IACC Newsletter Welcomes 2012

Welcome 2012

IACC Newsletter
Issue #1, January 2012

By IACC Head Office, Mumbai

Index

Contents
 Index ................................................................................................................................ 2
 President’s Message ......................................................................................................... 4
 From the Secretary General’s Desk .................................................................................... 6
 Happenings at IACC ........................................................................................................... 7
 Indo-US Corporate News ................................................................................................. 23
Boeing looks to expand association with BEL ....................................................................................... 23
Intel Capital homes in on three Indian start-ups for investment ......................................................... 23
GAIL inks $20 billion deal with US firm ................................................................................................. 24
Reliance Industries to Enter Financial Services in JV with New York based DE Shaw .......................... 25
KFC overtakes Pizza Hut as Yum!'s largest brand in India .................................................................... 25
Kotak Mahindra Capital, Evercore Tie Up for Cross-border M&A Services .......................................... 26
Indo-US CEO Forum asked for FDI in retail: Govt. ................................................................................ 26
Pizza Hut to operate 250 restaurants in India by 2015......................................................................... 27
Dell to increase focus on small & medium businesses ......................................................................... 28
 India’s Investments in U.S ................................................................................................ 29
RIL Buys Stake in US Nuclear Reactor Design Company ....................................................................... 29
Ventureast Invests $5 Million in Orca Systems..................................................................................... 29
Aditi Technologies Announces Acquisition of Cumulux, Microsoft Cloud Partner of the Year ............ 29
 US investments in India ................................................................................................... 31
Goldman Sachs Acquires 6.47% Stake in Max India ............................................................................. 31
Morgan Stanley to pump in $125 million in Mumbai realty ................................................................. 31
Equity International to invest $75 million in SAMHI............................................................................. 31
Bunge Inc. To Acquire Edible Oil Business of Amrit Group for $ 78 million ......................................... 32
AptarGroup Inc. buys Hyderabad’s TKH Plastics for $18 million .......................................................... 33
US-based Briggs & Stratton Acquires Premier Power For $3M ............................................................ 33
HT Media and Apollo Global Inc., Form Joint Venture to Provide Educational Services ...................... 34
US Realty Co Portman Holdings Picks Stake in Pune’s Tuscan Estate................................................... 34
Omnicom Group Inc. Enters Agreement to Acquire Majority Stake in India's Mudra Group .............. 35
Caterpillar expanding in India: to invest $ 3 billion in next 5 years ...................................................... 36
Not-for-profit Teach For India Secures $2.5M From Omidyar Network............................................... 36
Norwest Invests $5 million in Former eBay India Head's E-com Start-up ............................................ 37
UTC Climate Acquires Controlling Stake in Agnice Fire Protection ...................................................... 38

 In the News..................................................................................................................... 39
Visa norms for expats working at senior positions relaxed .................................................................. 39
US appoints first woman Ambassador to India .................................................................................... 40
US University to launch residency Programme in India........................................................................ 41
US House approves bill seeking faster green cards for Indian tech professional’s news ..................... 41
Farokh Balsara, Ernst & Young India Media and Entertainment Leader to now lead the EMEIA ........ 42
Mr. Hemant Sonawala honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award by CSI …………………………………….42
HARMAN CEO, Dinesh Paliwal Receives Prestigious Corporate Leadership Award ............................. 43
US keen to partner with India on healthcare........................................................................................ 44
India is third-largest buyer of US arms ................................................................................................. 45
US, India advance bilateral relationship despite frictions .................................................................... 45
DGHI Receives USAID Award for Indoor Air Pollution Research........................................................... 47
US plans to provide technical assistance for setting up 30 agricultural hubs in the eastern states. ... 48
Anti-outsourcing US bill targets Indian call centers .............................................................................. 48
DuPont rejigs leadership in India .......................................................................................................... 49
Mahindra's US emission certificate to expire in December.................................................................. 50
India, US discuss economic, strategic cooperation............................................................................... 51
Moody's upgrades India's debt rating .................................................................................................. 53
India, US discuss civil nuclear and other issues .................................................................................... 53
USTR Announces Results of Special 301 Review of Notorious Markets ............................................... 54
 Indo-US Trade Statistics ................................................................................................... 56
 Calendar of IACC Events for 2011-12 ................................................................................ 58
 International Trade shows ............................................................................................... 59
 How to reach us: ............................................................................................................. 74

President’s Message

Change is the only constant. In the last two months of 2011,
S&P and Fitch downgraded several major banks. A couple of
days ago, S&P stripped France of its prized AAA credit rating
and downgraded eight other European countries. Global
economic turmoil continues. Natural disasters, climate
change, political unrest in parts of the world, economic
inequality etc. are growing.

In the midst of this each of us, individually and as a society, need to ask ourselves about the bigger picture.
Criticism of others is easy and therefore common, but largely meaningless. Self-assessment and contribution
to the common good can be far more meaningful. Adaptation to the realities of today, rather than rigidly
following systems and thought-processes that were put in place in a different era, are essential. Increased
trust and participation, rather than distrust and growing distance between stakeholders, can only help. While
checks and balances are important, these can also result in paralysis in action for fear of retribution. In the
USA and India we elect our leaders. Having done that, how do we support them?

What tools do we need to create more entrepreneurs amongst our youth? More thought leaders, and sharing
of positive thoughts rather than mindless criticism? Less greed and more compassion? A sense of security
through our education systems, rather than insecurities amongst the educated. How can IACC play a bigger
and better role as a bilateral chamber of commerce between two great countries and its people?
IACC continues to have meaningful events and interactions on various relevant issues. I mention some of
these below.

