NEW YORK (TIP): The Haryana Chief Minister, Manohar Lal, has appealed to the non-resident Indians (NRIs) in New York to come forward and help in the development of their paternal villages and support the efforts being made by the state government. The NRIs could do so by participating in the Adarsh Gram Yojana, a Government of India scheme which has been adopted by the Haryana Government, he said.
Addressing the NRIs at a program held in New York, August 17, the Chief Minister said that the 15 MPs and 90 MLAs of Haryana were engaged in ensuring development of villages under the Adarsh Gram Yojana but the number of villages in Haryana exceeds 6,500. The NRIs of Haryana origin could adopt the remaining villages and help in their development.
Those present on the occasion assured the Chief Minister of all possible support.
Speaking at another event organized by Non Resident Indians to honor him in New York the Chief Minister said that in its 10-month tenure, the Haryana Government had formulated a new industrial policy. While people from India and the rest of the world connected to Haryana would invest under the policy, those from across the globe also consider Haryana an ideal state, whether they want to invest in a welfare project or achieve their targets by investing in an earning project, he said.
The Chief Minister said that Haryana has witnessed a remarkable growth in terms of infrastructure. While the State had only four National Highways till now, nine National Highways are being built to connect the districts. The State has an abundance of raw material for industries, which could be transported easily as a result of these new road projects.
The Chief Minister said that Haryana being an agrarian state, the setting up and promotion of agro-based industries, food processing, pharma, information technology, auto, defense production, aerospace and aircraft industries would remain a priority for the Haryana Government. “Agro-industries are being set up in Haryana. Besides, Haryana will work further with major companies like IBM, Harley Davidson and Hollister, which have more than 1,000 projects, so that our industries can advance in an appropriate manner,” he added.
Welcoming those investing in Haryana, the Chief Minister invited others to take advantage of facilities offered by the State and invest in Haryana.
Later, the Chief Minister , addressed investors at a meeting of the US India Business Council in Washington on August 19.
Emphasizing investment opportunities in Haryana, Chief Minister Manohar Lal said, “We strive to attract both international and domestic business in to the state of Haryana. To achieve this end, I am proud of the reform efforts that have gone in to making public services more efficient- land registration is now enabled through information technology (IT), long-pending land acquisition cases have been resolved and infrastructure construction is faster as evidenced by the completion of the Delhi-Faridabad Metro project and restarting of work on Kundli-Manesar-Palwal Expressway. We are pushing for policy reforms in a manner that will place Haryana as a business-friendly state and create jobs. I welcome American enterprise to be a part of our state’s growth.”
Lauding the vision of Chief Minister Manohar Lal, Mukesh Aghi, President of USIBC, said, “Since 2000, the state of Haryana has emerged as a major investment hub in Northern India. The city of Gurgaon is a key center for the information technology and automotive industries. The state’s Enterprise Promotion Policy 2015 aims at enhancing ease of doing business, promotes micro, small-scale and medium enterprises and encourages long-term investment in the state to flourish. All these measures are critical for not just enhancing the perception of doing business in India, but also indicate the reality of ease of doing business.”
Sonny Khurana, President and CEO of iTECH, a leading distribution company in the telecom sector, said, “Haryana, with its diversified economy and vibrant cities is well positioned to leverage initiatives such as Make in India and Smart Cities. Emerging markets are important for iTECH’s business model. A pro-growth government, under the visionary leadership of Mr. Manohar Lal, places Haryana as a strong hub for future investment opportunities.”
The round table discussion focused on key areas for investment promotion in the state that include energy related initiatives, aerospace, food processing, auto/auto components and mass rapid transport.
The event was attended by companies and senior leaders from every major sector of business-Blumberg Grain, IREO, Coca Cola, Wipro, Capital Novus, Cargill, Medtronic, Uber and Boston Scientific.
Commenting on the visit of Haryana Chief Minister, Rajiv Khanna, President of India-America Chamber of Commerce, a binational chamber of commerce which is the focal point of cross border investments between the U.S. and India, said: ” We continue to be optimistic that states like Haryana would lead the country towards growth, prosperity and a greater economic co-operation with the United States. This does not mean that we under estimate the challenge in achieving these goals, particularly those posed by the failure of the Indian Parliament to pass the much needed legislations during the recent monsoon session that would have expedited the realization of these goals. It only means that we expect the state chief minister and his team to rise to the challenge and make it happen even with this setback, because failure is not an option for India.”
On arrival in New York on August 16, Manohar Lal first went to the Memorial Tower in Downtown Manhattan and paid his homage to the victims of 9/11.
The Chief Minister was in time for the India Day Parade, believed to be the largest India Day Parade, outside India. He stayed for a while watching the floats pass by, greeting waving hand to the milling crowds and making a brief speech.
What exactly was Dr Aghi’s last date/month as CEO of L&T Infotech (Services Cluster)? There was this piece of news (Oct-Nov, 2014), that to the best of my knowledge was exclusive to ToI and ET . I have not seen this news in any other online publications of Live Mint, Business Standard, Financial Express, Hindu Business Line, CXO Today etc. Please refer, The Times of India article- Oct 22, 2014 – L&T Infotech joint CEOs quit Oct 22 2014 -. Excerpts: “The joint CEOs of L&T Infotech, Vivek Chopra and Mukesh Aghi, quit the company last week after two years at the helm –The reasons for the exit are not clear, but analysts noted that the leadership in the nearly $1-billion L&T Infotech had become very top heavy. Above the joint CEOs was V K Magapu, the managing director; and in May this year, the company appointed former Infosys senior vice-president Chandrashekar Kakal as COO”. Please refer, The Economic Times article – Nov 6, 2014 – L&T Info to hire joint CEOs by month end; but all decisions funnelled through AM Naik – Excerpts – “Joint CEOs Vivek Chopra and Mukesh Aghi leave the company last month, two years after they were appointed– To be sure, both Chopra and Aghi were not true CEOs in that they both reported to managing director VK Magapu, who then reported into Naik. Magapu was brought into the company in September 2012 after he retired from L&T.” ———————————————————————————————————-How about Dr Aghi’s well studied plans/targets of taking LnT Infotech to $1 billion revenue club by 2013 end and $3 billion in next 2-3 years i.e. 2015-16? As per recent report LnT Infotech is expecting to be in $1 billion (in revenues) club by mid 2016. Should we expect some credibility from business leaders like Dr Aghi. Where he has taken Steria India headcount and revenues as CEO, where he has taken LnT Infotech (services cluster) headcount and revenue as CEO of LnT Infotech (Services Cluster)? His exits from both these firms were quite shrouded, why he did not reach out to media to discuss about his tenures and exit at LnT Infotech and reasons why he failed to achieve the set target? Should we expect some transparency, accountability and credibility from business leaders? When Dr Aghi says he is bullish about India-US trade petition of $500 billion can it be taken at face value with seriousness? What is Dr Aghi’s breath taking performance CEO of Steria India and CEO of LnT Infotech (Services Cluster) that made him eligible for such important position with a substantial bearing on India-US trade potential of $500 billion??