Premium Bus Service in Delhi, on pilot basis from 1st June, 2016, said Mr. Gopal Rai at PHD Chamber

Even though there has been high usage of the metro in the second phase of the odd and even programme, yet the bus transport has not been used to its full potential, said Mr.  Gopal Rai,  Minister of Transport and Rural development, Delhi Government at PHD Chamber, in a programme on 2nd Smart Transportation Infra- Recasting Infrastructure through Smart Expo & Summit.

There is a change in the mindset of the youth whose youthful love for cars and bikes is now being replaced by the consciousness to follow the odd and even programme for a better quality of life.

Mr. Rai expressed his concern over the app based taxi aggregation who have been earning excessively well during the second phase of the odd even, through charging a high surcharge.

         

The government will check the high surcharge being charged and will let the taxis do business only through fair means, he said.

There is need for a Premium Bus Service in Delhi for the passengers to commute and Government is in the process of its implementation as a pilot project from 1^st June 2016, said Mr. Gopal Rai

He requested the manufacturers and businesses to join the government’s initiative  to implement this project.

Out of the 25 lakh cars in Delhi, only 8000 cars have been challenged during the second phase of the odd and even drive in Delhi, said Mr. Rai.

A common effort through public and government co-operation will promote the successful implementation of any scheme, said Mr. Gopal Rai.

Mr. Rai also said that the odd and even system started in Delhi is not only being talked of within the country but world over.

Mr. Rai also stated that the second phase of the odd and even system in Delhi was followed by 99.9% people.

Positive energy is limited and to sustain it an efficient system is needed, said Mr. Gopal Rai. He said that the Delhi government is consciously working to sustain this positive energy through its efforts to create public transport.

Mr. P.S Ananda Roa, Executive Director, Association of State Road Transport Undertakings (ASRTU) expressed that the solution to the problem of traffic congestion and pollution lies in the creation of mass public transport.

Mr. Radhe Shyam Sharma, Chairman Standing Committee of South Delhi, Municipal Corporation, said that farsightedness in needed while framing policies and plans for the transformation process to become successful.

He also urged the government to address the issue of parking facility and earmark spaces for parking in colonies.

Mr. Sharma also pointed out that multi level parking facilities have to be created to deal with the problem of traffic congestion.

Improvement in logistics to boost exports and economic development, says Mr. Nitin Gadkari at PHD Chamber

While addressing the 2^nd Smart Transportation Infra Summit & Expo organized by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry here today, the Road Transport and Highways Minister, Mr.  Nitin Gadkari asserted that logistics is one of the most important ingredients which can boost exports 1.5 times with rapid improvement.

                               

The current logistics cost is 18% in India and if reduced to the level of 10%, the economic growth will be propelled, said Mr. Gadkari.

He highlighted the need and importance of modernization of road infrastructure and road safety. He said that the government is in the process of developing a smart solution for the same, which would be cost effective, pollution free and supportive of import substitution.

Mr. Gadkari articulated two philosophies for checking air and water pollution. He first mentioned the conversion of knowledge to wealth through research, innovation, and sustainable international practices. Next he mentioned the conversion of waste to wealth through efficient use of alternative fuels and diversification of agriculture to energy and power sector.

He emphasised the use of water transport, electric transport, bio CNG, ethanol, bio diesel and petrol in order of priority for smart transportation.

Dr. Mahesh Gupta, President, PHD Chamber appreciated the recent efforts of the central government in the modernization and upgradation of the transport and road infrastructure.

The issue of pollution and traffic jams can be addressed through smart transportation, said Dr. Mahesh Gupta.

He suggested that the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) model as followed by Singapore, Canada and London should be adopted by India as well to manage traffic.

Dr. Mahesh Gupta also pointed out that the odd and even system alone, is not a solution to manage the problem of traffic congestions and pollution in Delhi.

Mr. G S Bali, Transport Minister, Himachal Pradesh, during his keynote address congratulated the central government in taking adequate steps to develop an efficient road infrastructure.

He mentioned the need to shift from road transport to water transport in state of Himachal Pradesh.

He also expressed his concern over road safety and said that it was one of the major challenges faced by the state of Himachal Pradesh. He urged Shri Nitin Gadkari ji to concentrate on crash barriers and expand the scope of road safety beyond national highways to cover remote areas.

