AmCham Update · the specific initiatives and activities that AmCham has carried out during the...

February 2016 | Vol IV | Issue 5AmCham - The Voice of American Business in India

• BreakfastRoundtablewithChairmanoftheExport-ImportBankoftheU.S.-Mr.FredHochberg

• InteractiveSession:SmartCityInfrastructureBusinessDevelopmentTradeMissionwithU.S.IndustryDelegationledbyDeputySecretary,Commerce,Mr.BruceAndrews

• AmChamSmartCitiesMeethostedbytheGovernmentofAndhraPradesh

• AnAmChamExclusive:InterviewwithKrishIyer,PresidentandCEO,Wal-MartIndia

• AmCham–USIBCInteractiveBreakfastBriefingattheBengalGlobalSummit

• RoundtablewiththeHon’bleChiefMinisterofChhattisgarh,Dr.RamanSingh&SeniorOfficialsfromtheGovernmentofChhattisgarhH

IGHLIGHTS

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The3rdAmChamHealthcareConferencepositionpaperwaspresentedtoMr.KTRamaRao,MinisterforInformationTechnology,PanchayatiRajandMAUD,GovernmentofTelangana

ChampionsofHyderabadSports2015,Deloitte,werehonoredonAnnualDay

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BreakfastRoundtablewithChairmanoftheExport-ImportBankoftheU.S.-Mr.FredHochberg

07Interactive Session: Smart CityInfrastructure Business DevelopmentTrade Mission with U.S. IndustryDelegation led by Deputy Secretary,Commerce,Mr.BruceAndrews

11AmChamSmart CitiesMeet hosted bytheGovernmentofAndhraPradesh

18AmCham–USIBCInteractiveBreakfastBriefingattheBengalGlobalSummit

24An AmCham Exclusive: Interview Mr.KrishIyer,PresidentandCEO,Wal-MartIndia

28Roundtable with the Hon’ble ChiefMinister of Maharashtra, Mr. DevendraFadnavisandSeniorRepresentativesoftheGovernmentofMaharashtra

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Issue 5February 2016

Office Bearers

Chairperson

Ms. Vanitha Narayanan

Managing Director

IBM India Pvt. Ltd.

Vice Chairman

Mr. Richard Rekhy

Chief Executive Officer

KPMG in India

Vice Chairman

Mr. Gulshan Kumar Sachdev

Managing Director

Quaker Chemical India Limited

Hon. Secretary & Treasurer

Mr. Atul Dhawan

Regional Managing Partner

Deloitte Haskins & Sells

Honorary Members

Mr. John M. McCaslin

Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs

U.S. Embassy

Mr. George N. Sibley

Minister Counselor for Economic,

Environment, Science & Technology Affairs

U.S. Embassy

Executive Board Members

Mr. Arun Kumar Jain

Managing Director

Fluor Daniel India Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Banmali Agrawala

President & CEO

GE India Industrial Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Pratyush Kumar

President

Boeing India

Mr. Varun Khanna

Managing Director

Becton Dickinson India Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Venkatesh Kini

President – India and South West Asia

Coca-Cola India Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Krish Iyer

President & CEO

Wal-Mart India Pvt. Ltd.

Ms. Rekha M. Menon

Chairman

Accenture India

NATIONAL EXECUTIVE BOARD 2015-16

2016gotofftoagreatstartwithnumerouseventsacrossJanuaryandFebruary.WewillcontinuetoinvestinknowledgecreationanddependontheexpertiseofourcumulativememberbasetosupporttheprioritiesoftheGovernmentofIndia,theU.S.Governmentand industriesbasedoutof India. Letme take thisopportunity tohighlightsomeofthespecific initiativesandactivities thatAmChamhascarriedoutduring the last twomonths.

AmChamhasactivelyengagedwithstategovernments.WesupportedtheGovernmentofWestBengalatthe Bengal Global Business Summit 2016heldinKolkata.TheprimarypurposeofthesummitwastoattractU.S.investorstodobusinessinthestatewhichwasfurtherdiscussedinabreakfastmeetingwithUSIBC.WealsohadameetingtoexploreinvestmentopportunitiesinHaryanathroughconcretedialogueswithdecisionmakersandseniorgovernmentofficials.Theobjectivewas tomap theupcoming investmentopportunities,ease-of-doing-business,PPPmodelsforprivatesectorparticipation,andobtaininganoverallunderstandingofthebusinessenvironmentinHaryana.

SinceVizagisoneofthe20citiesnamedbythecentralgovernmentunderthefirstphaseofthesmartcitiesprogram,AmChamandtheU.S.CommercialService,inassociationwiththeGovernmentofAndhraPradesh,hostedasmartcitymeet.DuringthiseventthesigningofanMoUbetweentheU.S.TradeandDevelopmentAgencyandtheDepartmentofMunicipalAdministrationfordrawingupamasterplanforVisakhapatnamSmartCity,andaconsortiumofthreeU.S.companies,comprisingofAECOM,KPMG,andIBM.

InHyderabad,weorganizedaprogramon Business ContinuitywithErnst&Youngwhichfocusedonoperationsmanagementandcrisismanagement. Two typesofdisasterswerediscussed–inflationofaccountsandnaturalcalamities,suchasanearthquakeor flood. Such initiatives help our member companies to be well prepared in suchunpredictablesituations.

On theoccasionofMake in India week,AmChampartneredwith theU.S.ConsulateGeneral inMumbai, USIBC and EY, and organized a series of roundtablemeetingswith theHon’bleChiefMinister of Chhattisgarh, Dr. Raman Singh, theHon’bleChiefMinisterofMaharashtra,Mr.DevendraFadnavisandtheHon’bleMinisterofCommerce,Industries&EmploymentSmt.YashodharaRajeScindia,whichwereveryproductive.

InBangalore,wesupported Invest Karnataka 2016 - Global Investors Meet organizedbytheGovernmentofKarnatakaandseveralAmChammemberswerespeakersattheevent.

Furtheron,wemetMr.FredHochberg,Chairman,Export-ImportBanktodiscusshowitcouldadvanceU.S.-Indiacooperationonarangeofissuesfromnuclearandrenewablepower,aviationandotherinfrastructureprioritiesthroughExport-Importfinancing.Ourindividualmembercompaniessharedtheirdiverseexperiencesandcontributionacrossupcomingprojects.

Chairperson’s Message

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NATIONAL EXECUTIVE BOARD 2015-16

Thepriority toseekbusinessopportunities formembercompanies insmartcityandrelatedinitiativesundertheU.S.-Indiaagreementcontinued.AmChammembershadanencouraginginteractionwiththeU.S.DeputySecretaryofCommerce,BruceAndrews,and theaccompanyingdelegationcomprisedof18AmericancompaniesonaSmart Cities Infrastructure Business Development Mission to India. Themission focusedontechnologies,systemsandservicesinthesafetyandsecurity,intelligenttransportation,water,wastewater, andpower sectors.DeputySecretaryAndrews alsometwith andbriefedAmChammembersinChennai.

We also met Ms. Meredydd Evans, Senior Staff Scientist, Joint Global ChangeResearchInstitute,PacificNorthwestNationalLaboratory(PNNL)todiscusstheEnergyConservationBuildingCode(ECBC)SeminarorganizedinVisakhapatnam.

InameetingwithDr.(Ms.)ArunaSharma,thenewlyappointedSecretary,Departmentof Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY), Government of India, AmChammembers raised issuesconcerning safetyandsecurity testing, import of refurbishedspares, cloud policy, public procurement, the early release of IoT policy, encryptionpolicy,anddifficultiesofmanufacturinginIndia.

InameetingwithMr.HarbansLalKhera,JointSecretary,DefenseOffsetsManagementWing,wehadadetaileddiscussionontherecommendationssubmittedbytheAmChamDefenseCommitteeonamendmentstoDPP2013.WeactedasasupportingpartnertotheMinistryofExternalAffairs(MEA)organizedNationalConferenceonExportControlsinBangalore.Thisbroughttogetherthemajorbusinessentitieshandlingdefense,dual-use itemsand technologies, the relevantGovernmentof Indiaofficials including fromMEAandDGFT,aswellasexportcontrolexpertsfromtheU.S.,JapanandGermantodiscuss theSCOMETexport control system, recent updates toSCOMETand India’sengagement with the multilateral export control regimes (Nuclear Suppliers Group,MissileTechnologyControlRegime,WassenaarArrangementandAustraliaGroup).

The AmCham Annual Day 2016 was also held in Hyderabad. At this event fifteenAmericancompaniesreceivedawardsforwinningvariouseventstheAmChamSportsthathadconcludedon15thDecember2015.Furthermore,the3rdAmChamHealthcareConference position paper was handed over toMr. K T Rama Rao, theMinister forInformationTechnology.

InMumbai,aFraud Investigation & Dispute Services Breakfast session on ‘Compliance trends witnessed in 2015 and the judicial process’wasorganizedbytheAmChamAnti-Corruption andFCPAComplianceCommittee. The session entailed a discussion onchallengesfacedbylawenforcementagenciesorregulatorsinaddressingrisksoffraud,anti-briberyandcorruption.

InMumbaiandKolkata,GSTwasdiscussedinpartnershipwithErnst&Young,asitwasexpectedtoreplacethecurrentcomplexcentralandstate indirecttaxestorecreateacommonmarketforIndia.

We are looking forward to supporting the upcoming Ministry of Defence led eventDefExpo2016inGoa,wherewewillhostvarioushigh-levelmeetingsonthesidelinesofthisevent.Iamalsolookingforwardtoseeingmostofyouatthe24thAnnualGeneralMeetingofAmChamtobeheldattheendofApril.

Ms. Vanitha NarayananChairperson – AmCham

Mr. C. R. Dua

Managing Partner

Dua Associates

Mr. Amit Sharma

Executive Vice President, President Asia

ATC Tower Company of India Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Rustom J. Desai

Managing Director

Corning India and Telecom Operations

Mr. Madan Mohan Rao Yalamanchili

Executive Chairman

S&P Capital IQ

Mr. Madhu Poomalil

Managing Director

D. E. Shaw India Software Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Inderjit Sial

President & Managing Director

Textron India Pvt. Ltd.