We supported the International Taxation Conference organized by Foundation for International Taxation (FIT),
which was held in Mumbai on 1st December, 2011. This provided an effective platform for informed debate on
the proposed Direct Tax Code, International Tax Structuring for Investing Abroad; Indirect Tax Development;
Anti-Avoidance Rules, Practices and Treaties; Transfer Pricing & recent International Taxation Developments in
India & abroad. The conference attracted 530 delegates from about 35 countries. Nearly 40 senior Indian
Revenue officials took part in the deliberations of the conference, with experts including Mr. R N Dash,
Director General, International Trade and Mr. Sanjay Mehra, India’s Competent Authority.

Our focus on development of SME’s and for bringing about synergy between Indian and US business is well
recognized. We have been organizing programs for SMEs across the country. Mr. Mitul I. Desai, Senior
Advisor for Strategic Partnerships, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, U.S. Department of State,
addressed a round table on SMEs held by IACC in Mumbai, 20th December, 2011. An IACC supported SME
Summit was organized on 8th December, 2011 in Ahmedabad. Importantly, a one-day sensitization Workshop
was jointly organized by Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, Varanasi Branch. MSME – Development
Institute, Varanasi and Ramnagar Industrial Association, Chandauli on the topic “Sensitization Workshop on
World Trade Organization (W.T.O.)” on 17th December, 2011.

IACC has been providing a platform for Indian and US experts for sharing information and expertise to make
our relationship more dynamic and sustainable. IACC’s Kerala branch, jointly with the National Institute of
Personnel Management, Trivandrum organized an interactive session with Ms. Jennifer A McIntyre, Consul

General, U.S. Consulate, Chennai, at Trivandrum on 12th December, 2011. Ms. McIntyre addressed the
audience on ‘Indo-US Economic Management’. She also addressed a meeting organized by IACC at
Pondicherry on Monday, 5th December, 2011 to explore opportunities in enhancing business ties between U.S
businesses and the City of Pondicherry. Mr. James Golsen, Principal Commercial Officer, Chennai Consulate
General presented an overview of the support of U.S. Commercial Service in India for promotion of Indo-US
trade.

Visa issues are often discussed. We provide a platform for direct interface with US authorities on this sensitive
matter. An update on U.S. business visas was given by Mr. Michael Cathey, Chief of Non-Immigrant Visas, U.S.
Consulate, Chennai on 5th December, 2011 in Pondicherry. A similar Interactive Session on US Visa
Applications and procedure was also held on 22nd December, 2011 at Kolkata, by the Eastern Regional Council
of IACC. Ms. Jessica Pfleiderer, US Vice Counsel, US Consulate, Kolkata addressed the meeting.

We have some excellent upcoming events and delegations. Let us work together to contribute to a better
tomorrow.

Anand Desai
National President, IACC

From the Secretary General’s Desk

Dear Members,

IACC has come a long way in rendering over 43 years of service to the nation, business, trade and industry. Our
goal is to make IACC a one stop-shop on Indo-US Business and Trade. We at IACC are constantly evolving and
addressing the industry needs and their expectations. In order to facilitate business collaborations we are
providing B2B services. I would urge you to register your organization under the B2B program if you have not
already done so.

IACC welcomes and looks forward to Ms. Nancy Powell as the US Ambassador to India. Ms. Powel is not only
the first woman to head the US mission in Delhi, but also the first career diplomat to take over the crucial post
in nearly 15 years. IACC has worked and interacted with her during her earlier stint as political counselor in
Delhi and as Consul General in Kolkata.

I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate our Past National Presidents Mr. Hemant Sonawala
on being conferred the ‘Life Time Achievement Award” by Computer Society of India and Mr. Farokh T. Balsara
on being appointed as the Media & Entertainment industry leader for Europe, Middle East, India & Africa
(EMEIA) region for E&Y. Based in Mumbai, Farokh has been Ernst & Young’s M&E Practice Leader in India.

This issue covers regular features like Indo-US Corporate News, Happenings @ IACC, Indo-US Trade Statistics,
IACC’s upcoming events, International trade fairs in USA & India amongst others. This newsletter is an
attempt to further the cause of increasing trade between Indo-US Business Houses. We hope you find this
endeavor useful and inspiring.

R.K. Chopra
Secretary General, IACC

Happenings at IACC

International Taxation Conference – 2011
December 1-3, 2011, ITC Maratha Hotel, Mumbai

Roy Rohatgi, welcoming delegates at the International Tax Conference 2011 supported by IACC at ITC Maratha Hotel,
Mumbai

R.K. Chopra addressing the audience during the conference

A section of the audience at International Taxation Conference

IACC supported the International Taxation Conference organized by Foundation for International
Taxation (FIT), held at ITC Maratha Hotel in Mumbai from December 1-3, 2011. There were 530
delegates with over a third of them from overseas from around 35 countries. Nearly 40 senior Indian
Revenue officials attended the conference, including Mr. R N Dash, Director General of International
Taxation, and Mr. Sanjay Mishra, India's competent authority, as speakers. On final day Mr. Mukesh
Joshi presided over the concluding session of the conference.

This conference encourages open dialogue for exchange of ideas between the taxpayers and tax
administration, which was also covered by Bloomberg TV Channel as media partners. Experts from all
over the world held discussions on Direct Tax Code; International Tax Structuring for Investing Abroad;
Indirect Tax Development; Anti-Avoidance Rules, Practices and Treaties; Transfer Pricing & recent
International Taxation Developments in India & abroad.

West India Council
Commemoration and opening of the new U.S. Consulate General Mumbai, on December 16, 2011

(L-R) Mr. Anand Trivedi, Regional Director, IACC-WIC; Mr. Anand Desai National President, IACC with Mr. William J. Burns,
U. S. Deputy Secretary of State at the commemoration and opening of the new U.S. Consulate General in Mumbai

SME Roundtable Discussion with Mr. Mitul Desai, Senior Advisor for Strategic Partnerships, Bureau of South
& Central Asian Affairs, U.S. Department of State on December 23, 2011, at the Jayant Dalal, Conference
Room, Churchgate, Mumbai.