To have a growing economy we need to have speed, for that we need road safety and to support these two we need a sound infrastructure, said Mr Bali.

Mr. Nitin Gadkari suggested Mr. G.S Bali, to promote alternate means of transport such cable cars, ropeways, seaplanes and gondolas in the state of Himachal Pradesh. He also said that the other hill states can also come up with similar plans in the times to come.

Among other who were also present on the occasion comprised Vice President, PHD Chamber, Mr. Anil Khaitan; its Chairman, International Affairs Committee-Americas (North), Mr. Rajnish Goenka; Ambassador of Mexico, Ms. Melba Pria; Secretary, National Safety Council-Delhi, Mr. A B Lal; Managing Director, Volvo India Pvt. Ltd., Mr. Kamal Bali.

Chief Minister, Madhya Pradesh Awards MP Committee of PHDCCI

New Delhi: The Federation of Madhya Pradesh Chamber of Commerce (FMPCCI)  organized '3rd Outstanding Achievement  Award ceremony' at Hotel Jahan Numa Palace, Bhopal for the Industries of Madhya Pradesh in different categories on 26th April 2016.
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The  Madhya Pradesh Committee of  PHD Chamber of Commerce and industry was  given the special jury award by the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh  Mr. Shivraj Singh Chauhan as one of the vibrant  and supportive Chamber of Commerce during the year.  During the award ceremony Hon'ble Finance Minister Govt of MP Shri Jayant Mallayya and Shri Ramesh Chandra Agarwal, President FMPCCI was also present.The award was received by Shri Subhash Vithaldas, Co Chairman MP Committee PHD Chamber and Shri Niraj Chaurasiya Member along with Shri R G Dwivedi, Regional Director MP & CG, Shri Sachin Shrivastava, and Shri Anirudh Dubey, Resident Officers Bhopal.

India and Bahamas trade to touch US$3 billion by 2020

Amid slowdown in the world economy, India and Bahamas trade is projected to touch at US$3 billion by 2020, said Dr. Mahesh Gupta, President, PHD Chamber.

India has potential to export commodities including ships, boats, mineral fuels, articles, among others of iron and steel to Bahamas as these commodities are majorly imported by Bahamas and are among India’s major export commodities.

India has potential to import commodities including plastic and articles, fish, organic chemicals, among others from Bahamas as these commodities are majorly exported by Bahamas and are among India’s major import commodities.

Both the nations have potential to expand trade and investments manifold in the coming times, said Dr. Gupta.

In fact, both the economies were at good value of trade at around US$3 billion in 2012-13, of which India’s exports to Bahamas were at US$2.7 billion and India’s imports from Bahamas were at around US$100 million, said Dr. Gupta.

However, trade between the two decelerated to US$125 million in 2014-15, of which India’s exports to Bahamas were registered at US$123 million and India’s imports from Bahamas were registered at less than US$1 million, he said.

A high powered delegation visited at PHD House from Bahamas to explore and expand give and take between the two economies.

The delegation from Bahamas comprised of Mr. Fredrick A. Mitchell, Hon’ble Minister of Foreign Affairs & Immigration, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, Mr. Lowell Mortimer, High Commissioner, Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Immigration, Mr. Charlene Johnson from Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Immigration and Mr. Anthony Stuart and Mr. Clarence Rolle from Ministry of Tourism was led by Mr. Ashish Saraf, Honorary Consul of Bahamas, India.

B2B session was conducted between the businesses from Bahamas and India under the ambit of Trade and Investment Facilitation Services of PHD Chamber.

Business honchos from medium, small and large enterprises participated in the B2B session.

Mr. Fredrick A. Mitchell, Hon’ble Minister from Bahamas shared several business opportunities existing in Bahamas including tourism, agriculture, financial services and IT among others and also invited Indian  business community to enhance business relations with Bahamians in these areas.

The delegation also assured of providing a great cooperation if Indian businesses start venturing into the country and enhance their trade and investment participation in Bahamas.

