1. Best Time to Be in India: PM Modi to World
Reiterating his government's commitment to facilitate ease of doing business, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, 18 January, told the global investor community that this was the best time to be in India.
PM Modi made the pitch while addressing leading national and global corporate honchos and political leaders at the Vibrant Gujarat Summit.
The PM said the summit had truly gone global. “Over the last four years, the focus of my government has been to reduce government and enhance governance. We have taken a number of drastic steps. So we continued to remain one of the fastest growing major economies in the world. We have focused on removing barriers, and will continue the pace and process of reforms and de-regulation,” he said at the three-day summit's inaugural session.
(Source: DNA)
2. Vibrant Gujarat Summit is a Fusion of Business & Culture: CM Vijay Rupani
Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Friday, 18 January, while speaking at inaugural function of the 9th Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, said the event has become a fusion of business and culture.
Rupani said, "This Summit is not only a platform of economic and business exchange alone, but also for cultural and people- to-people exchange. It is a fusion of business and culture. At the 9th Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit today this huge gathering is a reflection of the trust that you all have in the state and people of Gujarat."
Welcoming foreign dignitaries and business leaders at the Summit, the CM said, "MSMEs have been our backbone and strength. Like every year, they are present here in big numbers. You are going to bring employment to youth of Gujarat."
(Source: The Times of India)
3. More Than 400 People to Embrace Buddhism in Surat
Over 400 people will convert to Buddhism at a function to be organised by Buddha Dharma Diksha Angikar Samiti (BDDAS) in Surat on Saturday, 19 January.
Chief income tax commissioner Subacchan Ramsaheb will be chief guest at the function to be held at Mangal Pandey Community Hall, Godadara where 432 people from 125 families will be given their certificates.
More than 500 people had applied for conversion to the district authorities in the past five years. Police inquiries were also conducted to find out if they were forced to convert or doing it of free will.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. Congress Moves HC to Join Legal Battle of VS Hospital
After staging protests on streets alleging commercialisation of the V S Hospital and shifting its human resources to the newly built Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Hospital, the opposition Congress party on Friday, 18 January, approached Gujarat high court to join in a litigation by hospital’s donor trustees. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the state-of-the art hospital on Thursday. Various Congress leaders registered their protests in different parts of the city against the alleged commercialisation.
Dinesh Sharma, the leader of the opposition in the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), filed a petition in the high court requesting it to permit him to join the petition filed by Brijeshbhai and Rupaben Chinai, who belong to one of two donor families for Chinai Prasuti Gruh and Sheth Vadilal Sarabhai Hospital. The donor trustees have objected to the formation of Medical Education Trust (MET) by AMC, which according to the petitioners, was to divest them from the management of the two hospitals and enable AMC corporators, bureaucrats and politicians to take complete control of the trust. The move to disturb the trustee board took place by placing a member of the ruling party in AMC in place of the representative of the opposition.
(Source: The Times of India)
5. Gift City Third Most Promising IFSC Globally
Gujarat International Finance-Tec City (GIFT City) has been ranked as third most promising financial services centre globally, in a half-yearly report by The China Development Institute (CDI) in Shenzhen and Z/Yen Partners in London. Proposed unified regulator for GIFT City will also become a reality in about six months, said a top GIFT official.
Ajay Pandey, Group CEO of GIFT said the ranking will build confidence in investors for setting up operations in GIFT International Financial Services Centre (IFSC). GIFT IFSC made a debut in the main index of the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI). It ranked 77 in a list of 100 global financial centres and third in the list of 15 most significant centres. The rank takes into consideration five major factors namely business environment, human capital, reputation, infrastructure and financial sector development.
Interacting with media persons on the sidelines of the summit, Pandey said that the proposed unified regulator for GIFT will become a reality in about six months. Quoting Subhash Chandra Garv, secretary of Economic Affairs in the Government of India said that a Draft Bill on it is ready and consultations are going on. It is expected to get a nod of the Parliament in about six months.
(Source: DNA)
6. Baba Kalyani for Defence Firing Range in Gujarat
Gujarat should develop testing facilities and firing range for the defence sector, said Baba Kalyani, Chairman, CII National Committee on Defence.
Speaking at a seminar on 'Opportunities for Industry in Defence and aerospace', Kalyani called upon the industries to help create testing facilities and firingranges in Gujarat. "The biggest problem in India is the testing capability which needs to be developed. While we have some, we need more such ranges and facilities. Gujarat has a lot of lands, desert lying around a coast. I do not see any reason why we cannot have a firing range here to test missiles, guns and other equipment. It should be based on a user charge basis so that it does not become a burden on anyone", he said.
He added, "I have proposed this model to the government of Gujarat and industries can help us make this happen in creating such facilities."
(Source: DNA)
7. Adani Announces Rs 55,000 Crore Investment in Gujarat in Next 5 Years
Billionaire Gautam Adani Friday announced over Rs 55,000 crore investment in next five years in a clutch of projects in Gujarat including the world's largest solar park, a copper plant, a cement unit, and a lithium battery manufacturing complex. Adani Group, which operates Mundra port in the state, had Thursday announced plans to foray into petrochemical business with a Rs 16,000 crore project with German chemical major BASF. Speaking at the 9th Vibrant Gujarat Summit here, Adani said his group's investments in Gujarat in the past five years exceed Rs 50,000 crores and "we are further accelerating our investments.”
"Over the next 5 years, our investments will include the world's largest solar hybrid park in Khavda. The anticipated investment in this park is Rs 30,000 crore. "We also plan to establish a 1 GW Data Center Park in Mundra, a one million ton copper smelting and refining project, a cement and clinker manufacturing unit in Lakhpat, an integrated Lithium battery manufacturing complex and expand our Photovoltaic manufacturing capabilities. Overall, we anticipate a total of Rs 55,000 crore of investment in all these projects," he said. This will lead to the creation of over 50,000 new direct and indirect jobs in the state. The Rs 55,000 crore investment announced Friday does not include the petrochemical plant Adani plans to set up in a joint venture with BASF at Mundra. Headquartered in Ahmedabad, Adani Group is an integrated infrastructure conglomerates with interests in resources (coal mining and trading), logistics (ports, logistics, shipping and rail), energy (renewable and thermal power generation, transmission and distribution), agro (commodities, edible oil, food products, cold storage and grain silos), real estate, public transport infrastructure, consumer finance and defence sectors. Adani praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision saying he has "fundamentally restored confidence across the world that India will be the key engine for global economic growth."
(Source: PTI)
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