Mr. Mitul I. Desai, Senior Advisor for Strategic Partnerships, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, U.S. Department
of State in round table discussion with the IACC SME and Committee Members and Dr. L. S. Kanodia, Regional President,
IACC – WIC.

Mr. Mitul I. Desai discussing & highlighting the importance of linking U.S. and Indian SMEs with IACC SME and Committee
Members.

Mr. Mitul I. Desai, receiving the memento of Lord Ganesha & a bouquet of flowers from Dr. Kanodia, Regional President,
IACC & Ms. Poorvi Chothani, IACC - WIC Committee Member & Managing Partner, Lawquest

Mr. Mitul I. Desai, Senior Advisor for Strategic Partnerships, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, U.S.
Department of State met IACC Regional President, IACC members and the secretariat on 20th December, 2011
at the IACC office for a round table discussion. The meeting was interactive and mainly focused on mapping
the landscape of how Indian SMEs think about their US counterparts, how do they learn about opportunities in
the US, the challenges and opportunities and variances in sectors.

Members shared their experiences and ways in which SMEs in India and the US could work together. Mr. Mitul
Desai thanked the members present and IACC for convening such an informative session.

Pune Branch
“Master keys that Control World Trade” a talk by Mr. Praful Talera on December 9, 2011

Mr. Praful Talera, M.D, Dynamic Logistics delivering the talk.

Crowd Interacting with Mr. Praful Talera during the session

Mr. Praful Talera being felicitated by Mr. Amarnath Mahashabde, Chairman, IACC-Pune

Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC), Pune Branch, invited my Mr. Praful Talera- MD Dynamic
Logistics, to present a talk on “Master keys that Control World Trade”.
Through his talk, Mr. Talera explained that there are certain specific points on the globe which are vital not
just for the conduct of world trade, commerce and economics but also its politics. These are the fundamental
premises on which everything in the modern world is based – its geopolitics as well as its geo-economics. The
British Empire at its peak controlled, of these choke points and the Ottoman Empire before them controlled.

“Innovation at Breakfast” Session – 4 on “Innovation for Emerging Markets” on December 16, 2011, at Le
Meridien, Pune

Mr. Amar Variawa, GM Manufacturing Services- John Deere Technology Center, addressing the audience

Mr. Variawa shared his views & examples on what elements of Innovation are important for countries like India and
where do they need to be assessed with a different perspective.

Panel Discussion & Interactive Session in progress

Panelists (L-R) Mr. Sunil Earath- VP Operations of Battelle India, Mr. Suresh Joshi – MD of Cache Technologies Pvt. Ltd.,
Mr. Prashant Pansare MD & CEO Inteliment Software Tech I Pvt. Ltd. & Mr. Amar Variawa

Mr. Ashutosh Parasnis, M.D, PTC Software (India) Pvt. Ltd. Interacting with the crowd, while seated are the panelists
during the Interactive session

IACC Pune Branch conducted the 4th Session of the Innovation at Breakfast Series at Le Meridien, Pune. The
topic for the Session was “Innovation for Emerging Markets” presented by Mr. Amar Variawa, General
Manager- Manufacturing Services, John Deere Technology Centre, Pune

The session was well received and attended by 25 participants of known organizations like Eaton Industrial
Systems Pvt. Ltd., Schlumberger, Vodafone, Battelle India, Deloitte Haskins & Sells, Inteliment Technologies
Pvt. Ltd etc. to name a few.

Gujarat Branch
SME SUMMIT-2011, December 8, 2011 at Cambay Grand, Ahmedabad

(L-R) Mr. Nanda Nandan Mahapatra-VC, Textile Association India, Ahmedabad Unit (TAI), Mr. Sunil Kakkad, Chairman,
IACC Gujarat Branch, Mr. Jaimin R. Vasa, President, Gujarat Chemical Association (GCA), Mr. Vishad Rahangdale, Chief
Information Officer, Electrotherm India

SME Summit was organized in Ahmedabad. This SME Summit helped participants to learn how to set up and
grow a business, as well as business practices that lead to success. The conference was a platform for SMEs to
showcase their expertise, interact with colleagues and experts, along with learning about new opportunities to
be explored.

Following two enthralling panel discussions and three individual sessions formed the power packed agenda of
the summit.

A New Business Technology Paradigm: The New Promise of Information Technology

The panel discussion was chaired by Mr. Sunil Kakkad Chairman-IACC, Gujarat Branch. He gave a wide
spectrum of knowledge on why and how Technology should be adapted into your business, other speakers for
the summit were, Mr. Jaimin R. Vasa, President, GCA; Mr. Nanda Nandan Mahapatra, Vice Chairman, TAI; Mr.
Vishal Rahangdale, CIO, Electrotherm India, spoke extensively about technology.

The Changing Role of CFOs in SMEs

CFO is a financial conscience of the organization. CFOs can turn SMEs into strategically and smartly managed
with various financial and non-financial value drivers. This panel was addressed by Mr. Vikram Oza, Director-
Finance, Jindal Worldwide; Mr. Naveen Bohra, CFO, Metro Tel Work; Mr. Subir Basak, CEO, Celestial
Biologicals; Mr. Ashutosh Y Shukla, MD, Aerotherm Products. The highly enthusiastic delegates were
captivated with the first-hand perspective they got on some of the most essential aspects which defines the
survival, existence and growth of any business.