SPREAD INFORMATION OF PMFBY TO ALL FARMERS OF THE COUNTRY : KUNDARIYA

Minister of State for Agriculture Mr. Mohanbhai Kundariya on Tuesday emphasized the need to spread information of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) to all the farmers of the country for which he invites all the stakeholders such as PHD Chamber and private insurance players to organize kisan melas in all the villages of the country so that farmers may avail the scheme of the government in better ways.

Inaugurating the 2nd National Seminar on Agri Insurance: Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana under aegis of PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry here today, the Minister said that the information of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana should spread by organizing kisan melas in all small villages of the country so that the farmers may get maximum benefits of the scheme of the government.

He underlined that not only non-loanee farmers have been covered under the scheme but also the scheme is focusing on introducing cap on the premium and added that the full benefit of the sum assured would be utilized with the major aim of maximizing the coverage under the scheme. He stated that before framing the scheme Prime Minister of India wanted that the scheme must not only exist on paper but must be implemented effectively with this objective the scheme has been framed and the farmers’ welfare has been targeted at wider arena.

According to the Minister, to make the agriculture insurance attractive among the farmers, there is a need to educate farmers by organizing such events for which the government has been initiating such steps and organizing awareness campaign across the country.

Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture Dr. Ashish Kumar Bhutani in his address mentioned that the government of India is slowly moving towards farm level assessment of losses and local calamities such as unseasonal rains etc. and also underlined that the scheme can be a game changer. He also asserted that further scope for making the policy more flexible including experts from various states of the country.      

In his welcome remarks, President, PHD Chamber, Dr. Mahesh Gupta said that agriculture insurance penetration amongst India’s farming community is abysmal. Out of the gross cropped area of 195.26 million hectares in the country, only 42.82 million hectares or 22 per cent was covered under crop insurance in 2014. While the coverage was higher in some states — especially Rajasthan and also Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Bihar and Karnataka — it was hardly a tenth or less for the likes of Gujarat, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.

The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) will come into force from the Kharif season starting in June this year. The scheme covers kharif, rabi crops as well as annual commercial and horticultural crops. For Kharif crops, the premium charged would be up to 2% of the sum insured.  For Rabi crops, the premium would be up to 1.5% of the sum assured. For annual commercial and horticultural crops, premium would be 5 per cent.

Earlier only those farmers who have taken loans for their cultivation, were eligible for insurance of their crops. However as per the new scheme, all farmers are eligible for the new crop insurance scheme irrespective of the condition of taking loan or not. The insurance plan will be handled under a single insurance company, AIC and entire insurance process; right from joining of farmers to disbursement of claim is to be made electronically to make it a fraud free and effective scheme.

Subjects experts from the sector of weather and risk management, insurance companies etc. added more inputs and floor participation from farmers, brokers in insurance and the academia added their pertinent inputs.  The Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Ashish Kumar Bhutani elaborated and addressed all queries raised. 

The Seminar was a major eye opener for the farming fraternity of the country.  PHD Chamber has been encouraged to take this broad based dissemination and facilitation endeavor towards across other state of India.

Among other who participated in the Seminar comprised Chairman & Co-Chairman, Insurance Committee, PHD Chamber, Mr. Yogesh Lohiya and Mr. S K Sethi and its senior member of the Chamber Mr. Sunil Goyal.

India’s share in world GDP doubled: PHD Chamber

India’s share in world GDP doubled/increased from 1.43% in 2000 to 2.86% in 2015. In the post crisis period, the performance of Indian economy is not bad as the economy is still progressing in the world economic system, said Dr. Mahesh Gupta, President, PHD Chamber in a press statement issued here today.

India’s GDP stood at USD 477 billion in 2000 and increased to USD 2091 billion in the year 2015 showing more than fourfold increase over a period of 15 years, he said.

The five BRICS countries account for about 42% of the world’s population, a quarter of the world’s land area and a combined GDP of above US $ 16 trillion. The BRICS economies also contributed a significant share in the world GDP which increased from 8.27% in 2000 to 22.53% in 2015, he said.