Dr. Pradip K. Dutta

Corporate Vice President & Managing Director

Synopsys (India) Private Limited

Mr. Gulshan Kumar Sachdev

Managing Director

Quaker Chemical India Limited

Mr. Dinesh Agarwal

Partner

Ernst & Young LLP

Mr. Vivekanand Vanmeeganathan

Director

Caterpillar India (Manufacturing Division)

Mr. Ramkumar Ramamoorthy

Senior Vice President, Marketing, Corporate Affairs and Communications

Cognizant Technology Solutions

Ms. Kaku Nakhate

President & Country Head (India)

Bank of America N.A.

Mr. Sukanti Ghosh

Managing Director, India

APCO Worldwide India Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Ajay Singha

Executive Director

AmCham

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DELHI

On 14th January 2016, AmCham, in association withKPMG,organizedaroundtableinteractionon“Investmentopportunities for U.S. industry in Haryana” with thesenior administration of Haryana Government, led byPrincipal Secretary Mr. Devendra Singh, (Industries),Divisional Commissioner Gurgaon, Dr. D. Suresh, andDirector Industries, Mr. Vivek Atray. The program wasorganized as a preview to Happening Haryana – AHaryanaGovernment’sGlobal Investors Summit, beingorganized in March in Gurgaon. The objective of theinteraction was to explore investment opportunities byhaving a concrete dialogue with decision makers andsenior government officials for mapping the upcominginvestment opportunities, ease-of-doing-business, PPPmodels for private sector participation, and obtainingan overall understanding of the business environmentinHaryana.An insight intothestategovernment’snewindustrial policy was provided by Mr. Devendra Singhand a number of investment promotion initiatives and

Roundtable Interaction with Haryana Government on Investment Opportunities for U.S. Companies in Haryana

Mr. Devendra Singh, Haryana Government's PrincipleSecretary, Industries, gives a presentation on the NewIndustrial Policy of Haryana Government to industryrepresentatives

(LtoR)Ms.MadhviKataria,DeputyExecutiveDirector,AmCham,Mr.D.Suresh,DivisionalCommissionerGurgaon,Mr.RichardRekhy,CEOKPMG,Mr.DevendraSingh,PrincipalSecretary(Industries)andMr.VivekAtray,DirectorIndustries

upcoming projects in the various focus areas werediscussedindetail.

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On15thJanuary2016,seniormembersoftheU.S.SenateArmed Services Committee met with the AmChamDefenseCommitteemembersinNewDelhi.Thepurposewas to hear from industry about their experiencesand challenges in India. Those present from theUSGincluded: Daniel Lerner, Staff Member, Senate Armed

AmCham Meeting with U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee

ServicesCommittee,AnishGoel,StaffMember,SenateArmed Services Committee, and Jonathan S Epstein,CounseloftheArmedServicesCommittee.Mr.PhilShaw,Chairman,AmChamDefenseCommitteepresidedoverthediscussions.Severalotherseniordefensecommitteememberswerepresent.

Breakfast Roundtable with Chairman of the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. - Mr. Fred Hochberg

On29thJanuary2016inNewDelhi,AmChammetwithMr. Fred Hochberg, Chairman and President of theExportImportBankoftheU.S.Duringthisvisit,ChairmanHochberg met with industry leaders to discuss howEx-Im Bank, as the official export credit agency of theUnitedStates,couldadvanceU.S.-Indiacooperationonarangeofissuesfromnuclearandrenewablepower,toaviationandotherinfrastructurepriorities,throughEx-Imfinancing.

Mr. Pratyush Kumar, President, Boeing India, gaveintroductory remarks andmentioned the overwhelmingopportunity in India for infrastructure growth. He alsomentionedthatIndiahasthefastinggrowingcivilaviationmarketintheworld.

Chairman Hochberg explained that Ex-Im Bank hasbeen officially re-chartered until 2019. This was hisfirst international trip since the new charter and theyremain increasingly enthusiastic towards India. Ex-Imhas provided more loans to India under the Obamaadministration than theBushandClintonadministrationcombined.Ex-Im’sprimefocusistosupportjobsintheU.S. andhasbeenprimarily focusedon the renewablepowersector.WhenthinkingintermsofhowEx-ImBankcansupportyou, thinkabout thefinancingofgoodsorservicesthatsupportsU.S.jobs.

Other members of the delegation and USG presentincluded:

• RaymondJ.Ellis,VPofGlobalBusinessDevelopment,Ex-ImBank

• MatthewBevens,DeputyChiefofStaff,Ex-ImBank

• AshleyLewis,PressSecretary,Ex-ImBank

• George Sibley, Minister Counselor for EconomicAffairs,Environment,ScienceandTechnology,U.S.Embassy

• Dillon Banerjee, Counselor for Commercial Affairs,U.S.Embassy

• ZebaReyazuddin,EconomicGrowthUnitChief,U.S.Embassy

• RaySudweeks,EnergyUnitChief,U.S.Embassy

• Chad Norberg, Trade and Technology Unit Chief,U.S.Embassy

• WesMathews,EconomicOfficer,U.S.Embassy

Highlightsofthediscussionincluded:

• IndiaasasignificantmarketforsolarpowerandhowEx-Imhascontributedtoit

• Mostactionintheenergyrealmwilloccuratthestatelevel

• Massive energy opportunities in the northeasternstates

• Ex-Im emphasized that if state governments havean international rating then theycan lookatgettinginvolvedwiththem

• Anexplanationofthesmartcityinitiativeandprogressofvariousprojects

The companies present were 3M, Boeing, Caterpillar,Edgewood Networks, First Solar, IBM, KPMG, LanzaTechandUTC.

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(LtoR)Mr.SujoyGhosh,Mr.PratyushKumar,Mr.AjaySinghaandMs.DevyaniRana

(LtoR)Mr.DillonBanerjee,Mr.GeorgeSibley,Mr.FredHochbergandMr.RaymondJ.Ellis

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AmCham’s Tax, Tariff and Regulatory Affairs Committee Meeting

On3rdFebruary2016,thefourthmeetingofAmCham’sTax,TariffandRegulatoryAffairsCommitteefortheyear2015-16was held atGurgaon, under the chairmanshipof Mr. Indraneel Roy Choudhury, Partner, PwC. TheCo-Chairman,Mr.VikasVasal,Partner,KPMG,wasalsopresent.Membersdiscussedthefollowingissues:

• ICDSguidelines

• Seconementissue

• Taxrefunds

• Transferpricing

• GST

• BEPS

• POEMand

• APAs

Suggestionswerealsosoughton theworkplan for thenextquarter.

Interactive Session: Smart City Infrastructure Business Development Trade Mission with U.S. Industry Delegation led by Deputy Secretary, Commerce, Mr. Bruce Andrews

On8thFebruary2016,AmChamorganizedaninteractivesession with the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Commerce,Mr.BruceAndrews,andtheaccompanyingdelegationof18AmericancompaniesonaSmartCitiesInfrastructureBusiness Development Mission to India. Ms. Lee Zak,Director of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency(USTDA) and Mr. Ray Ellis, Vice President of GlobalBusinessDevelopmentattheExport-ImportBank,werepartofthehi-leveldelegation.ThebusinessdevelopmentmissionwasvisitingDelhi,Mumbai,ChennaiandVizagtohelpU.S.companieslaunchorincreasetheirbusinessinIndia,focusingontechnologies,systemsandservicesinthesafetyandsecurity,intelligenttransportation,water,wastewater, andpower sectors. The interactive sessionhadparticipation from leading smart technologydrivenand infrastructure focused companies of AmCham(includingAccenture,KPMG,IBM,AECOM,UTC,CISCO,GE etc.) Industry representatives contributed to thediscussionbyofferingspecificinputsontheopportunitiesand challenges in retrofit, brownfield and greenfieldprojectsforU.S.privatesectorengagement.

The visiting American companies on the delegationincluded:

• AlcoaInc.–NewYork,NY

• AquatechInternational–Canonsburg,Pennsylvania

• Black&VeatchPvt.Ltd.–OverlandPark,Kansas

• Convalt–NewYork,NY

• DanaherHolding(DHR)–Washington,D.C.

• Ecolab/NALCO–StPaul,Minnesota

• EITechnologies,LLC–Parker,Colorado

• MasterCard–Purchase,NY

• MilbankManufacturing–KansasCity,Missouri

• Opower,Inc.–Arlington,Virginia

• OwenscorningIndiaPrivateLimited–Toledo,Ohio

• Qualcomm–SanDiego,California

• S2Global-OSISolutions–Torrance,California

• Silver Spring Networks, Inc. – Redwood City,California

• SmartCitiesCouncil–Redmond,Washington

• Turner Project Management India Pvt. Ltd. – NewYork,NY

• ULLLC–Northbrook,Illinois

• XylemInc.–RyeBrook,NY

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(LtoR)Mr.BruceAndrews,AmbassadorRichardVerma,Ms.LeeZakandMr.RaymondJ.Ellis

Mr.BruceAndrewsaddressingthemeeting

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Participantsfromourmembercompanies

Ms.MadhviKataria(AmCham)addressingthemeetingMr.SanjeevGupta,ManagingDirectorHealth&PublicServiceandCorporateAffairs,AccentureServices,moderatingthesession

Breakfast Rountable of AmCham Pharmaceuticals Committee Members with Sh. Arvind Kumar, Principal Secretary (FAC), Government of Telangana

On9th February 2016, a breakfast roundtablemeetingwiththeAmChamPharmaceuticalsCommitteememberswasorganizedinHyderabad.ThemeetingwaschairedbySh.ArvindKumar,PrincipalSecretary(FAC),GovernmentofTelangana.

Themeetingwasorganizedasanaction item from thelast AmCham Pharma Committee conference call inwhichitwasdiscussedanddecidedbythememberstostart engaging with state governments. Telangana andMaharashtrawerethetwostatesidentifiedbymembersfortheengagement.

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MemberspresentduringthemeetingincludedMr.SanjivNavangul,Chairman,AmChamPharmaCommitteeandMD,JanssenIndia,Mr.NickMitchell,Co-Chair,AmChamPharma Committee and MD, Phenomenex India, and

representativesfromMSDIndia,KPMGUK,KPMGIndiaandafewmembersfromHyderabadChapter.FromtheAmCham secretariat, Mr. Gaurav Mendiratta, attendedthemeeting.

