayshad a special relationship between ourcountries and I am keen to push economiccooperation much further as we worktowards doubling trade with India by2015,’ he said. Rahul Bajaj, Chairman,Bajaj Auto, India, provided a perspectiveon India’s economic outlook. ‘India’seconomy expanded at its slowest pace in adecade last fiscal year. Now, with theoptimism linked to the new government,economic growth is expected to come backto 8-10% within the next 3-5 years,’ he said.

Minister Cable and Rahul Bajaj discussed theon-going negotiations between India andthe EU to conclude the EU India Free TradeAgreement. Several rounds of mee tingshave already been held between India andthe EU since the negotiations for the Free

‘We have always had a special relation -ship between our countries and I amkeen to push economic cooperationmuch further as we work towardsdoubling trade with India by 2015’ Vince Cable, Secretary of State for Business,Innovation and Skills, United Kingdom

‘Now, with the optimism linked to thenew government, economic growth isexpected to come back to 8-10 % withinthe next 3-5 years’ Rahul Bajaj, Chairman, Bajaj Auto, India

Ashish Chauhan, Chief Executive Officer, Bombay Stock Exchange, about India’s economic outlook

Jan Siemons, Managing Director,Netherlands Council for TradePromotion, The Netherlands

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Nina dos Santos, Anchor, CNN, hosting the plenary with Minister Vince Cable and Rahul Bajaj