BRICS GDP share in world GDP (in percentage)

Sr. No.	Country	2000	2005	2010	2015
1	Brazil	1.97	1.89	3.37	2.42
2	Russia	0.83	1.72	2.48	1.81
3	India	1.43	1.77	2.61	2.86
4	China	3.63	4.85	9.16	15.01
5	South Africa	0.41	0.55	0.57	0.43
	Total BRICS	8.27	10.78	18.19	22.53

Source: PHD Research Bureau, Compiled from WEO April, 2016

Besides this, the volume of GDP of all the BRICS economies has increased significantly since 2000 and particularly post 2008 crisis. India, on the other hand, has performed phenomenally well if observed from the trend in its volume of GDP, said Dr. Mahesh Gupta.

Going ahead, growth in India is projected to notch up to 8 percent in 2016–17. Growth will continue to be driven by private consumption, which has benefited from lower energy prices and higher real incomes. Further, with the revival of sentiment and pickup in industrial activity, a recovery of private investment is expected to further strengthen growth in the coming times, added Dr. Gupta.

JALISCO IN MEXICO SEEKS INDIA’S HELP FOR HIGH MANUFACTURING CAPABILITIES, SAYS ITS MINISTER

State of Jalisco in Mexico, Minister in charge of Innovation, Science and Technology, Mr. Jaime Reyes on Friday sought India’s support to help it negotiate trajectory of high manufacturing to further transform the state as it has abandoned the path of cheap manufacturing.

Addressing a Conference on ‘Smart Cities in India: Steering Urbanisation Growth’ under aegis of PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry here today, the Minister also sought India’s support for his state’s digital and internet transformation , arguing that this sort of cooperation would reduce the distance factor between India and Mexico.

“Mexico as such has given up its preference to no longer indulge in producing cheaper products and articles with cheap labour long back and it would prefer to forge manufacturing ties with India that aim at generating high quality products to transform Mexico’s manufacturing with its support of technology”, he said.

“80% of our exports are destined for United States of America and in case if its economy is not progressing, the country’s export assignments suffer and it is because of this reason that Mexico has begun to increase its relationship with Canada and other such geographies for increased trade and commercial ties and in Asia, India is one such country to which Mexico would want to broad base its economic engagements in areas of high manufacturing, digital and internet segment including electronics and other such areas”, emphasised the Minister.

Country Representative & Lead Smart Cities, US Trade and Development Agency, Ms. Mehnaz Ansari who also spoke on the occasion reiterated the commitment of US trade and development agency to transform the cities of Allahabad, Ajmer and Vishakapatnam that have been identified by the Government of India to convert them in to Smart Cities through US trade and development agency help in terms of offering its help for their re-designing.

Among other who participated in the conference comprised Vice President, PHD Chamber, Mr. Anil Khaitan ; Chairman, Raods, Ports & other Infrastructure, PHD Chamber, Mr. Ashish wig and its Director, Dr. Ranjeet Mehta.

PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry & Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) sign a 5 year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to augment a strategic partnership for skill building in Healthcare in India

With a major focus on promoting ‘Skill India campaign’, the MoU aims to develop and facilitate worksite wellness programs and training workshops for Healthcare professionals on chronic diseases across India, especially prevention of Non Communicable Diseases.

New Delhi: 19 April 2016:  With an aim to augment the Government of India’s ‘Skill India’ flagship project and to create a robust and vibrant eco-system for quality skill development in the healthcare sector, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) and Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) signed a 5 year memorandum of understanding for launching a joint program to organize capacity building initiatives in skilling healthcare professionals especially in the areas of chronic diseases and prevention of Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs).

The MoU signed by Dr. Mahesh Gupta, President, PHD Chamber and Professor K. Srinath Reddy, President, PHFI, will undertake a country-wide initiatives to conduct training workshops for industry, government (Central/ State) and MNCs on important public health issues, with a special focus on Non Communicable Diseases.

In his address Dr. Mahesh Gupta, President, PHD Chamber lauded the timing of the MoU and said “The Indian healthcare sector today is growing at a brisk pace and this MoU comes at a time when the Skill India Movement is looking at bringing about convergence. Along with PHFI, a key partner that has already developed capacity building and academic programmes, PHD Chamber renews its commitment to address the shortage in human resources in health through this MoU, hence being instrumental in advocating to corporates sustainable approaches in Indian healthcare sector.”

Pointing out the major constraints faced by Healthcare professionals, Dr Mahesh Gupta emphasized that this sector in India is suffering with overworked professionals as there is a severe shortage of staff. The skill development workshops can be used across India to scale up and get this workforce to be competent in the healthcare space.