IACC, Gujarat Branch was Associate partner to the SME Summit organized by Silicon India at Ahmedabad.
Silicon India is 13-year old media firm. They publish two technology & business magazines—one in the U.S and
the other in India.
Expert’s opinion was “SME Summit Ahmedabad is a platform for the SME Owners to turn ideas into profitable
ones”. The Summit was followed by dinner

North India Council
Varanasi Branch
Sensitization Workshop on World Trade Organization (W.T.O.), December 17, 2011, at KLG Motiwala Smriti
Bhawan, Varanasi

CA Mukul Kumar Shah, Chairman, IACC, Varanasi Branch addressing the audience

(R-L) CA Mukul Kumar Shah , Mr. J.C. Pandey, Director, MSME – Development Institute, Allahabad, Mr. R.K. Chaudhary,
President, Ram Nagar Industrial Association, Chandauli, Mr. Indra Mohan Dubey, Joint Director of Industries, Varanasi
Mandal, Varanasi, Mr. D.K. Srivastava, Dy. Director In-charge, Br. MSME – Development Institute, Varanasi

Audience during the Programme

One day sensitization Workshop was jointly organized by Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, U.P. Branch,
Varanasi, Br. MSME – Development Institute, Varanasi and Ramnagar Industrial Association, Chandauli on the
topic, “Sensitization Workshop on World Trade Organization (W.T.O.)” on 17th December, 2011 in Varanasi at
Kanhaiya Lal Gupta Motiwala Smriti Bhawan, Rathyatra, Varanasi. Mr. Indra Mohan Dubey, Joint Director of
Industries, Varanasi Mandal, Varanasi was the Chief Guest and Mr. R.K. Chaudhary, President, Ram Nagar
Industrial Association, Chandauli was Guest of Honour. The function was presided over by Mr. J.C. Pandey,
Director, MSME – Development Institute, Allahabad. Mr. I.B. Singh, Assistant Director, Br. MSME –
Development Institute, Chandpur, Varanasi was instrumental in organizing this Programme. Dr. Shardul
Chaubey, Reader, School of Management Sciences, Varanasi about “WTO Structure, Functions and its Multi-
Fibre Agreement” and Dr. Ravi Shekhar Vishal, Lecturer, School of Management Sciences, Varanasi appraised
on the topic, “Tariff Barriers, Opportunities for MSMEs Scenario, Benefits to Exporters.”

Mr. D.K. Srivastava, Dy. Director In-charge, Br. MSME – Development Institute, Chandpur, Varanasi welcomed
participants and guests of the Workshop and expressed the hope that latest information imparted in the
Programme would immensely benefit the participants and help in solving some of the serious
misapprehension about the implication of various provisions of the W.T.O. Addressing the audience, Chief
Guest Mr. Indra Mohan Dubey said that five cluster scheme are being planned to develop in Varanasi, Bhadohi
and Mirzapur. CA Mukul Kumar Shah, Chairman, IACC, U.P. Branch, Varanasi briefed the audience about
various activities of the IACC, Varanasi. He also spoke about G.I. Registration of Bhadohi Carpet and role of
IACC in obtaining the same. Speaker Dr. Shardul Chaubey, Reader, School of Management Sciences, Varanasi
covered following salient features of W.T.O.:

The root of World Trade Organization (started on 1st January, 1995) lays in General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade (GATT) which was established in 1948 by 23 original founders – India being one of them. At present
W.T.O. have nearly 149 countries. It covered all Trade from toothbrushes to pleasure boats, from banking to
telecommunications, from genes of wild rice to AIDS treatment. It was quite simply the largest trade
negotiation ever undertaken in human history.

Functions of WTO: The WTO is the umbrella organization responsible for overseeing implementation of all
agreements – multilateral (signed by all WTO members) and plurilateral (signed by a group of members for
specific issue) that have been negotiated under Uruguay Round of will be negotiated in future. Secondly, it is
to provide a forum for further negotiations on matters covered by the agreements as well as on new issues.
Thirdly, it is responsible for settlement of disputes among member nations. Fourthly, it is responsible for
periodic reviews of the Trade policies of the member’s nations.

Detailed and clear guidelines have been provided in the WTO agreement, on carrying out of these functions as
dispute settlement body of appellate body, trade review body, implementation of reports, issues of
compliance, etc.

The fundamental basis of trade under W.T.O. is to treat other countries equally – meaning that countries
cannot normally discriminate between their trading partners. For example, if one country grants a special
favor to someone (such as a lower customs duty rate for one or more products), then that particular country
have to do the same for all other WTO member countries. This principle is known as most-favored-nation
treatment. This principle is so important that it is the first article of the General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade (GATT), which governs trade in goods. Provisions of W.T.O. also ensure that trade barriers would not
be raised arbitrarily and market opening commitments would be binding in the WTO.

Speakers impressed upon that in the changed global economic environment which has been greatly affected
by the institutions like I.M.F., World Bank and W.T.O., it is very important for Indian business to understand
implications brought about by these institutions for global competition. The W.T.O. regime in the light
of various rounds of talks between member countries has become a very critical bargaining tool for analyzing
countries in order to gain market access into the developed world. The regional trade agreements which are
analyzed as being exceptions to the multi-lateral negotiations are also playing a critical role in expanding trade
between W.T.O. members. The opportunities that will arise for Indian exporters after coming up of the
various regional trade agreement as well as extension of the European Union were also dealt upon.

The Workshop also discussed tariff, non-tariff and cultural barriers for conducting business in the globalized
borderless W.T.O. regime. Different behavioral patterns of business negotiators of different countries
attracted special attention during the Workshop. After lectures of speakers, question-answer session followed
and queries were answered by the speakers.

Members of IACC, Varanasi Mr. Hari Prasad Murarka, Mr. J.P. Mundra, Mr. R.K. Goel, Mr. V.G. Unni, Mr. Raj J.
Agrawal, Mr. Rajesh Kumar Srivastava, Mr. Niyaz Ahmad, Mr. R.C. Jain, Mr. Chandramani Maurya, Mr. Arun
Kumar Agrawal and others attended the Workshop besides large number of businessmen & exporters and
bank officials of Varanasi.

Mr. R.R. Pathak, Asst. Director, Br. MSME – Development Institute, Varanasi proposed Vote of thanks to all
speakers and participants of the Workshop.