Breakfast Rountable of AmCham Medical Devices Committee Members with Sh. Arvind Kumar, Principal Secretary (FAC), Government of Telangana

On10thFebruary2016,abreakfastroundtablemeetingof the AmChamMedicalDevicesCommitteememberswasorganized inHyderabad.Themeetingwaschairedby Sh. Arvind Kumar, Principal Secretary (FAC),Government of Telangana andMr. Prabal Chakraborty,Chairman,AmChamMedicalDevicescommitteeledthediscussionsfromAmChamside.

After the successful joint workshopwith the Telanganagovernment health department last year, AmChammembersof themedicaldevicescommitteewerekeen

foraninteractionwiththekeystategovernmentofficialsandhenceAmChamorganizedthismeeting.

The meeting was well attended by AmChammedical devices committee members and includedrepresentativesfromBostonScientificIndia,StrykerIndia,AbbottHealthcare,KPMGUK,BDIndia,KPMGIndiaandSt. Jude Medical. From the AmCham secretariat, Mr.GauravMendirattaandMs.SandyaRodriguesattendedthemeeting.

(L toR)Mr.SanjivNavangul,Chairman,AmChamPharmaCommitteeandMD,Janssen India,Mr.ArvindKumar,PrincipalSecretary(FAC),GovernmentofTelangana,Mr.UtkarshPalnitkar,Heal-LifeSciences,KPMGIndia,Mr.NickMitchell,Co-Chair,AmChamPharmaCommitteeandMD,PhenomenexIndia,Mr.ChristopherStirling,GlobalChairman,KPMGLifeSciences

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(LtoR)Mr.VibhavGarg,Head-HEGA,BostonScientificIndia,Mr.RakeshSharma,Head-RA,BDIndia,Mr.PrabalChakraborty,Chair,AmChamMedicalDevicesCommitteeandVPandManagingDirector,BostonScientificIndia,Mr.ArvindKumar,PrincipalSecretary(FAC), Government of Telangana, Mr. Utkarsh Palnitkar, Head Life Sciences, KPMG and Mr. Badri Nepali, Marketing Manager-Diagnostics,AbbottHealthcare

AmCham Smart Cities Meet hosted by the Government of Andhra Pradesh

On 12th February 2016, the Government of AndhraPradesh hosted a smart city meet, in associationwith AmCham and U.S Commercial Service, inVisakhapatnam. The objective was to facilitate adialogueon India-U.S.partnerships for thevisitingU.S.trade mission delegation and for AmCham membercompanies. About 45 AmCham member companiesparticipated in the industry-government meet. At theinauguralsession,ChiefSecretaryS.P.Tuckerexplainedindetailtheinvestmentopportunitiesindifferentsectorsinthestate.AmCham,representedbyProgramDirectorShivani Raina, introduced the AmCham Infrastructure and Energy Capability Deck which functions as a richresourcebaseoutliningthecompetitiveandcuttingedgetechnologiesof30Americancompanieswithexpertise,products,services,know-howandsolutionsinthefieldofinfrastructure,energyandsmartcitydomains.

LeadingtheU.S.tradedelegation,AmbassadorRichardVerma, in the inaugural session said that the U.S.

governmentwasalsoreadytoextenditscooperationinthedefense andmanufacturing sectors. The year 2015made thebilateral relationsof theUSAand India reachnewheightsandhehopedthat2016wouldturnouttobeyearofimplementation,healsosaidthattradebetweenIndia and theU.S. is expected to reach $500 billion infuture,fromthepresent$100billion.

TheChiefMinisterofAndhraPradeshgracedtheoccasionwithhispresenceandwitnessed the signingof aMoUbetweenU.S. Trade andDevelopment Agency and theDepartment of Municipal Administration on funding fordrawingupamasterplanforVisakhapatnamSmartCity,andaconsortiumofthreeU.S.companies,comprisingofAECOM,KPMG,andIBM.Undertheagreementreachedbetween theU.S. and Indian governments, theUSTDAwouldbefundingthepreparationofamasterplanforthesmartcitiesofVisakhapatnam,AjmerandAllahabad.Inthefirstphase,USTDAwouldbefunding$1.4millionforthemasterplanforVisakhapatnam.

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Speakingontheoccasion,ChiefMinisterMr.NaidupointedoutthattheIndianmarketprovidesplentyofopportunitiesfor investment and invited the U.S. companies visitingthecityaspartofthesmartcitiesinfrastructuremissionto India to invest in the state. Offering an investor-friendly atmosphere and administration, he said, thatthe government will facilitate the companies willing towork there. Mr. Naidu said Vizag would be developedintooneofthefinestsmartcitiesinthecountrywiththeassistance of the U.S. offering great opportunities for

VizagSmartCityMasterplanMoUsignedbyPrincipalSecretary(Municipal Administration) Mr. Karikal Velavan and CountryManagerofUSTDAMs.HeatherKLaniganinthepresenceofChiefMinisterandDirectorofUSTDALeocadiaZak.

Chief Minister Mr. Chandrababu Naidu felicitates partnersAmCham, FCS and USTDA for their support and robustparticipationintheUS-IndiaPartnershiponSmartCities.

PrincipalSecretary(MunicipalAdministration)Mr.KarikalVelavansigningthemasterplanningcontractwithAECOM,KPMGandIBMrepresentatives

theU.S.companies.MunicipalAdministrationMinisterPNarayana,PanchayatiRajMinisterChAyyannaPatrudu,HRDMinisterGanta Srinivasa Rao, Chief Secretary SPTucker, Commissioner GVMC Pravin Kumar, MLAs,MLCsandanumberofseniorofficialswerepresentontheoccasion.

Vizag is one of the 20 cities named by the centralgovernmentlastmonthunderthefirstphaseofthesmartcitiesprogram.

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Meeting with Dr. (Ms.) Aruna Sharma, Secretary, DeitY

On12thFebruary2016, theCo-Chairmenof theAmChamICTCommittee,Mr.NaveenTandon,Director – IEA,AT&TCommunicationServicesIndiaPrivateLimited,andMr.VivekVasishtha, Country Leader – Government and RegulatoryAffairs,IBMIndiaPvt.Ltd.,accompaniedbyMr.RahulJain,SeniorManager–GovernmentAffairs&PublicPolicy,DellInternationalServicesIndiaPrivateLimitedandMs.MadhviKataria, Deputy Executive Director, AmCham, called onDr. (Ms.) Aruna Sharma, the newly appointed Secretary,Department of Electronics and Information Technology(DeitY),GovernmentofIndia,inheroffice.

The Secretary, DeitY said that shewould like to focus onexportsfromIndiaandmanufacturinginIndia.

AmCham members raised issues concerning safety andsecuritytesting,importofrefurbishedspares,cloudpolicy,publicprocurement,early releaseof IoTpolicy,encryptionpolicy,anddifficultiesofmanufacturinginIndia.Indiacouldbe made a manufacturing and exporting hub providedincentives were provided to make production exportcompetitiveandremoveanomaliescreatedduetoinverteddutystructure.

AmChaminvitedDr.SharmatoaddressAmChammembers.SheagreedandsaidthatshecouldaddressdifferentfocusgroupswithintheICTsector.

AmCham Conference Call on Companies Law Committee Report – 2016

On 18th February 2016, the Companies Law Committeesetupby theMinistryofCorporateAffairs recently issueditsreportsuggestingmanychangesintheCompaniesAct,2013.Tounderstandsomeof thekeyaspects that impactforeign companies doing business in India, AmChamorganizedacall.Thespeakerswere:

• Mr.VikasVasal,Co-Chairman,AmCham’sTax&TariffCommittee;andPartner,KPMG

• Mr.HarinderjitSingh,Partner,PwC

• Mr.VijayMathur,CharteredAccountant

Over 128 people participated. The presentations werefollowedbyinteractionwiththeparticipants.

CSR Committee Meeting

On 19th February 2016, the first committeemeeting ofthe year for theAmChamCSRCommitteewas held attheCISCOoffice,Gurgaon. Themeetingwas verywellattendedbynewparticipantsandhadalargeparticipationwith Mr. Deepak Jolly, Vice President - Venturing andEmergingBrands,Coca-ColaIndia,Chair,AmChamCSRCommitteeandMr.HarishKrishnan,ExecutiveDirector,PublicAffairs&StrategicEngagement, India&SAARC,CISCOSystems,Co–Chair,AmChamCSRCommittee,presidingoverthemeeting.

Mr. Deepak Jolly welcomed the attendees warmly andbriefed everyone about the committee objectives. Mr.HarishKrishnanthenaskedeachindividualrepresentativeoftheAmChammembercompanyhowtheyareutilizingthe 2% CSR budget. Other questions were addressedsuch as, is it compulsory to have a 3rd party (NGO)

involved for spending the 2%?Does government allowtheutilizationofthe2%inoneyear?Whatifacompanyisunabletoutilizeallthemoneysanctionedinoneyear?Theconclusionisthatonly30%ofthemoneysanctionedtobeutilizedforCSRactivitiesinayearmustbespentandtherestcanbecarriedforward.Alsothefinance/accountsdepartmentmakesitdifficultattimeswiththeirstringentpolicies.Itwasawonderfulinteractivediscussionwhereall companiespresentdiscussed these issues inopen.Wearehopefultotakethisbacktothegovernmentandrightauthoritiesandsoonhaveasessionwithsomeonefromtheministrywhocanhelpourmembers ingettingsomehelpsoon.

Mr. Jolly also stressed the importance of partnershipsandfindingsynergies forworking together, theprocessofhowandovercomingchallengesofcollaboration.Prof

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Mr.DeepakJolly,CocaColaandMr.HarishKrishnan,Ciscopresidingoverthemeeting

CSRRepresentativesfromvariousAmChammembercompanies

AmCham supports National Conference on Export Controls

On22nd–23rdFebruary2016,AmChamwasasupportingpartnerfortheMinistryofExternalAffairs(MEA)organizedNational Conference on Export Controls in Bangalore.The event brought together themajor business entitieshandlingdefense,dual-use itemsandtechnologies, therelevantGovernmentofIndiaofficialsincludingfromMEA

and DGFT, as well as export control experts from theU.S.,JapanandGermantodiscusstheSCOMETexportcontrol system, recentupdates toSCOMETand India’sengagementwiththemultilateralexportcontrolregimes(Nuclear Suppliers Group, Missile Technology ControlRegime,WassenaarArrangementandAustraliaGroup).