Stressing on the need to upgrade skills in the Healthcare sector, Prof. K Srinath Reddy, President, Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) emphasized “The healthcare sector is expected to drive the growth of the economy as well as play a significant role in employment. In spite of notable progress and many positive developments, deficiencies in human resources both in terms of skills and numbers continue to pose a challenge for healthcare sector, affecting “Universal Health Coverage for All”. This MoU is a landmark initiative and will provide training on best practices in healthcare to a large spectrum of professionals in order to improve their employability and work towards a healthier India.”

According to the most recent figures reported in the World Health Statistics 2011, the density of doctors in India is 6 for a population of 10,000, while that of nurses and midwives is 13 per 10,000 population. India has a doctor-to-population ratio of 0.5:1000 in comparison to 0.3 in Thailand, 0.4 in Sri Lanka, 1.6 in China, 5.4 in the UK, and 5.5 in the United States of America.

Further the density of practicing healthcare workforce gets further skewed as almost 25% doctors and 40% nurses do not practice in the formal health system. Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) in its 2012 report estimated a shortage of 6.4 million allied health professionals in the country. The report highlighted the gap in both; sheer number of professionals of various specialties as well as the quality of skills acquired by the graduating students from several hundreds of institutions across the country.

According to estimates, The overall Indian healthcare market today is worth US$ 100 billion and is expected to grow to US$ 280 billion by 2020, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 22.9 per cent. Healthcare delivery, which includes hospitals, nursing homes and diagnostics centers, and pharmaceuticals, constitutes 65 per cent of the overall market. ( Source : IBEF- India Brand Equity Foundation).

Mr.Nishant Berlia, Chairman, PHD Health Committee said that there is a significant scope for enhancing healthcare services considering that healthcare spending as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is rising. Rural India, which accounts for over 70 per cent of the population, is set to emerge as a potential demand source.

He added that with a billion-plus population India needs an extensive and vast healthcare infrastructure and huge trained work force of healthcare professionals. Despite spurt of new hospitals and medical facilities across the country, we are still way behind from getting the adequate hospitals and medical personnel. Currently India has 0.9 beds per 1,000 populations, which is far below the global average of 2.9 beds. By 2022, it is estimated that India would require over 27 lakh additional beds. Along with huge dearth of these regular healthcare services, our country also grossly lacks in emergency medical response services. In a country where 160,000 people die every year in road accidents and millions other die due to cardiovascular problems, both scenarios where emergency medical assistance is required, there are only about 10,000 medical emergency response technicians have been trained since 2005 in the nation of 1.2 billion. By contrast, the United States has 240,000 for a population that is a fourth of India’s.

Dr D Prabhakaran, Vice President (Research and Policy), Public Health Foundation of India said, “Today there is ample evidence suggesting that empowered health professionals can be the leaders of change, playing critical roles in improving the reach of health services especially in countries like India which has enough challenges in the health sector. This MoU will not only identify skill-gaps in the healthcare industry, but will also jointly develop various courses and trainings, to build & upgrade the capacity of healthcare in the country, ultimately being an innovative vehicle to achieve the objectives of the National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.” 

The MoU will aim and work to develop and conduct training workshops for Healthcare professionals on chronic diseases across India and to develop and facilitate worksite wellness programs with Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Heads, particularly for the prevention of NCDs (Non Communicable Diseases). Training workshops (Training of Trainers) & Monitoring & Evaluation programs for industry, Govt-Central/ State/ MNC’s/ world bodies in healthcare & associated areas on important issues in public health will be developed and conducted by PHFI and PHD Chamber.

Through this MoU, PHD Chamber will work to place the issue of public health on every corporate boardroom agenda. The focus of Public Health in PHD Chamber is to advocate for curative and preventive health beyond that of the employees and dependents into the community and the less privileged ones. The focus areas have been prevention and management of Non Communicable diseases (NCDs), research, healthcare innovation etc. among others through projects and programs. Similarly, Public Health Foundation of India will fortify its mandate to respond to redress the limited institutional capacity in India for strengthening training, research and policy development in the area of Public Health, and develop various capacity building initiatives for primary care physicians in the field of NCDs and CVD.