BHARAT PETRO RESOURCES LTD. PREPARING WITH CONSORTIUM APPROACH TO DISCOVER HYDROCARBONS IN DISCOVERED OIL & GAS FIELDS IN THE SECOND ROUND OF BIDDING

Managing Director, Bharat Petro Resources Ltd., Mr. Ajay Kumar V on Wednesday announced that his company is likely to participate in the second round of bidding process for small discovered oil fields for exploration of hydrocarbons with consortium approach.

According to him, the company could also go in with solo approach to take part in the proposed bidding process for discovery of all kind of hydrocarbons in small discovered oil fields when the government offers them for their commercial exploration in near future.

Addressing a Conference on “New E&P Opportunities at the Backdrop of Help & Small Field Policy” under aegis of PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry here today, Mr. Kumar V did not detail out the comprehensive approach with which it would takes part in the bidding process, pointing out that detailing on this front is being worked out and whether the consortium would have one company or more than one companies be decided in near future.

The Managing Director, however, added that Bharat Petro Resources could alone also participate in the bidding to explore hydrocarbons in discovered small fields, given their potential and possibilities of reserves of hydrocarbons in them.

Mr. Kumar V also exuded confidence that since after the bidding process of first round, close to 30 contracts have been signed up between various companies for development of small discovered oil and gas fields shows the significance of these fields.

Therefore, the company is quite enthusiastic to take part in the future bidding process with the hope that it would succeed and partner with the government for commercial utilisation of small discovered oil fields for a win-win situation.

The Conference was inaugurated by Dy. Director General (E), Directorate General of Hydrocarbons, Mr. Mahendra Pratap who explained the details of Hydrocarbon Exploration Policy 2016 of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, reiterating that it is one of the most attractive policies, the success ratio of which in the first round of bidding is quite significant.

He hoped that the Policy would bring in sufficient investors into the country – both domestic and overseas for development of India’s exploration and oil & gas production.

Chairman, Hydrocarbons Committee, PHD Chamber, Mr. Rajeev Mathur in his inaugural address urged for more incentives to facilitate investors’ entry into discovery of hydrocarbons in India in its future ventures.

The Conference was moderated by the Principal Director, PHD Chamber, Dr. Ranjeet Mehta in which its Managing Committee Member, Mr. Anuj Khanna also participated.

IBBI PITCHES FOR MARKET DRIVEN INSTITUTIONAL MECHANISM FOR M&A AT PHD CHAMBER

Chairperson, Insolvency & Bankruptcy Board of India, Dr. M S Sahoo on Wednesday pitched for a market driven institutional mechanism to facilitate and enable mergers and acquisitions with minimum regulations that can conveniently safeguard the legitimate interests of concerned stakeholders.

Addressing a Conference on Mergers & Acquisitions – Growth Mechanism & The Regulatory Framework under aegis of PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry here today, Dr. Sahoo said that India has already moved towards creating conditions for exit of business in a equitable and friendly manner under current dispensation.

“It is the same India which permitted conditions way back in 1991 to enter the business and subsequently from 2000 onwards, atmosphere was intensified and better facilitated to continue to do businesses with certain element of resolve.  India has also evolved from this situation and now already entered in to a regime in which exit of business is permitted with emphasis on ease of doing business”, pointed out Dr. Sahoo.

According to him, the Companies Act of 2013 gives fairly substantial power to professionals and business facilitators to make provisioning for mergers and acquisitions, though some scope of improvement on this front is still called for.

Therefore, a time has come for the state to consider setting up of a market driven institutional mechanism to address all the issues relating to mergers and acquisitions as these developments have begun to take off more often than not in the present and evolving corporate reality, he added without divulging detailing on the suggested institutional mechanism.

Among others who also spoke on the occasion comprised Sr. Vice President, PHD Chamber, Mr. Anil Khaitan; Central Council Member, ICSI, Mr. Ranjeet Pandey; Partner, P&A Law Offices, Mr. Anand Pathak; Partner, J Sagar Associates, Mr. Kartik Jain; Executive Partner, Lakshmikumaran & Sridharan, Ms. Shafaq Uraizee Sapre; Chairman and Co-Chairman, Corporate Affairs Committee, PHD Chamber, Dr. Lalit Bhasian and Dr. Chandrashekharan.

PHD Chamber and BSE Ltd. sign a Memorandum of Understanding

PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) and BSE Ltd. have signed a Memorandum of Understanding today for exchange of information on unemployment and consumer sentiments in India.

The MOU between PHD Chamber and BSE Ltd. will help both the institutions to serve their members better with more analytics on the socio-economic indicators said Mr. Gopal Jiwarajka, President PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

This information will now be shared / published by PHDCCI on its website and mailers/ reports circulated to its members. It is expected that in future PHDCCI as well as BSE will be able to create new landmarks by venturing into research in several new areas, said Mr. Jiwarajka.

Speaking on this prestigious occasion Shri Ashish Kumar Chauhan, MD & CEO, BSE Ltd. said, “The data on unemployment and consumer sentiments is gathered by BSE since they celebrated 140 years in the year 2015.”