East India Council
Kolkata Branch
Interactive session on ‘US Visa Application & Procedure’ held on December 22, 2011, at the
Calcutta Club, Kolkata.

Welcome address being given by Ms. Heena Gorsia, Regional President, East India Council (EIC)

A memento being presented to Ms. Jessica Pfleiderer, US Vice Consul, US Consulate General, Kolkata by Ms. Heena
Gorsia, and Mr. Subharthee Dey, Regional Vice President, EIC.

(R-L) Mr. S D Mookerjea, Regional Vice President, EIC, Ms. Jessica Pfleiderer, Ms. Heena Gorsia, Mr. Subharthee Dey; Ms.
Madhusree Daityari, Regional Director, EIC at the presentation on US Visa Application & Procedure’

South India Council
Kerala Branch
An Interactive session on ‘Indo-US Economic Management’ with Ms. Jennifer A McIntyre, Consul General,
U.S Consulate, Chennai held on December 12, 2011

Ms. Jennifer A McIntyre, addressing the audience during the session in Trivandrum
On the Dias ( L-R) Dr. G.C. Gopala Pillai, Chairman, IACC-Kerala; Mr. T. Balakrishnan, Former Addl. Chief Secretary, Govt.
of Kerala & Mr. K. Yesodharan, Vice Chairman, NIPM (National Institute of Personnel Management) Trivandrum.

Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, Kerala branch jointly with the National Institute of Personnel
Management, Trivandrum organized an interactive session with Ms. Jennifer A McIntyre, Consul General, U.S.
Consulate, Chennai, at Trivandrum.

Ms. Jennifer addressed the audience on ‘Indo-US Economic Management’. Mr. T. Balakrishnan, former
Additional Chief Secretary, presided over the session. Dr. G.C. Gopala Pillai, Chairman, Indo-American
Chamber of Commerce-Kerala and Chairman, Public Sector Restructuring Board welcomed the gathering. Mr.
K. Yesodharan, Vice-Chairman, NIPM-Trivandrum proposed a vote of thanks. Mr. Matthew K. Beh, Political
and Economic Officer, Ms. Sarah J. Talalay, Vice Consul, and Mr. Finny Jacob, Economic and Political Specialist
were also present.

Annual Small Enterprise Lecture - 2011, in Kochi on December 8, 2011

(L-R) Dr. P.M. Mathew, Director, ISED Cochin; Sir. William Mark Tully, Dr. K.N Kabra, Chairman, ISED Cochin; Mr. Shyam
Srinivasan, CEO, Federal Bank & Dr. G.C. Gopala Pillai, Chairman, IACC-Kerala.
Veteran Journalist Padmabhushan Sir. William Mark Tully speaking on the topic ‘Small is Beautiful’ at the Annual Small
Enterprise Lecture 2011 in Kochi

Tamil Nadu Branch
Interactive Session with U.S. Consul General Ms. Jennifer McIntyre, on December 5, 2011, at
Pondicherry

Thiru P. Mathew Samuel, I.A.S, Special Secretary, the Govt. of Pondicherry Industries, Thiru. B.R. Babu, I.A.S., Special
Secretary to Govt. of Pondicherry - Tourism respectively, is giving the overview of the industries to participants

A cross section of audience on Breakfast Meeting

Indo-American Chamber of Commerce organized an interactive session with the U.S. Consul General in
Chennai Ms. Jennifer McIntyre at Pondicherry. The objective of the meeting was to explore opportunities in
enhancing business ties between U.S business and the City of Pondicherry.

Ms. McIntyre began her duties as Consul General in August 2011 and this was her first visit to the City of
Pondicherry. Mr. James Golsen, Principal Commercial Officer, Consulate General presented an overview of
the support of U.S. Commercial Service in India for promotion of Indo-US trade. A brief outline on the
development of industry and the tourism sectors in Pondicherry were addressed by Thiru. P. Mathew Samuel,
I.A.S., Special Secretary to Govt. of Pondicherry - Industries and Thiru. B.R. Babu, I.A.S., Special Secretary to
Govt. of Pondicherry - Tourism respectively.

In his welcome address Tamil Nadu Branch Chairman of IACC, Mr. Raman Govindarajan, provided insight on
IACC’s activities, details of past events, and plans for the coming months.

An update on U.S. business visas was given by Mr. Michael Cathey, Chief of Non-Immigrant Visas, U.S.
Consulate General, Chennai immediately after the interactive session with the U.S. Consul General.

Click here for index

Indo-US Corporate News

Boeing looks to expand association with BEL
The defence PSU Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) which has a partnership with Boeing for the Analysis and
Experimentation Centre (A&E Centre) in Bangalore is said to be mulling an additional centre at its Ghaziabad
site near Delhi.

Projects such as the A&E Centre, which were set up during 2009 by Boeing, is said to benefit industry partners
while providing on an environment for exploring collaborative projects between domestic and foreign
companies, to work in practice and build on the Boeing experience with defence experimentation best
practice in other countries.

Boeing India’s A&E Centre in Bangalore is the third one outside the US, with the other two in Australia and
United Kingdom. The centre allows its customers the opportunity to explore options for future systems in a
virtual environment. While using the analysis and experimentation methods, the collaborative approach
supports the defence forces in the US, the UK and Australia.

The centre is staffed with Indian ex-military operations analysts and, modeling and simulation engineers.
Comprising of reconfigurable laboratories and visualization space, the centre draws on the experience from
other nations where experimentation is a part of defence planning and equipment acquisition. Boeing will also
transfer a number of mature A&E tools that are not commercially available anywhere else.

“The tools will be made available for use by the Indian defence customer and our local partners,” said Dinesh
A Keskar, president, Boeing India, adding “this would also allow us to integrate locally-developed intellectual
property with these established tools.”