Jack Sim, Founder, World Toilet Organization, gave usinsightonhealthandhygieneprojectsrevolvingaroundeducatingpeopleonefficientuseoftoilets.Alsowehad

Ms.Lee-AlisonBlumSibley,anactivistwhoshowcasedher CSR project ‘Mamoon and Lee and the World InBetween’whichoriginatesinKolkata.

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Meeting with Joint Secretary DOMW, Mr. Harbans Lal Khera

On 23rd February 2016, AmChamDefense CommitteemembersmetwithMr.HarbansLalKhera,JointSecretary,DefenseOffsetsManagementWing,todiscussindetailrecommendations submitted by the AmCham Defense

Committee on amendments to DPP 2013. The JointSecretary requested for more clarification on multipliersuggestionsproposedbytheteam.

AmCham and EY Fraud Investigation & Dispute Services Breakfast session on ‘Compliance trends witnessed in 2015 and the judicial process’

On25thFebruary2016,theAmChamAnti-CorruptionandFCPA Compliance Committee, in partnership with EY,hostedaveryinterestingsessionon‘Compliancetrendswitnessedin2015andthejudicialprocess’inMumbai.

Mr. Kiran Jadhav, Former Deputy Inspector General,CBIandSuperintendentofPolice,CBIspokeextensivelyon challenges faced by law enforcement agencies orregulators in addressing risks of fraud and anti-briberyand corruption. He explained all various laws andenforcementsfollowedbythejudiciaryprocess.

Mr. Vinay Garodiya, Director, Fraud Investigation &DisputeServices,EYIndia,gaveapresentationentitled

‘Alookbackinto2015andwhattoexpectin2016’whereheinformedusonthefollowing:

• Trendsobservedinprosecutioncasesin2015

• Recentregulatorychangeswithrespecttocorruptionandcompliancerisks

• Whattoexpectin2016?

WealsohadMs.KulbirKaur,Director,FraudInvestigation& Dispute Services, EY India, who spoke on risingneedofe-discoveryandhowtomanagethedocumentreviews.ThesessionwaswellattendedandpeoplewereappreciativeofourfirstFCPAsessioninMumbai.Wearehopefultodomuchmoreinothermetrostoo.

Mr.KiranJadhavspeakingatthesession

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AmChamFCPASession,Mumbai

Mr.VinayGarodiyaaddressingtheattendees

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Ms.YoginiJoglekar,Asia-PacificDirector,MountbattenInstitutegivingapresentation

Defense Committee Meeting

On 25th February 2016, AmCham Defense Committeemembers met to take action on the points raised byJoint Secretary DOMW,Mr. Harbans Lal Khera, duringthemeetingwithAmChammemberson23rdFebruary

2016. The members discussed submitting a detailedrecommendation to the ministry with the focus on themultiplier suggestion to encourage investment andindigenization.

Expert Session on Global Mobility and Talent Management: Trends and Trend Reversals

On 26th February 2016, the AmCham HR Committeehadanengagingsessionon‘GlobalMobilityandTalentManagement:TrendsandTrendReversals’byMs.YoginiJoglekar, Asia-Pacific Director, Mountbatten Institute.Yogini extensively talked about talent engagement andmobilityandthekeyissueswhichAmericanMNC’switnessallthetime.Shediscussed‘Theworldofwork’whichismulti-generational,multi-geographicalandmulti-culturalandhowitleadstocriticaltalentissues.Globalmobility

and the transformational learning/internationalizationmodelwhichworkswellwithcorporates.She remarkedonthestepstodealwiththisinternationalizationmodelsofar.ShealsotookupatalentcasestudyonMountbattenInstitute where she informed the committee on theprogramoverview,clients,andstructure,itskeysuccessfactors andpartnershipprocesses. Itwasanengagingsessionandwehopetooffersimilarsessionsinthefuture.

ECP meeting with Ms. Meredydd Evans, PNNL (U.S. Department of Energy)

On 29th February 2016, an ECP meeting was heldwith Ms. Meredydd Evans, Senior Staff Scientist, JointGlobal Change Research Institute, Pacific NorthwestNational Laboratory (PNNL) to discuss the EnergyConservationBuildingCode(ECBC)SeminarorganizedinVisakhapatnam.ThisseminarwasheldtopromoteECBCawarenessinVizagandproviderecommendationsoncodeadoptionandimplementation.TheVishakhapatnamUrban

Development Authority (VUDA) and U.S. Department ofEnergy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)jointlyorganizedthisseminaratVizagandaswellasoneatGIFTcityGujarat.ECPmembershaveexpressedinterestinthesetwocitiesforECBCpromotionactivitiesandintendtoengagewiththeDepartmentofEnergyanditslabsfortheir other upcoming programs for ECBC promotion inothercitiesi.e.AhmedabadandDelhigoingforward.

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KOLKATAAmCham – USIBC Interactive Breakfast Briefing at the Bengal Global Summit

On 8th January 2016, AmCham and USIBC organisedan InteractiveBreakfastBriefingat thePanAsian in theITCSonarBanglafortheUSIBCdelegationandAmChammembers. The briefing session commenced with anintroduction by Mr. Ajay Singha, Executive Director,AmCham, who began with an overview of AmCham’ssupporttotheBengalGlobalBusinessSummit.HetheninvitedMr.JoydeepDatta,Partner,Deloitte,tomakehisopeningremarks.Mr.JoydeepDattastatedthatBengalisrichinnaturalresources,agriculturalcommodities,foodgraincultivation,jute,marineproducts,inlandaquacultureandhumanresources.HeaddedthatBengalmustbuildonitsstrengthsasithadgreatpotential.

The next speakerwasMr.DineshAgarwal, Partner, EYIndia,andChairman,AmChamEasternRegion,whosaidthatBengalisnowopentobusinessandthereisabuzzintheairaboutthefavourableeconomicconditionsinthestate.

Mr.AjaySinghatheninvitedMr.SanjayNayaar,leaderoftheUSIBCdelegation,andCEO,KKRIndia,tomakehisremarks.Mr.Nayaar stated that things are changing inBengalandtheperceptionisgoodnow,albeitthereisalotmorethatneedstobedone,giventhepotential thatthestatehasforeconomicdevelopment.

DineshAgarwal,Chairman,AmChamEasternregiongreetsPrincipal Secretary Mr. H.K. Dwivedi IAS at the breakfastbriefingsession.

Mr.SanjayNayaar,Leader–USIBCdelegationindiscussionwithPrincipalSecretary,Mr.H.K.Dwivedi

PrincipalSecretary,Mr.H.K.DwivediIASgivingthespecialaddressduringthebreakfastbriefingsession

The special invitee from the Government of WestBengalwasMr.H.K.Dwivedi, IAS, Principal Secretary–Finance,whoat theoutsetstated thatBengal isnowpoisedforgrowthandalothasbeendonebythepresentgovernment.HementionedthatthoughlandisanissueinBengal,giventhehugepopulationandthepressureonlandavailability,thestategovernmenthasalandbankofover4,000acresearmarkedforthemanufacturingsector.He added that due to certain unfavorable instances inthepast,thereisaperceptionissue,whichneedstobemanagedproactivelyandthattheBengalGlobalBusinessSummitwilladdresstheseissues.Hesaidthatthestateis on thegrowth trajectory and that thebureaucracy is

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empowered.ThestatehasseveralprojectsunderthePPPmode, while government expenditure on infrastructureandthesocialsectorhasgrownseveralfold.Mr.Dwivediadded that thegovernment isnoweasilyapproachableandinvitedinvestorstoseeBengalinadifferentlightandtoridethegrowthinBengalbyinvestinginthestate.

Consul General Mr. Craig L. Hall began by recallingthat the United States has a historic and commercialrelationship with Kolkata that goes way back to 1792,when the first diplomatic and commercial post wasestablished in Kolkata. He added that the U.S.-Indiarelationship is on track to grow into a truly definingrelationship encompassing many spheres spanningacrosseducation,economic,tourism,business,defenceetc.,ofwhichtheeconomicrelationshipisthefoundation.HeaddedthattheoldstoriesofinertiainBengaldonotholdgoodanymoreand thestateneedsmoreFDI.Hewent on to say that domestic businesses are happy inBengal and that today there is competition betweenstates to attract investment. He said that a strongrelationshipwiththeneighbouringstatesofBangladesh,Nepal,Myanmar andBhutan is good for India. ConsulGeneralCraigHallemphasized thatwhat Indiaand theU.S.workingtogetherintheareasofhealth,environment,educationetc., is incredibleand ismore thananyothergeo-politicalrelationship.

Duringtheinteractivesession,Mr.MallikofCISCOextolledtherichandvariedresourcesofBengalanditwasforthestate government to work on perceptionmanagement,talk about success stories and leverage technology toleapfroginthegrowthindex.HeaddedthatCISCOhasrecorded45%growthYOYintheeasternregionanditisthebestinthelast5years.

Inresponse,PrincipalSecretaryDwivedisaidthatthestatehasaclearplantoimprovetheeaseofdoingbusiness,dispelling negative perception, adopting technology,developing a growth oriented ecosystem and work onmediamanagement.

Mr.SanjayNayyarsaidthatperceptionoverridingrealityandclearlytheneedwastosortoutissueswithrespecttolandandindustrialrelations.

Mr.RajatBanerjiofAmwaystatedthathiscompanywasproudof the fact that theirbusinessmodel isprovidinglivelihood to hundreds of thousands in Bengal and theEastofIndia.

Mr. Ashish Bose of RDSI mentioned that infrastructureprojectsshouldbeexpeditedwithinthesettimeframeforpeopletoseeprogress.Headdedthatthecostofdoingbusiness inKolkatawas the lowestwhen compared toothermetros.

Mr. DebashisChatterjee ofCognizant said that BengalwasmissingthebusbynotpermittingSEZ’stooperateinthestate.