The MOU between BSE and PHDCCI would enable the students, faculty of PHDCCI and BSE training institute (BTI) to effectively co-operate in different areas of research. This is expected to be useful not just to students and research scholars but also the country at large”, said Mr. Chauhan.

PHD CHAMBER ALSO JOINS THE NATION IN FLAG HOISTING CEREMONY AT 71ST INDEPENDENCE DAY IN PHD HOUSE

PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry joined the nation on the occasion of 71st Independence Day celebrations with its President, Mr. Gopal Jiwarajka and a couple of  Chamber’s Managing Committee Members including its Secretary General, Mr. Saurabh Sanyal hoisting the national flag at PHD House, New Delhi here today.

During the occasion, the Chamber President recalled the huge sacrifices made by a great deal of freedom fighters to gain in independence with utmost reverence and urged the people of India including members of PHD Chamber to make sure that ‘AZADI’ is retained at all cost with inclusive social and economic prosperity.

In addition to flag hoisting ceremony, the Chamber President also awarded the members of various civic agencies in and around Delhi including Delhi Police and Chamber’s employees for their meritorious contribution in their respective field of services, duly recognizing and acknowledging their outstanding services in the field of their domain.

OLYMPIC TASK FORCE RECOMMENDS IMPROVEMENT IN SPORTS GOVERNANCE, ALSO SEEKS INTRODUCTION OF SPORTS SCIENCE TO MAKE INDIA A DISTINCT SPORTING NATION

Upgradation in sports governance coupled with immediate introduction of sports science including aggressive advancement of sports authorities at primary level schools to spot and catch sporting sparks are the only way forward through which promotion of sports with animal spirits can be undertaken to make India excel in all sorts of sporting activities, according to Member, Olympic Task Force, Mr. Om Pathak.

The aforesaid recommendations have been made by the Olympic Task Force, set up under the direction of the Prime Minister of India for transformation of sports spirit and submitted to the government on Friday (11.08.2017), however, also focus on inculcation of physical wellness, ethical and moral values among the budding sports person so that these evolve into world class personalities in the arena of sports, emphasised Mr. Pathak.

Speaking at 5th Global Sports Convention – 2017 under aegis of PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry here today, Mr. Pathak who is also a Chairman of School Sports Promotion Foundation said that the Olympic Task Force gave away its suggestions to the government on Friday, recommending that improvement, upgradation and advancement in sports governance is the call that ought to be addressed with priority by the government.

Currently, sports governance, hinted Mr. Pathak is at stake as relationship and coordination of various sports federations with all their concerned stakeholders need much more advancement for timely disbursement and dispensation of sports grants to nurture the sport talent.  With this in place, the sports would begin to transform and bring in the required glory to the country, he felt.

Secondly, sports science is currently missing in sports syllabi as a result the best of sports person in India is not uplifted beyond a certain threshold and therefore, the earlier the sports science is introduced to sports, the better would it be for ultimate evolution of all sports in the country, stressed Mr. Pathak.

Similarly, sports authorities are required to aggressively walk to countryside and make all out attempts to spot the sport’s spark in various primary schools and begin to nurture them with their potential which is so vast and of multiple volume, he further pitched.

The Convention which was presided over by the Ambassador, Embassy of Greece, Mr. Panos Kalogeropoulos along with President and Vice President, PHD Chamber, Mr. Gopal Jiwarajka and Mr. Rajeev Talwar and Chamber’s Secretry General, Mr. Saurabh Sanyal gave away Certificates, Trophies and Gifts Mementos to the various sports person for their achievement in various fields, however, added that one way to promote sports is to recognised the contribution of all sports persons in one way or the other.

For the first time ever the PHD Chamber Sports For All convention has witnessed participation from eminent sportsperson representing India at Olympics, Paralympics, Deaflympics and Special Olympics.

 Among others who also participated in the Convention comprised Mr. Manavjit Singh  Sandhu, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awardee & Former World No.1 in Trap Shooting; Mr. Akhil Kumar, Arjuna Awardee & a Boxer of International Repute represented India in Olympics and a National Observer for Boxing; Ms. Raspreet Sidhu, Indian Women national team Member ; Ms Sushma Devi, International Cricketer, Indian Women Cricket Team; Mr. Amit Dahiya an Indian Wresteler represented India at Olympics; Mr. Bajrang Lal a Padam Shree and Arjuna Awardee represented India in Rowing at various International Tournaments; Managing Director, Sportseed, Mr. Sudhanshu Fadnis; Vice President, Police Family Welfare Society (PFWS), Dr. Suchi Singh, known sports person Mr. Manavjeet Singh Sandhu.

NITI Aayog’s focused approach towards Health and Education inspiring : PHD Chamber

While appreciating the recent move of NITI Aayog’s partnership with States for bringing transformative change in their health and education sectors, Mr. Gopal Jiwarajka, President, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that this initiative will help these states attain inclusive growth and over all socio-economic development in the coming years.

Transformation in social sector of all States with due support from NITI Aayog is a significant step as States play a pivotal role in the overall development of the economy, said Mr. Jiwarajka.