Boeing is working with the defence community to identify key capability challenges, and the local Boeing team
will conduct analyses and war fighting experiments. The process will see frequent interactions with the
defence customer to ensure the right experimental questions are developed and, right tools and techniques
are used to address the questions.

“The process encourages participation in experiments by experienced serving personnel. This ensures that the
experimentation environment is for purpose and exposes service personnel to future systems options. The
opinions of these personnel can then be fed back to the operational community to improve current and future
war fighting capability and concepts,” said an official from Boeing.

Intel Capital homes in on three Indian start-ups for investment
Intel Capital, the venture capital arm of Intel, has announced a series of investments totaling $40 million in
technology start-ups. All the investments were in Asian companies, and three in India. The companies
originate from China, India, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, underlining rising entrepreneurial spirit in the
Asian economies. The announcement was made at Intel Capital's annual global summit.

Intel Capital is a technology oriented venture capital fund that has been investing in India since 1998. Its
notable Indian investments include those in Sharekhan; Yatra.com; Policybazar; Nipuna, which offers BPO and
other services; Futuresoft, a telecommunications product and services company; India Infoline; Sasken and
NIIT.

The three latest additions to the India portfolio are Happiest Minds Technologies — promoted by Mr. Ashok
Soota, founder of MindTree — TELiBrahma Convergent Communications and Fashion and You. Happiest Minds
Technology, according to Mr. Ashok Soota makes products that result in ‘happy' customers, is engaged in
providing cloud services, software products engineering, infrastructure management, security testing and
consulting services.

TELiBrahma Convergent Communications is in mobile applications space. According to its founder Mr. Suresh
Narasimha, the company is growing at 300 per cent year on year over the last three years. Its product uses
Bluetooth and WiFi technologies for advertisers and retailers. It has tied up with leading automobile and
FMCG companies in the country to promote products among mobile users.

Fashion and You, promoted by Mr. Harish Bahl, is an e-commerce venture. According to Mr. Bahl, they are
among the largest fashion retailers through Internet out of India, with 1, 50,000 transactions done monthly.

The ongoing turbulence in global financial markets does not seem to have impacted Intel Capital, which is
going ahead with its investment plans. The President of Intel Capital, Mr. Arvind Sodhani, stated that as
venture capital funds are long-term investors, these short-term fluctuations do not affect them. In fact, he
added, such disturbances provide opportunities for making investments at a better price. In 2011, Intel Capital
has made worldwide investments of about $472 million in 136 companies. The fund has made 31 exits this
year out of which six companies completed IPOs and 25 were bought by other companies.

GAIL inks $20 billion deal with US firm
GAIL has entered into a 20-year deal with Sabine Pass Liquefaction, a subsidiary of US-based Cheniere Energy
Partners, to import 3.5 million tonnes a year of gas in ships, a deal that industry sources said is likely to be of
the size of $15-20 billion and could be a game changer for the Indian market.

Sabine Pass has US government licence to export gas unlocked from shale rock and is developing a
liquefaction facility on the border of Texas and Louisiana. It is expected to start supplies through the Panama
Canal in the next 8-9 months.

The deal could shake up the Indian LNG market with a pricing linked to Henry Hub, the US bulk market
benchmark for natural gas. All Indian - or Asian - LNG deals have so far been benchmarked to JCC (Japanese
Crude Cocktail, or mix of crude bought by Japan) / Brent at an average of $18 per unit.

Sources estimate that Sabine Pass LNG will cost GAIL in the range of $11-13 per unit in spite of entailing a
shipping cost higher than West Asian supplies. At present, various importers such as Petronet pay $15-18 per
unit for shiploads from the spot market. Petronet has tied up 2.5 million tonnes from Australia's Gorgon
project for its Kochi terminal at $18 per unit. "The deal will show how we link the Asian market with the US. It
breaks the hold (on Indian buyers) of LNG exporters' cartel and gives us better (price) bargaining power with
other sellers and options of opening the Gorgon deal. The pricing will also derisk GAIL from the domestic
market," GAIL chairman B C Tripathi told TOI.

GAIL director (marketing) Prabhat Singh said Sabine Pass marked a strategic shift for the Indian market and
opened up a new LNG sourcing destination. Both, however, did not comment on the deal size or LNG price.

Tripathi said the deal would open new avenues for GAIL and put it on the global LNG trading map. "We could
have our own tankers; that will be a new revenue stream. Our Singapore trading desk is operational and we
could trade some of the LNG globally. Above all, it ensures volumes for our expanding pipeline network."

Reliance Industries to Enter Financial Services in JV with New York based DE Shaw
Reliance Industries Ltd, controlled by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, agreed to set up a joint venture with the D.E.
Shaw Group to build a financial services company, Reliance said. No financial terms were available. The Joint
Venture aims to offer an array of financial services to the Indian market, the statement said.

Reliance is free to enter almost any sector after Mukesh Ambani and his long-estranged brother Anil ended a
pact last year that had prevented them from competing in each other’s' industries. Mukesh Ambani made a
dramatic return to telecoms last year with the $1 billion acquisition of Infotel Broadband, the only company to
win a nationwide licence for broadband wireless spectrum in an Indian government auction.

D. E. Shaw & Co., L.P. is an American-based global investment management firm founded in 1988 and based in
New York City. The firm's trading mode is systematic and computer-driven. The firm was founded by David
E. Shaw, a former Columbia University faculty member and has more than 1,300 employees. The company
has managed up to $40 billion in aggregate capital and in 2011 had $15.6 billion in assets under management
and was ranked as the 21st largest hedge fund by Institutional Investor.