In response, Principal Secretary Dwivedi said that thelandissueisanationalissueandthattheLandReformsAct needs to be amended. He added that only themanufacturing sector required large chunks of land,which was available with the state and can be givenonacase-by-casebasis.Headded thatcroppingwasextensive in thestateand thepressureon land ishigh.On labour, he said that there has not beena single IRissueinthelast5yearsinthestate.Ontheeaseofdoingbusiness,hesaidtheFactory Acthasbeenreformed,asinglewindow systemhasbeen introduced for speedyclearances,landconversionandlandmutationhavebeenmade transparent and is beingdone in a specific timeframe.Thestateiscontinuallyimprovingandimprovisingtoo he said. The Principal Secretary also said that thepower situation in the state is very good and over Rs.13,000croreshasbeenspentoninfrastructure.Thereistransparencyinconductingbusinesswiththegovernmentande-tenderingisnowmandatoryforallprocurement.

On the SEZ issue, Principal Secretary Dwivedi repliedthat there isageneralaversion toSEZ’s inBengaland

Dr. Sudip Kumar Sinha IAS, Joint Secretary – FinanceandMr.H.K.Dwivedi, Principal Secretary at thebreakfastbriefingsession

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that thesubject is still beingdiscussed.Headded thatwhenGST is introduced, nothing is exemptedand thatthereisnoincentivesasfarastaxisconcerned.Hesaidthatthestateisconsideringopeningofcoalminingandintroductionofapolicyforextractionofironoreandotherminerals.HeaddedthatthestatehasapprovedapolicyforadeepseawaterportatSagarIslandandaJVisonwith35%stateequity.

Onskilldevelopment,SecretaryDwivedisaidthatthestatehasbuiltacapacityfor16lakhpeopleinlowandsemi-skilledtradesandhasaconditionalplacementpolicyinforce.Headdedthat341ITI’sand100polytechnicsinthePPPmode have been operationalised and the secondNASSCOM incubation center is being established inKolkata.

Mr.AjaySinghathankedallparticipantsfortheirtimeandvaluable inputsandrequested thePrincipalSecretary ifAmChamcanbeginadialoguewiththestategovernment,byconductingasurveyamongstAmChammembersinBengal on issues that they needed a resolution,whichcould then be discussed with the government withPrincipal Secretary Dwivedi as the point of contact.Mr.Singha thankedMr. JoydeepDattaandDeloitte forgraciously agreeing to sponsor this breakfast briefingsession.

All participants then proceeded to Milan Mela for theopeningplenarysessionoftheBengalGlobalBusinessSummit.

Mr.AjaySingha,ExecutiveDirector,AmCham,makingopeningremarksduringtheinteractivebriefingsession–apreludetotheBengalGlobalBusinessSummit

ConsulGeneralCraigHallmakinghisopeningremarks

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AmCham supported The Bengal Global Business Summit 2016

SomeoftheAmChammembersthatparticipatedinthesummit

AmChamIndiasupportedtheGovernmentofWestBengalat the BengalGlobal Business Summit held in Kolkatafrom8th-9thJanuary2016.Theprimarypurposeof thesummitwastoattractU.S.investorstodobusinessinthestateandasaprelude,AmChamhad jointlyorganizedroadshowsfortheWestBengalgovernmentinNewDelhiand Bangalore. These events were well attended andinterestwasevident, thanks tosupportof theAmChamNationalSecretariat.

The2daysummitwasagreatsuccess in termsof theinvestmentintentionsannouncedatthevenue.Proposalsworth a total of Rs. 2,50,263.74 crore was made in

manufacturing and infrastructure, mining, transport,powerand renewableenergy, tourism, fisheries,animalresources,MSME,urbandevelopment,IT,ITES,telecom,higher education, healthcare and medical education,foodprocessing,technicaleducationandtraining.

AmongsttheAmChammemberswhomadeinvestmentproposals were TCG, which made a commitment ofRs.22,000croreinthemanufacturingsector,whileHewlettPackardhastiedupwithHIDCOinapilotproject,toworkinthetelemedicinesector.AdemonstrationunitwouldbesetupbyHPwherepeoplewouldreceivediagnosticandtreatmentfacilitiesfreeofcost.

MoreAmChammembersatthesummit

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(Far left)Mr.DeepakJolly,VicePresident–VenturingandEmergingBrands,Coca-Cola,addressingthemeeting

CSR’s Contribution to West Bengal and North East India and Possible Partnerships

On 22nd January, 2016, in Kolkata, the U.S. ConsulGeneral, Mr. Craig Hall, hosted a meeting at hisresidence with members of AmCham on CorporateSocialResponsibility(CSR).HeopenedthemeetingbywelcomingmembersandaskingabouttheinitiativesthatAmerican companies in the eastern region are driving.Mr.DeepakJolly,CSRCommitteeChairman,AmCham,attended themeetingandexplained the functionof theCSRcommitteeandtheroleCoca-ColaundertakesbothinIndiaandglobally.

Mr.DineshAgarwal,EasternRegionChairman,AmCham,and Mr. Ashish Sen, member of AmCham’s EasternRegionExecutiveCommitteealso spokeabout the lawthat govern theCSR activities and the issues involved.TheyexplainedthatundertheCompaniesAct,2013,anycompanyhavinganetworthof INR500croreormore,oraturnoverof INR1,000croreormore,oranetprofitof INR5croreormore,hastospendat least2%ofthelast 3 years average net profits on CSR activities, asspecified in Schedule VII of the Companies Act, 2013.

Theygaveexamplesof theirowncorporationactivities.Representatives of Deloitte, KPMG and Genpact werealsopresentandspokeaboutthevariousaspectsoftheCSRactivitiestheirorganizationhaveundertaken.

Roundtable Discussion on “GST – Impact Areas and The Way Forward”

On 5th February 2016, the AmCham Eastern Regionand their knowledge partner, EY, hosted a roundtablediscussion on “GST – Impact Areas and The WayForward”attheEYofficeinKolkata.

The discussion opened with Mr. Dinesh Agarwal,Chairman, AmCham Eastern Region and Partner Taxand Regulatory Services, EY, welcoming members.He explained the concept of GST (goods and servicetax)andsaid thiswouldbeoneof themostsignificanttax reforms post-independence. He said that GST isexpected to replace the current complex central andstate indirect taxes to recreate a common market forIndia.Heexplainedthatthiswouldalsohaveanimpactonprices,businessprocessinvestmentandprofitabilityinallsegmentsoftheeconomy.Hesaiditwouldalsohelpforeign investorswanting in invest in the Indianmarketsasthecurrenttaxsystemisaverycomplexone.

Mr.SiddarthJain,ExecutiveDirectorIndirectTax,walkedmembersthroughthevarioussegmentsoftheGSTandsaid that itwillalsoentailashift in theway taxpoliciesare made. He said that an integrated approach wasimportant for business to understand the impact ofthe proposed changes. He said, “GST will have touchpoints across critical areas of indirect tax costs, ERPconfiguration, people training, supply chain re-design,pricing, margins, working capital requirements besides

(LtoR)Mr.JonathanWard,PrincipalCommercialOfficer,U.S. Consulate, Mr. Siddarth Jain, Executive DirectorIndirectTax,EY,Mr.DineshAgarwal,Chairman–EasternRegion,AmChamandPartnerTax&RegulatoryServices,EY, Ms. Amada Kidwai, Regional Director, AmCham,Mr.AvisekhJaiswal,Sr.ManagerIndirectTax,EY

changes inprocess,controlsandaccounting.All thesewouldrequiremonthsofseriousengagementfromseniormanagementwithproactiveplanningwhiletheycontinuetooperatetheirexistingbusiness.”

TheinteractivesessiongeneratedalotofquerieswhichwereexplainedindetailbybothMr.AgarwalandMr.Jain.ThesessionconcludedwithavoteofthanksbyMr.K.P.Sengupta,Director,DataCoreandexecutivecommitteemember, who suggested that more sessions on GSTare important to help members understand the directimplications.

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On 29th February 2016, the American Chamber ofCommerceEasternRegionorganisedthelivescreeningoftheBudgetSpeechbytheHon’bleFinanceMinisterat‘TheBengalClub’.ThebudgetspeechwasattendedbyAmChammembersvizindustrialistfromvarioussectorsandtaxexpertsfromtheBigFour.

Mr. Dinesh Agarwal (Chairman of AmCham EasternRegion and Partner, Tax & Regulatory Services, Ernst& Young LLP) welcomed the members and post thebudgetspeechbytheFinanceMinister,invitedreactionsofmembers from industry. The overall reaction of thememberswasthatthereismuchtalkabout“MakeinIndia”andtheFinanceMinister’sproposaltoprovidebenefitoftaxfreeinitialyearsforthestart-upsandreducedrateofcorporate tax for newmanufacturing companieswouldprovide support to the initiative. Moreover, the focusof the budget was majorly on the agricultural sectorincluding benefits for farmers and social sector andspendingonthesetwoprioritiesshouldresultinincreaseinemployment.

Inadditiontotheabovecomments,expertsfromtheBig

Annual On-The-Spot Analysis on the Budget 2016-17 with Knowledge Partners EY

Fourshared their viewsonpersonal tax, corporate tax,internationaltax,andindirecttaxproposals.

Onthedirecttaxfront,asperMr.DineshAgarwal,“TheintroductionofPOEMwhichwas likely tobe introducedfrom1April2015hasbeendeferredforoneyearwhichis a good move. He also mentioned that the intentionof the government is to takemore tax from super richwhich is evident from increase in rate of surcharge onsuper rich individual from12% to15%and levyof10%taxonindividualshavingdividendincomeofmorethanINR10lakhs.”Thoughtheabovewerethefirstreactionand observations on the Finance Minister’s speech,Mr.DineshAgarwalsaidthattoknowtheintricaciesoftheaboveproposals,thefineprintneedstobeseen.

Ontheindirecttaxproposals,Mr.PulakSahasharedhisviewsandsummedupthelistofitemswhichwouldnowbecome expensive like cigarettes, SUV cars, brandedclothes,etc.

TheeventwasconcludedwiththevoteofthanksbyMr.SuranjanBhanja.

Memberswatchingalivescreeningofthebudgetspeech

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An AmCham Exclusive: Interview with Mr. Krish Iyer, President and CEO, Wal-Mart India

Mr. Krish Iyer PresidentandCEOWal-MartIndiaPrivateLimited

vegetables, dry groceries, personal and home care,hotel and restaurant supplies, clothing, office suppliesandother generalmerchandise items. Theassortment,service and layout of the stores are customized tospecificneedsofmemberswhocanwalkinandsourcehighqualityproducts inthequantitiestheyneedandatthetimetheyrequire.