Uttar Pradesh, Assam, and Karnataka have been selected for improving their healthcare sector, while Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Jharkhand have been selected for improving their education sector to provide support for better learning outcomes.

With focused approach and support from the prestigious think tank NITI Aayog, these States will lead to significant transformation in their socio-economic status and improvement in standards of living, added Mr. Jiwarajka.

Going ahead, this model should also be adopted by other States too for achieving higher and sustainable economic growth, said Mr. Jiwarajka.

Going ahead, we as an industry chamber would like to hand hold the states in providing support in every possible manner to upscale the growth of the nation, said Mr. Jiwarajka.

As there is a strong correlation between economic development and social development, effective policy interventions and strong reform initiatives along with time bound outcomes must be focused, he added.

Introduction of comprehensive health and education policies, easy accessibility of educational services and healthcare facilities such as establishment of schools, vocational training centers, colleges and hospitals in the radius of every 25kms across each state is the need of the hour, said Mr. Jiwarajka.

Though the healthcare system of our country has improved over time, we are still far away from the point of providing easily accessible and affordable quality education and healthcare facilities to all, added Mr. Jiwarajka.

Affordable and accessible access to universal health care with modernized hospitals upgraded with latest technologies and state of the art infrastructure, stepping up investments, training more manpower and building extensive allied healthcare bodies is required at the grassroots level, he added.

We believe quality of higher education and skill sets would be critical to bring more and more of our human resources in the production chain and to reap the benefits of demographic divided, he added.

Majority of investors optimistic about the continuation of market rally: PHD Chamber

In a quick survey conducted by PHD Research Bureau, the research arm of PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, observed that 60% of the investors in the stock market are optimistic about the continuation of current rally and expect more than 10% returns in the short run from the current level.

Markets are expected to scale new highs of which BSE Sensex is expected to surpass 35,000 and NIFTY is expected to surpass 11,000 by the end of the year, according to the survey of investors.

SENSEX closed at 32,325.41 & NIFTY closed at 10,066.40 on Friday, 4th August 2017.

The quick survey is based on the 243 responses from the retail investors and HNIs.

Key findings

·        Majority (60%) of the respondents said that the markets will rise by more than 10% from the current level

·        25% of the respondents said that the markets will remain lackluster at the current leve

·        15% of the respondents said that the markets will decline by 10%

PHD Chamber organized an open house discussion on stock markets on Where the stock markets are headed and why . Mr. B K Sabharwal, Chairman, Federation of Indian Stock Exchanges; Mr. Vijay Mehta, Chairman, Economic Affairs Committee, PHD Chamber; Mr. Rajeev Garg, Additional General Manager, BSE Ltd. among others participated in the Open House Discussions.

Majority of the participants were positive and optimistic about the bull run in the stock markets.

Strong fundamentals of the economy such as low inflation, fiscal prudence, benign external sector conditions and strong outlook of the economy going forward are supporting the markets at this juncture said Mr. Gopal Jiwarajka, President, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in a press statement issued here today.

However, stability of the inflation rate, international commodity prices such as crude oil, continuation of the pace of economic reforms and uptick in private investments would be crucial for a strong and sustained rally in the markets, he said.

So, one has to be very cautious about the rally in the markets with informed decisions, said Mr. Jiwarajka.

Interestingly, retail participation in the stock markets has seen progress. Retail investors’ holdings in listed companies is increasing vis-à-vis conducive regulatory environment, added Mr. Jiwarajka.

Indian households are gradually putting their financial savings into shares and bonds, he said.

The improvement in performance of equity markets over the years is boosting confidence of investors on account of strong growth prospects of the Indian economy, said Mr. Jiwarajka.

Repo Rate Cut to Strengthen Demand and Economic Growth: PHD Chamber

While welcoming the Third Bi-monthly Monetary Policy Statement for 2017-18 by RBI, Mr. Gopal Jiwarajka, President, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that 25 basis points cut in repo rate is consistent with the current economic environment in the country as inflation is significantly low and good monsoon scenario is visible.

Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), RBI has reduced the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) by 25 basis points from 6.25% to 6.0% with immediate effect. Consequently, the reverse repo rate under the LAF stands adjusted to 5.75%, and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate to 6.25%.

However, at this juncture the transmission of the policy rate cut by the banking sector in terms of reduced lending rates would be crucial to induce demand and industrial growth in the country, added Mr.  Jiwarajka.

The growth of IIP at 1.7% for the month of May 2017 and growth of Capital goods at around (-) 4% in May 2017 is a major cause of concern as it is indicative of subdued pace of investments in the economy, said Mr.  Jiwarajka.

Further, cost of credit to businesses is high in India as compared with many competitive economies, impacting competitiveness of businesses not only in the domestic market but also in the international markets, he said.

Therefore, we expect that Monetary Policy Committee of Reserve Bank of India to adopt aggressive move to consolidate repo rate at around 5.5% by March 2018 to push growth of industry and economy to the new normals, added Mr. Jiwarajka.

Cut in repo rate will not only reduce the costs of doing business but also enhance our exporters’ competitiveness in the international markets, he said.