KFC overtakes Pizza Hut as Yum!'s largest brand in India

KFC, which almost quit India due to protests from health and animal rights activists after its debut in 1995, has
overtaken Pizza Hut as the largest-selling fast food chain of Yum! Restaurants, riding on the country are
increasing their appetite for chicken.
World's largest quick-service restaurant (QSR) chain McDonald's, domestic fried chicken chain Bangs and T.G.I.
Friday's restaurant chain too have reported a spike in chicken sales this year, confirming the widening appeal
of the meat as eating out becomes a habit across the country. "KFC is growing faster than Pizza Hut," says
Sandeep Kataria, chief marketing officer of Yum! Restaurants India, while McDonald's says the McSpicy
chicken burger range is the fastest growing product across its 240 stores.

Driving this chicken mania is a number of factors including rising number of nuclear families, youngsters
staying away from home, travel, rising incomes, changing lifestyles and mall culture that has boosted
accessibility, competition and innovations. "There are a lot more innovations both in QSR formats and
packaged ready-tocook and ready-to-eat formats, visibility of these products has gone up, prices are a lot
more aggressive, and marketing spends have increased," says Sushil Sawant, assistant VP of Godrej Tyson
Foods, a joint venture between Godrej Agrovet and Tyson Foods Inc. that rolled out frozen chicken tikkas and
kebabs under Yummiez brand this October.
T.G.I. Friday's VP (Marketing & Development) Rohan Jetley says, "Chicken is the most neutral non-vegetarian
product- its consumption is not religiously restricted like beef and pork are, it's healthier/safer than red meat,
and it's not seasonal like fish and seafood." The growth in demand is expected to continue. The Rs 40,000-
crore domestic poultry industry expects per head chicken consumption to double to 6 kg a year by 2014-15
from less than 3kg last year. While existing players have drawn up aggressive expansion plans, others such as
UK-based Dixy Chicken and Southern Fried Chicken are waiting in the wings to expand base in the country.
Yum! India plans to have 500 KFC outlets by 2015, up from 156 now.

Kataria expects the chain to account for 60% of the $1 billion (approximately Rs 5,400 crore) sales that the
company is expected to generate by then. The expansion of Pizza Hut will be slower, rising to 400 by 2015
from 216 now. Bangs, which calls itself the country's first domestic fried chicken quick service restaurant (QSR)
brand having set up in 2009, plans to open 50 outlets within a year to add to 20 it has across 10 states,
encouraged by a 30% jump in sales quarter-on quarter. The growth is not restricted to metros and traditional
centres. "We are surprised... our sales in Chennai and Gujarat are doing equally well as in Punjab and
Haryana," says bangs Director Asvin Simon. Small towns like Durgapur, Kozhikode and Kochi figure as much as
metros in the expansion plans of KFC, which more than doubled the number of stores this year. Its top-selling
products Zinger chicken burgers and chicken buckets account for more than two-thirds of its sales. KFC
recently launched grilled fiery chicken, a juicier variant of the tandoori chicken, nationally to "very
encouraging" results. Yum! Attributes KFC's rapid growth-70% CAGR-to a younger, on the move target
audience, innovative products, and aggressive prices.

Kotak Mahindra Capital, Evercore Tie Up for Cross-border M&A Services
Kotak Mahindra Capital Company Ltd (KMCC), investment banking arm of Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd, has
entered into a strategic alliance with New York-based investment banking advisory firm Evercore Partners Inc.
for cross-border merger and acquisition advisory services among India, the USA, the UK and Mexico, the
company has said.

Under this agreement, the respective investment banks will leverage their combined expertise, strong
knowledge of global and local markets and deep corporate relationships to cater to their clients. “In the
changing landscape of global investment banking where specialized advisory firms are gaining prominence
over bulge-bracket investment banks, we find in Evercore a strong, world-class advisory firm,” Uday Kotak,
executive vice-chairman and managing director of Kotak Mahindra Bank commented on the partnership.

Founded in 1991, KMCC provides investment banking and clearing services in India and internationally. The
company operates in two segments – advisory & transactional services and trading & principal investments.
The firm has advised major international corporations such as CRH, eBay, Hutchison Whampoa, Lafarge,
Standard & Poor’s, Thomas Cook and Walmart on their India entry and acquisition strategies.
“We are pleased to be partnering with Kotak, the leading Indian investment bank. This strategic relationship
further expands our global reach and is another critical step in our ability to serve our clients around the
globe,” said Roger Altman, executive chairman of Evercore.
Evercore, founded in 2005, operates as an independent investment banking advisory firm and provides
advisory services on mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and other strategic corporate transactions, primarily
for multinational corporations and private equity firms. It also offers restructuring advice to companies in
financial transition, as well as to creditors, shareholders, and potential acquirers.


Indo-US CEO Forum asked for FDI in retail: Govt.
Amidst a raging controversy over FDI in multi-brand retail, government today said it received a
recommendation from the Indo-US CEO Forum to open up the sector, among other areas, for foreign
investment. In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jyotiraditya
Scindia quoted the Indo-US CEO Forum as having recommended enhancing of "Indian foreign direct
investment (FDI) policy reforms through further opening up of key sectors such as insurance, private sector
banks, retail and defence to foreign investors". Asked whether the government would accept these
recommendations, the minister said, “... the policy is reviewed on an ongoing basis with a view to making it
more investor friendly".

After the Cabinet approved 51 per cent FDI in the multi-brand retail and removed the cap on the single brand
retail on November 24, the government has come under attack not only from the Opposition but also from the
UPA allies - Trinamool Congress and the DMK. These parties have forced stalling of Parliament for the last four
days demanding a roll-back of the decision, whereas the government has indicated no reversal of the policy.

The Indo-US CEO Forum was constituted in July 2005 as a major initiative for enhancing bilateral trade and
investment. It was reconstituted in November 2009 by President Barack Obama and Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh and comprises 12 Indian and 12 US CEOs. Co-chaired by Tata Group head Ratan Tata and
Honeywell Inc's Chairman and CEO David Cote, the Forum last met in Washington in September this year.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma, Planning Commission
Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahlulwalia attended the Washington meeting.