Q3. Tell us about your sourcing strategy and localization. How do you encourage and work with small suppliers?

Oneofthekeyreasonsforourinternationalsuccessisthefactthatineverylocationwhereweoperate,wearelocal.Wecarrylocalproductsfromlocalsuppliersthatappealto local tastes, local needs and local fashions. As awholesalecash-and-carrybusiness,weworktodeveloplocal suppliers and create local beneficiaries along thesupplychain.ManyofoursuppliersinIndiahavealreadycreatedtheirownsuccessstoriesandestablishedglobalquality, scale and standards purely because they nowhavetheopportunitytosupplytoglobalretailchainslikeWalmart.

More than 95% of our products are sourced fromwithinthecountry.WedealwithalmostallmajorFMCGcompaniesandwithseveral regionaland localplayers.Wehaveexamplesofhowsmallsuppliersinsomestateshave grown profitable and bigger by doing businesswithus.With‘responsiblesourcing’beingapriorityarea,thedevelopmentof suppliers, in termsofhelping themcomplywithlawsofthecountryaswellasupgradetheirfacilities,making themunderstand the rightandethicalwayofdoingabusiness,isequallyimportantforus.

Havingsaidthat,weworkaspartnerstoprovidethebestqualitymerchandise to our customers and henceworktowardsawin-win.Throughconsistenteffortsandtraining

Q1. Please share a little about the very exciting phase of growth for Walmart India over the years and how you see its growth trajectory going forward.

Toprovideyoualittlecontext--startinginJanuary2014,webecamea100percentsubsidiaryofWalmartStoresInc. and our entire focus, currently, is on growing thecash-and-carry business. We operate 21 stores underthebrandnameofBest Price Modern Wholesale Stores. Weproposetoopen49additionalBestPricestoresoverthe next five years, taking the total count to 70 clubs.Our21storesarelocatedin19differentcitiesin9statesspanningnorth,south,centralandwestIndia.

Thefocusisalsoonprimarilygrowingthebusinesswithresellersor`Kiranas’as theyplayavery important rolein theeconomyof thecountry. Idoseeuscontributingtowardsmaking the `Kiranas’ more efficient andmoreprofitable. We will also continue to service our othertwocorecustomersegments i.e. thehotels/restaurants/caterers(HoReCa)andofficesandinstitutions(O&I)asapartofourbusinessmodel.

Wearebuildingaworldclassoperationinthecash-and-carrybusiness,bringingglobalexpertiseandcontributingtothesuccessofourmembers.

Q2. Which are the main product categories at your stores and what is your assortment mix?

BestPriceModernWholesalestoresofferanassortmentof around 5,000 items, including food and non-fooditems, which are available at competitive wholesaleprices, allowing small businesses, retailers, ‘Kiranas’and business owners to lower their cost of operationsandmaximize their revenues.A typicalBestPricestorestandsonapproximately50,000squarefeetandsellsawide range of fresh, frozen and chilled food, fruits and

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tomeet global food and other safety standards, someofour suppliershavebeenable togrow theirbusinesssignificantlyandfindnewopportunitiestosupplytonewpartners.

Q4. Walmart is very committed to women’s economic empowerment. Please shed light on some of the initiatives undertaken by Walmart India in this regard.

Walmart has an ongoing commitment to empoweringwomen around the world and helping women-ownedbusinesses succeed and grow. In September 2011,Walmart launched its Global Women’s EconomicEmpowerment (WEE) Initiative, using its unique sizeand scale to improve the lives of underserved womenand help women-owned businesses (WOBs) succeedandgrow.Aspartoftheinitiative,Walmartcommittedtosource$20billionfromwomenforitsU.S.businessanddoublesourcingfromwomeninternationally.

InIndiatoo,wearehighlyfocusedandareincrementallyincreasing our sourcing from WOBs. Sourcing fromWOBscontributestoourreputationforgreatassortmentand quality local products, and we are always lookingforopportunitiestoincreaseoursourcingfromWOBs.InOctober2015,welaunchedthe‘women-owned’logotoidentifyproductsmadebyWOBs.WeareveryproudofthisinitiativetohelpbringrecognitiontoproductsmadebyWOBsthatarecertifiedbyWEConnectInternational.

We have launched an innovative entrepreneurshipdevelopmentprogramforWOBswiththeaimofenhancingtheir skills, capability and sustainability. Our partnersWEConnect International and Vrutti will implement the

training program. This initiative is designed to helpwomenentrepreneursachievehigher levelsofbusinessgrowth through a training curriculum, which will bedelivered through workshops and mentoring sessionswith technical experts, established WOBs, academicexpertsandbusinessmanagers. Thefirstphaseof theprogram will include participation of 25 WOBs in theregionsofDelhi,UttarPradesh,Punjab,AndhraPradeshandTelangana.

In addition, we are piloting yet another womenentrepreneurship development program in AndhraPradesh. Under this program, we will leverage ourexpertise and knowledge to guide and advise aspiringwomenentrepreneursinstartingmodern‘Kiranas’storesin their communities by contributing our knowledgein retailing to develop a strong network of womenentrepreneurs.Variousaspectsofsettingupandrunningtheir businesses (stores) including marketing, financialandleadershipskillswillbepartofthisinitiative.Wehopetoincludemanysuchmodulestothisprogramtoenablethemtoserveconsumerswithaffordable,safeandqualitymerchandise.

Besides,wewillshortlyintroducesofterpaymenttermsforWOBsinoursupplychain.Thiseasingofpaymentterms,whichwillbeavailablefortheirfirstyearofempanelmentwithWalmart Indiawill helpWOBsbettermanage theirworking capital needs, have more stock, and investmoneyforfundingandscalinguptheirbusinessesetc.

Wehope that throughour initiatives,wewillmake theirlivesbetter.

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MUMBAI

On 13th January 2016, the meeting began with Ms.SurabhiWahalwelcomingthemembers.Mr.NikhilKushsharedafewwordsontheachievementsofthecommitteein theyear2015and thepositivepotential that thenewyearholds.

The month’s sharing and learning concall led by Ms.ShilpaRamanathan,Head-SupplyChain atBard IndiaHealthCare Pvt. Ltd., focused on the consignmentandSECM (sale on extended credit)model for fluencybrand in India undertaken at Bard India. Through thepresentation,Ms.Shilpawentontoexplaintheinnovativemodelwhichhas resulted in significant improvement inservice levels, exceptional business growth, increasedservicevalueandhelpedininventorymanagement.The

SECM model which is a business process change inlieu of consignment process was developed to ensurecompliance with taxation rules. The interactive Q & Asession that followed addressed queries about theimpactof themodelwithin thespheresofsupplychainanddistribution.

The meeting carried forward with a discussion andsharingof thoughts, toput togetheraplanofactionbythecommitteeduringtheyear2016.

Mr. Nikhil Kush closed the meeting by thanking thememberspresent,withspecialgratitudetoMs.Shilpaforsharingherexpertiseon thenovelan innovativesupplychainbestpracticefromBardIndia.

AmCham’s Supply Chain & Logistics (SCL) Committee Sharing & Learning

Roundtable on GST - Impact Areas and The Way Forward

On 5th February 2016, the American Chamber ofCommerceinIndiainpartnershipwithErnst&YoungLLPorganisedaRoundtableonGST-ImpactAreasandTheWayForwardinMumbai.

The session began with Ms. Surabhi Wahal, RegionalDirector-WesternRegion,AmChamIndia,welcomingtheparticipantsandthesession’sspeaker-Mr.SureshNair.ItwasfollowedbyMr.SudhirKapadia,NationalTaxLeader,Ernst&YoungLLP,whousheredinthetopicthroughhisopeningremarksstatingthatGSTisindeedgoingtobea‘gamechanger.’

Throughathoroughlyinsightfulpresentation,Mr.SureshNair, Tax Partner- Indirect Taxes, Ernst & Young LLP,shardhisexpertviewsontheimpactareasandthewayforward.Withafocusonaholisticbusinessimpact,thepresentationbroughttolight:

• KeydriversandchallengesforthecurrentIndirecttaxstructureinIndia

• Advantages of an ideal GST system in a federalstructure

• AsummaryofchangesinCGST,SGSTandIGST

• The salient features of the proposedGST such asdualGST,interstatesupplies,minimumexemptions,additional1%taxandcreditsundertheGSTregime

• Thecentral taxandstatetaxthatwillbesubsumedinGST

• Thecurrentdebateson the jointcommittee reportson business processes, the regulations, payment,refunds and returns, taxable base and exemptproductsamongothers

• Potential impact areas for business such as theprocurementformanufacturingandservices

Participants present engaged in an interactive Q & AsessionwhichansweredseveralqueriesfromchallengeswithvendorswhoarenothighlyITenabledtocompliancesanddisclosuresintransactions.

TheroundtableconcludedwithMs.ShilpaRamanathan,Head –Supply Chain, Bard India HealthCare Pvt. Ltd.,giving thevoteof thanks.While thankingAmChamandEYforhostingtheevent,sheextendedspecialgratitudetoMr. Hitesh Sharma, Tax Leader, Ernst & Young LLP,for creating this platform enabling AmCham members

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Roundtable with the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, Dr. Raman Singh & Senior Officials from the Government of Chhattisgarh

On15thFebruary2016,duringthe‘MakeinIndiaWeek’in Mumbai, AmCham India, in partnership with theConsulateGeneral of United States inMumbai, USIBCandEY(knowledgepartnerofthe‘MakeinIndia’event)organized a series of roundtable meetings with theHonb’leChiefMinistersandseniorstaterepresentativesfromthestatesofChhattisgarh,MaharashtraandMadhyaPradesh.TheRoundtablewiththeHon’bleChiefMinisterofChhattisgarh,Dr.RamanSingh&SeniorOfficialsfromtheGovernmentofChhattisgarhwasthe1stofthethreeroundtablesheld.

