สรุปข่าวเศรษฐกิจอินเดียประจำวันที่ 21 มกราคม 2557

Govt launches portal to better biz climate

Notwithstanding inter-ministerial differences, the government on Monday flagged off the second phase of its ambitious e-biz project, an integrated eBiz portal which would make doing business in India a lot easier. The portal allows potential entrepreneurs to do most of the formalities online  submitting forms, making payments, among others. They can also track the status of their requests through the portal. However, the ministries crucial for clearance of projects like the ministry of environment & forests (MoEF) are yet to become  part of the project, raising questions on how the hassles in doing businesses would be addressed. Launching the project, commerce and industry minister Anand Sharma said his ministry would soon approach the Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure (CCI) to bring resisting ministries such as the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF), on board. A commerce ministry statement said the eBiz platform enables a transformational shift in the government’s service delivery approach from being department-centric to customer-centric. The first phase of the project, which provided information on forms and procedures, was launched on January 28, 2013. The second phase, launched on Monday, has added two services from the Department of Industrial policy and Promotion – industrial licences and industrial entrepreneur’s memorandum – along with operationalising the payment gateway by the Central Bank of India. The portal will not only create a single-window for all registrations and permits, but will also provide investors with a checklist. The government hopes to bring online over 200 services related to investors and businesses over the next 10 years on the portal.

(Source: Business Standard)

Opposition states join PM Manmohan Singh's drive to revive investment

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's drive to spruce up the investment climate by freeing long-delayed projects from red tape hurdles has found new allies in seven state governments, which have created or are in the process of creating intensive project monitoring systems like the one created by the Cabinet Committee on Investments. Surprisingly, just two of those states that have decided to replicate the CCI systems in their own domains involve a Congress-run government Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. BJP-ruled states Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, along with the JD(U) and JMM governments in Bihar and Jharkhand, respectively, are the other states which have decided to emulate the UPA's drive to unlock stalled investments. The Nitish Kumar government in Bihar was the first to set up a state-level project monitoring cell for all investment and development projects of Rs 100 crore or more. The central government has decided to hold training sessions for key officials in charge of expediting projects within these seven states, on the automated project management system created under the CCI's ambit, said a senior government official aware of the development. Industry has urged all state chief ministers to consider creating similar mechanisms as those set up by the Cabinet Committee on Investments in order to revive India's growth story. It has emphasised that the role that states play in improving the country's investment climate cannot be 'overstated.' The Centre has already allowed state governments to forward key investment projects stuck in their jurisdictions for want of clearances at the Union ministry level to the PMG and the CCI. States like Gujarat, Odisha and Karnataka are putting together projects that could be fast tracked by the CCI's interventions.

(Source: Economic Times)

Govt mulls easing lending norms for developers

The finance ministry is evaluating a demand by highway developers for relaxing the lending norms for a host of projects rendered unviable by aggressive bidding and low traffic growth. The RBI, Indian Banks' Association and some of the largest lenders had earlier discussed the demand from developers, the projects of many of whom are also being considered for premium rescheduling. The department of financial services (DFS) in the ministry is learnt to be disinclined to accept the demand for creating a separate category of bank lending below base rate for them in a project's initial stage, saying such a move would be 'market distorting'. Sources said an internal meeting in the ministry on Tuesday will be chaired by finance minister P Chidambaram. The DFS, the nodal body for banking under the finance ministry, is also against another major demand of the developers, which is that they be allowed to defer servicing a portion of the interest amount during the initial period of 3-4 years without it triggering the non-performing asset provisioning as per prudential norms. The DFS, sources said, asked developers to hold negotiations with bankers independently and arrive at better lending terms and conditions till they tide over the crisis.

(Source: Financial Express)

Rupee down 8 paise; bonds rise, call rates end higher

In a dull and listless trade, the rupee on Monday lost eight paise to close the day at 61.62 against the dollar on demand for the US currency from importers. The domestic currency resumed lower at 61.65 a dollar from last weekend's close of 61.54 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market. It was trapped in a narrow range of 61.54 and 61.67 before ending the day at 61.62, a fall of 8 paise. Bonds rise, call rates end higher, Government securities bonds rose on buying support from banks and corporates and the overnight call money rates ended higher at the overnight call money market here on Monday, following sustained demand from borrowing banks. The 8.83 per cent government security maturing in 2023 shot up to Rs 102.04 from Rs 101.31 previously, while its yield declined to 8.52 per cent from 8.63 per cent. The overnight call money rate closed higher at 8.55 per cent from 7.25 per cent last Friday. It moved in a range of 8.80 per cent and 8.50 per cent.Call money rates finished lower at the overnight market.

(Source: Business Standard)

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