U.S.ConsulGeneral,Mr.TomVajda,beganthesession

by welcoming the Honb’le ChiefMinister and the staterepresentativesofChhattisgarh,USIBC,AmCham Indiaandtheparticipants.Mr.CGTomVajdathenwelcomedMs.SurabhiWahal,RegionalDirector-WesternRegion,AmCham, who through her remarks thanked theGovernment of Chhattisgarh for the opportunity tointerface with AmCham members. Ms. Wahal alsoremarked on the smart city initiative that has been inprogresswithAmChammembersandtheGovernmentofChhattisgarh.ThiswasfollowedbyMr.BrandonBanner,Sr. Manager, Policy Advocacy, USIBC, who thankedtheHon’bleChiefministerfortakingthetimetodiscussopportunitiesforinvestmentinChhattisgarh.

(LtoR)Dr.RamanSingh,Hon’bleChiefMinisterofChhattisgarh,Mr.TomVajda,U.S.ConsulGeneral,Mr.SamitRay,Director-GovernmentAffairs,UnitedTechnologiesCorporation,Ms.SurabhiWahal,RegionalDirector-WesternRegion,AmChamandMr.SridharanMani,Director&CEO,AMIIndia

to begin preparing for the new law. Ms. Ramanathanalso thankedMr. SureshNair for the highly informativeand interactive session that presented a closer look atthe implication of the GST law. She also thanked theparticipantsforengagingwholly,thusbringinginvarious

industryperspectivestocreateatrulyvaluablesession.

Ms.SurabhiWahalalsotooktheopportunitytoinformallyinvite thosepresent toapostbudgetevent thatwill beorganizedbyAmChaminpartnershipwithErnst&Youngon2ndMarch2016.

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Dr.RamanSingh,Hon’bleChiefMinisterofChhattisgarh

sharedabrief keynoteaddresspresenting thepromise

thatChhattisgarhhastooffer.Topresentthisfurther,he

invitedChiefSecretary–Chhattisgarh,Mr.VivekDhand,

toshowcaseapresentationtitled‘CredibleChhattisgarh.’

The presentation brought insight to the various facets

of thestate from its robusteconomicgrowth, its status

as the best fiscally managed state, its GSDP and per

capitaincome,andplanfortheremovalofpoverty.Italso

highlighted the state’s current status and proposals for

infrastructureinrail,road,air,water,electricity,agriculture

and education. Mr. Dhand brought to light investment

enablers in the ease of doing business and the focus

sectors for business - food processing, engineering,

defense, logistics and warehousing, IT and ITeS,

renewableenergyandapparels.

AnopendiscussionmoderatedbyMr.BrandonBanner

brought forth queries on skilled development and

opportunities, proposals for the implementation of the

smartcities initiative, ideas todevelopeducation, focus

on IT and even exporting energy from Chhattisgarh to

otherstates.

The insightful roundtable concluded with Mr. CG Tom

Vajda urging members to continue the open dialogue

between business and government and looks forward

to a follow-up meeting on investments in the state of

Chhattisgarh.Mr. CG Vajda expressed gratitude to the

Hon’bleChiefMinisterofChhattisgarh,Dr.RamanSingh

andseniorofficialsfromtheGovernmentofChhattisgarh,

AmCham, USIBC and the participatingmembers for a

fruitfulandinteractivemorning.

Roundtable with the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Mr. Devendra Fadnavis and Senior Representatives of the Government of Maharashtra

On16thFebruary2016,theroundtablewiththeHon’ble

ChiefMinisterofMaharashtra,Mr.DevendraFadnavisand

seniorrepresentativesoftheGovernmentofMaharashtra

was well attended by member representatives of

American companies across diverse industrial sectors.

The session began with Consul General Tom Vajda

welcoming the roomonbehalfof theU.S.Consulate in

Mumbai.Ms.SurabhiWahal,RegionalDirector-Western

Region, AmCham, made brief remarks on AmCham’s

500activemembers engaged in smart city efforts and

‘MakeinIndia.’Mr.BrandonBanner,Sr.Manager,Policy

Advocacy,USIBC,alsosharedhisremarksonthekeen

interestsofUSIBCmembersinfacilitatingbusinessinthe

StateofMaharashtra.

TheHon’bleChiefMinisterofMaharashtra,Mr.Devendra

Fadnavis, began his address by thanking the U.S.

Consulate,AmCham,andUSIBCformakingthisinitiative

takefruit.HestatedthattheGovernmentofMaharashtra

engages dynamically and progressively across the

industry.Mr.Fadnavissharedhisfervortowardthesmart

city initiatives in Maharashtra, the state government’s

plansfortheMMRDAregion---makingitapowerhouse

withefficientinfrastructurethatisintegratedwithagreat

backbone,theITsystem.Inthedialogueonsmartcities

andinfrastructure,membersweregivenabriefsynopsis

onCIDCOprojectsunder thesmartcity initiativewitha

highlightonfourfocussectorsforanysmartcity,building

basicinfrastructure,urbanmobility,strongITbackbone,

solidwaste/liquidwastemanagementandwatersupply.

Mr.SukantiGhosh,Co-ChairAmChamWesternRegion

Committee, and Managing Director, APCO Worldwide

IndiaPvt.Ltd.,moderatedtheroundtableandcalledupon

leadersofAmericancompanies to take theopportunity

to share their experiences as well as pose queries to

the Hon’ble Chief Minister and representatives of the

Government of Maharashtra. The session was truly an

interactiveandengagingsessionbetweenbusinessand

government.

TheroundtableconcludedwithConsulGeneralTomVajda

sharingavoteof thanksandstatedhisconfidencethat

thismeetingwillactasastimulanttoabrightcommercial

relationship.

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(LtoR)Mr.RohitMarkan,Director(Sales)DowCorningIndiaPvtLtd,Ms.SurabhiWahal,RegionalDirector-WesternRegion,AmCham,Mr.TomVajda,U.S.ConsulGeneral,Mr.DevendraFadnavis,Hon’bleChiefMinisterofMaharashtraandMr.SukantiGhosh,ManagingDirector,APCOWorldwideIndia

On17thFebruary2016,theroundtablewiththeMinisterofCommerce,Industries&EmploymentMs.YashodharaRajeScindiaandseniorrepresentativesoftheGovernmentofMadhyaPradesh,thelastofthe3sessionsorganizedbyAmChamIndiainpartnershipwithConsulateGeneralofUnitedStates inMumbai,USIBCandEY(knowledgepartner of the ‘Make in India’ event) commenced withCGTomVajda’sopening remarksushering in theopendiscussionbetweentheGoMPandAmericancompanies.ThiswasfollowedbywelcomeremarksandintroductionsbyMs.SurabhiWahal,RegionalDirector-WesternRegion,AmCham,andMr.BrandonBanner,Sr.Manager,PolicyAdvocacy,USIBC.

Ms. Yashodhara Raje Scindia began her address byacknowledging the opportunity to present the state ofMadhyaPradesh to theAmericanstakeholderspresentattheroundtable.Ms.ScindiadwelledonherexperienceinthestateofMadhyaPradeshbystatingthefourstrongL’s- leadership, labour, location and landmass, thatmake Madhya Pradesh a land of amplified businessopportunities thus converging social and economicbenefits. A presentation on investment opportunitiesin Madhya Pradesh titled ‘Madhya Pradesh - Heart ofIncredible India’ was shared by Principal Secretary -Department of Commerce, Industry and Employment,GoMPMr.MohammedSuleman,whichbrought to lightthe geographical, financial, economical and judicial

Roundtable Meeting with the Hon’ble Minister of Commerce, Industries & Employment Ms. Yashodhara Raje Scindia and Senior Representatives of the Government of Madhya Pradesh

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(LtoR)Ms.SurabhiWahal,RegionalDirector-WesternRegion,AmCham,Mr.JunZhang,CountryManager,IFC,Mr.TomVajdaU.S.ConsulGeneral,Ms.YashodharaRajeScindia,Hon’bleMinisterofCommerce,Industries&EmploymentandMr.SukantiGhosh,ManagingDirector,APCOWorldwideIndia

strengthsofthestate.Mr.Sulemanalsofocusedonthe4 main sectors for business in Madhya Pradesh: foodprocessing sector, IT and ITeS, electronic hardware,manufacturing, urban development and renewableenergy. The presentation concluded with Mr. Sulemanstating thatMadhyaPradeshoffers ‘simplifiedsolutionsandamplifiesopportunities.’

Thiswas followedbyaQ&AsessionmoderatedbyMr.Sukanti Ghosh, Co-Chair AmCham Western RegionCommittee, and Managing Director, APCO WorldwideIndiaPvt.Ltd.,whichwasatimeofexperiencesharing,

solutions tobusinessqueriesandpresentationof ideasbybothindustryrepresentativesandthestate.

An exchange of contacts between the GoMPrepresentatives and members of American companiesbrought the Q&A session to a close, with Mr. Ghoshthankingtheparticipantsforanengagingsession.

CGTomVajdasharedthevoteofthankswithahopeofthismeetingbeingabeginningofanongoingdialogue.He also welcomed members to approach the U.S.Consulate, AmCham andUSIBC asmediums to reachthegovernment.

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HYDERABAD

On 9th February 2016, AmCham organized thisprogram on business continuity with Ernst & Young inHyderabad.Thefocusforthissessionwasonoperations,management and crisis management – reaction, firststepswhenthecrisishitsyourather thanthetraditionalbusinesscontinuityjourney.

Thekeyareasanorganizationshouldlookatarebusinessresilience, emergency response planning and entiremanagement teams.Who is thefirstpersonyouwouldcall inyourorganizationduringadisaster?Hasitbeentested?Arerolesandresponsibilitiesdefined?

Itcanbeavirusattack,flooding(whetherinMumbaiorChennai),atsunami,aterroristattacketc.Therecanbeafinancialcrisis–istheSWATteamreadytofacethecrisis?

Look at planning for these four critical areas with anelectronic and physical surveillance system; (for twotypesofdisasters–inflationofaccounts,earthquakeorChennaiflood,wherethecommunityatlargeisaffected)

Ensure you have alternate contact numbers of hotelreception, is thereanyotherway for us tobe reached,coordination with the neighbourhood organization orlocalauthoritiesisnecessary;proactivemonitoringetc.

Business Continuity Program with Ernst & Young

Asectionoftheaudience

JaspreetSinghofErnst&Youngspeakingaboutbusinesscontinuity

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AmCham Annual Day 2016

On 19th February, 2016, the AmCham Annual Day2016 was held at HICC Hyderabad. The Chief Guestfor the occasion was Mr. K T Rama Rao, the Ministerfor Information Technology, Panchayati Raj andMAUD,GovernmentofTelangana.TheGuestofHonorwasMr.MichaelMullinstheConsulGeneraloftheU.S.ConsulateHyderabad.Mr.JayeshRanjanIAS,SecretaryInformationTechnology,GovernmentofTelangana,wasalsopresent.

At the event 15 American companies received awardsfor beingwinners and runners in the Sports Event thatconcluded on 15th December, 2016. Also, the 3rd

AmCham Healthcare Conference position paper washandedovertotheMinisteratthisevent.

EmployeesfromAmChammembercompanieslikeDSTandDeloitte put up a danceprogramand an acousticperformancetoenthraltheaudience.InternationalPaperwasoneofthesponsorcompaniesforthisevent.

Mr. Michael Mullins thanked AmCham for inviting himand was happy that K T R was the Chief Guest. Hesaid Hyderabad branch promotes investment in thecity and supports and advocates on behalf of its

Mr.MichaelMullins,U.S.ConsulGeneral,Hyderabad,addressingtheaudience

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members.AmChammakesbusiness tobusiness tiesagreatprosperity forbothU.S.and India. AmChamhasbeenagreatsupporterof thegrowingU.S.business inHyderabad. AmChamcaresdeeplyandengages inallkindsofactivitiesfromCSRtosportingeventstoculturalprograms. He continues to be amazed by AmCham’sleadershiptomakeHyderabadagreatplacetolive,workandplay.

TheMinistermentioned thatweareproud that the twolargest democracies are working together – U.S. andIndia.WehavetwoproactivegovernmentsinbothDelhiandHyderabad.TheproofliesinthefactthatHyderabad

asacityishometo5ofthelargesttechnologycompanies.AppleismakingaforayintoIndiaandHyderabadwillhostits development centre. Amazon is in Hyderabad too.The American Ambassador plans to the launch the ITPolicysometimeinthemiddleofMarch.WearelookingforwardtoalotofprogressivepoliciesandbestpracticestobeimbibedwehavelearntandseenwhilehereandintheU.S.Lotsofsynergiesandlotsofpossibilities.TheMinistercongratulatedAmChamontakingsportsasanimportant objective of the Annual Day. Hyderabad iscreating about 30 kmof cycling track alongside of theexpresswayonparwithinternationalcyclingcircuit.

AdanceperformanceattheAnnualDay

GuestsenjoyingthefestivitiesAnacousticperformance

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Mr.KTRamaRao,MinisterforInformationTechnology,PanchayatiRajandMAUD,GovernmentofTelangana,lightingthelamp

Ms.SandyaRodrigues,RegionalDirector,AmCham,addressingtheaudience

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BANGALORE

Over the years Invest Karnataka has come to signifysuccessful partnerships and comprehensive andsustained developments. In this edition too, they calluponvisionaryleadersandglobalcorporationstoexploreopportunitiesinKarnataka.

The Invest Karnataka 3rd to 5th February 2016 wassupportedbyassociations,corporateheads,industrialists,internationaldignitaries,politiciansandwasinauguratedbytheUnionMinisterforFinance,CorporateAffairsandInformationandBroadcasting,Mr.ArunJaitley.

The three day event included focused sectoral, themeandpartnercountryseminars.Focussectorsshowcased,withveryhighgrowthpotential included:manufacturingincluding automobiles, aerospace, machine tools,defenceandheavyengineering;informationtechnology,bio-technology and electronics; agro food processing;textiles and garments; smart cities and urbaninfrastructure;infrastructure;energyincludingrenewableenergy;tourism.

Highlights of the three days event were the sectoralsessions, partner country /state sessions, B2B/B2Gnetworkingopportunitiesandtheexpo.

AmCham represented and associated with theiraerospace and defense sector with our speakers Mr.Inderjit Sial, President &MD, Textron, andMr.MuneshMakhija, Chairman & Managing Director, GE IndiaTechnologyCentre,representingthepanel.AlsoNareshShah,VicePresident,HPIndiaSoftwareOperation,wasthekeynotefortheITsector.

We alsomet theHon’ble CMwith a delegation on thefirstdayoftheeventandsubmittedawhitepapertotheChiefMinisteronfacilitatingfuturebusinessinKarnataka,functionality and ease of doing business in Karnataka,thewayforwardonthependingissuespresentedbytheAmericanChamberofCommerceinIndia.

The meeting with the Chief Minister of State, includedthe Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary Department ofIndustries&Commerce,PrincipalSecretaryDepartmentof Revenue and AmCham was represented by InderjitSial, Chairman - Karnataka Chapter, President & MDTextron,MuneshMakhija,CMD,GE,NareshShah,VP,HPIndiaSoftwareOperation,IqbalSait,MD,SaggezzaandtheRegionalDirectorforthechapter.

Theeventwitnessedthesigningof121agreementsandKarnataka has managed to get Rs. 1.33 lakh crore ofinvestments at the fourth edition of its global investorsmeet(GIM)inthis3daymegaevent.

The state government, however, secured 56 percent ofthetotalinvestmentworthRs.1.75lakhcroreduringthelast three years that were approved by its high powercommittee and single window agencies of variousdepartments.

"Thetotalinvestments(Rs.3.08lakhcrore)wegarneredwillgenerate6.7lakhjobsacrossthestate,"Deshpandesaid. Admitting that mobilising investments was acontinuousprocess,hetoldthedelegatesthatthestate'sfocuswason implementingprojectssince theprevious

AmCham supports Invest Karnataka 2016 - Global Investors Meet organized by the Government of Karnataka

Healthcare Committee Meeting for 4th AmCham Healthcare Conference

On22ndFebruary2016,thecommitteeforthehealthcareconference, slated to be held on 16th September,metatEliIndiaGlobalServices,HiTechCitytodiscussandbrainstormonthethemeandtheareaswewouldliketoseeaddressed.

Themembers decided to broaden the base to include

pharmaandlifesciencestoo.Deliberationisstillon,forthethemewhichwouldbeeither–globalintegrationwiththesubthemerelatingtoepidemicorepidemicwiththesubthemerelatingtoglobal integration–endstage lifethreateningdiseases (captureandslowdownprogressof the disease) covering bio similar, data integrity andquality.

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CongressgovernmenthadlaunchedtheGIMin2000.

"OftheRs.27,000croreinvestmentsreceivedthen(2000),proposalsworthRs.18,000crorewereexecutedwith66percentimplementationrate,"saidDeshpande,whoheldthe same portfolio in the then Congress government(1999-2004).

The investments are in the state's focus sectors- manufacturing, pharma, bio-technology, IT, agri-business,urbaninfrastructure,infrastructureandtourism."Investments will be made across the state, includingBellari,DakshinaKannada,RamanagaramandDaksinaKannada,"assharedbyMr.R.V.Deshpande.

Corporate Members

Ms. Shirsha GuhaDirector

Saint James HRDS India Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Reddy MallediManaging Director

CDK Global (India) Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Jaideep MukherjiCEO

Smart Power India

AmCham Welcomes New Members

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Time(Tentative) Topic Speakers

0930hrs–1000hrs Registration

1000hrs–1015hrsWelcomeaddress&introductionof

speakersAjay Singha

ExecutiveDirector,AmCham

1015hrs–1030hrsThemeintroduction&subjectoverviewof

sessions

Anand S. Dayal ChairpersonFCPACommittee,AmCham,

Partner,Koura&Co.

Ritika Ratti Co-ChairpersonFCPACommittee,AmCham,SeniorDirector,ChiefEthicsandCompliance

Officer&HeadofAnti-Corruption

1030hrs–1115hrs

Session 1: ToptrendsingovernmentalFCPAandanti-corruptionenforcementandin-house

corporatetrendstoaddressthem

Nidhi Rao-ConsultingDirector,BDOVasu Muthyala-Kobre&Kim

1115hrs–1130hrs Networkingtea

1130hrs–1215hrs

Session 2:Recentcasesinvolvingthird-partyagentsandprovidingduediligence–lessons

learned

Julia Bailey–ConsultingMD,BDOPriyanka Sharma Goswani–Partner,DuaAssociatesAlexandra Wrage-CEO,TraceInternational

1215hrs–1300hrs

Session 3:Governmentalguidanceandbestpracticesforcorporatecompliance

programs(andhowtodomorewithless)

Julia Bailey–ConsultingMD,BDO

1300hrs–1400hrs Networkinglunch

1400hrs–1500hrs

Session 4: Leveragingforensictechniquesanddataanalyticstominimizecostandmaximize

effectiveness

Nidhi Rao-ConsultingDirector,BDOAashish Gupta–Partner,BDOIndia

1500hrs–1600hrs

Session 5: BestpracticesformanaginggiftsandhospitalitiestobettercomplywiththeFCPAandotheranticorruptionlaws

Aashish Gupta-PartnerBDOIndiaPriyanka Shama Goswani–Partner,Dua

Associates

Anti-Corruption Compliance and Risk Management Master Class 2016

28th April, 2016 - Hotel Imperial, New Delhi

***Fees:AmChammembers–INR7,000+taxesandnon-members–INR10,000+taxes

Fordetailsandregistration,pleasecontactParidhi@[email protected]

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Regional Secretariat

National Secretariat

Mr. Ajay SinghaExecutive Director

Email : [email protected]

Mr. L.N. Agarwal Senior Manager & OSD


Ms. Paridhi Goel Thakur Program Lead


Ms. Tanya PaulCommunication Director


Ms. Sudeshna Ghosh Regional Director - Karnataka Chapter


Ms. Ruth Sandya RodriguesRegional Director - Hyderabad Chapter

E-mail : [email protected]

Mr. Yeshi DorjeeManager (Publications & Logistics)


Ms. Madhvi KatariaDeputy Executive Director


Ms. Mamta UppalMembership & Admin Manager


Ms. Shivani RainaProgram Director-ECP


Mr. Aubrey DanielsRegional Director - Tamil Nadu Chapter


Ms. Valerie Swope Program Coordinator


Mr. Gaurav Mendiratta Sector Manager – Medical Devices Email : [email protected]

Ms. Udaya Arun Program Manager - Aerospace & Defense


AmCham Team

Ms. Surabhi WahalRegional Director - Western Region

E-mail : [email protected]

Ms. Amada Kidwai Regional Director - Eastern ChapterE-mail : [email protected]

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