Pizza Hut to operate 250 restaurants in India by 2015

Casual dining outlet, Pizza Hut in Chennai, India

Having completed 15 years of operations in India, casual dining chain Pizza Hut is looking to enhance its
presence across the country and run 250 outlets by 2015. Besides strengthening retail presence, Pizza Hut is
also looking to expand its product offerings to consumers. "There are 131 Pizza Huts in 34 cities of India at
present. The plan is to take this count to 250 by 2015," Pizza Hut India Marketing Head Sunay Bhasin said.

The expansion would also happen in tier II and tier III markets, he added. To commemorate 15 years of
operations in India, Pizza Hut is set to roll out a nationwide marketing and advertising campaign. "A new
nationwide ad campaign would be launched by the end of the week," Bhasin said without providing
information on the amount to be spent. At the same time, a new range of 15 different pizzas would be rolled
out at stores across the country. "The 15 pizzas are inspired from regional cuisines and flavors from around
the country," he added.

Dell to increase focus on small & medium businesses

Inset: Dell Vostro V131 Laptop

In a bid to tap into the increasing IT usage by small and medium businesses (SMBs), Dell today announced it
would be increasing focus on this rapidly growing market segment. Rekuram Vardharaj, country marketing
manager, medium business, Dell India said that there were close to eight million SMBs in the country, of which
about 1.5 million were addressable by IT. "An increasing number of small and medium businesses are using IT
and we'll aim to provide bespoke solutions that can address their needs," he said. Speaking at an event in
Pune, Vardharaj pointed out that the city alone had close to 80,000 SMB enterprises, with the IT spend by
medium businesses in the range of $70-75 million making it one of the focus markets for the company. THE
ICT spend by the SMBs in India is estimated to be in the region of $10bn.
"The offerings will be aimed to addressing the pain points of these enterprises which tend to be issue of
constrains -of time, budgets and resources. We would like to partner with the businesses and provide
hardware and service solutions with the minimum possible downtime for the customer," he said.
Dell is the number one brand in the consumer and SMB segments in the country. It has in the recent past
launched a number of SMB specific products like the Equal Logic storage solutions and the Vostro V131 laptop.

India’s Investments in U.S

RIL Buys Stake in US Nuclear Reactor Design Company
The Reliance Industries announced that it has bought a minority stake in Terra Power, a US-based nuclear-
technology design and engineering company, through one of its subsidiaries.
"This is one of our series of investments in the broader energy sector," a company spokesman told. Terra
Power, based in Washington, is designing a nuclear reactor that uses low-enriched uranium and produces less
waste. The reactors need uranium to start up and can “run for decades on depleted uranium” without
enrichment or reprocessing, Terra Power said on its website.
Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani will join the company's board, which includes Microsoft
Chairman Bill Gates and Silicon Valley venture capitalist Vinod Khosla, a financial daily had reported earlier in
the day.
Reliance, India's most valuable company, controlled by Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani, has outlined plans
to spend $4 billion to $4.5 billion by 2014 on three US shale gas joint ventures it entered into last year. A
company official told that it is scouting for oil investments in the Americas as it looks to increase the stake of
crude production it owns to feed its refinery, the world’s largest.

Ventureast Invests $5 Million in Orca Systems
Venture capitalists are trawling cross-border technology startups again. Hyderabad-based Ventureast recently
made a $5 million Series B investment in California-based semiconductors startup Orca Systems. The company
provides highly integrated radio frequency and modem technology delivering solutions for high-performance
wireless applications. The firm has a research and development facility in Bangalore.

Founders Guruswamy Sridharan and Kartik Sridharan started the company in 2006 after selling their earlier
startup Ashvattha Semiconductor to Insilica in 2005. Orca has raised a total $7 million so far, including the
Ventureast investment, said a press release. Earlier this month it announced the launch of DRBT, a dual mode
Bluetooth RF plus modem IP core which provides customers with revolutionary reductions in silicon area, low
power and exceptional radio performance.


Aditi Technologies Announces Acquisition of Cumulux, Microsoft Cloud Partner of the Year

Aditi Technologies announced its acquisition of Cumulux, the 2010 Microsoft Cloud Partner of the Year. Aditi is
one of the top Microsoft National System Integrator Partner's focused on enterprise social, big data, mobile
and digital marketing. With this acquisition, Aditi is positioned to be a leader in cloud services and will drive
the transformation of applications and workloads to the cloud. "Cumulux and Aditi have demonstrated
credibility and excellence in building solutions on Windows Azure for Microsoft's ISV and enterprise
customers," said Jenni Flinders, Vice President for the US Partner Group at Microsoft. "Cumulux is a valuable
partner for Windows Azure in the ecosystem and having them combine with the scale and depth of Aditi will
give our customers a tremendous opportunity."

"Aditi is betting its business on the cloud. We are excited to join forces with Cumulux. This partnership makes
us the leader in Azure based transformation." said Pradeep Rathinam, CEO of Aditi Technologies. "We believe
that the adoption of cloud will be key competitive advantage for our customers and we are committed to
helping them strategically leverage Azure. To accelerate the adoption, we are investing 5M USD in Azure
Acceleration Lab - an Azure based rapid application development offering. "

Aditi will leverage its deep Microsoft alignment aggressively to roll out the cloud services proposition to the
ISV and enterprise markets in US, UK and India. The team has already helped over 50 ISV and e-commerce
customers adopt and deploy Azure through the Azure Acceleration Lab. Kicking off a global launch, Aditi and
Cumulux will:

• Build out an Azure delta force of architects and MVPs to drive Azure adoption in close collaboration with
Microsoft across US, UK and India.

• Hire and train 130+ cloud developers to create a cloud services platform to deliver IP led innovations for
customers as they migrate their applications to the Cloud.

Speaking on the acquisition, Paddy Srinivasan, CEO at Cumulux says, "Aditi and Cumulux complement each
other. The synergy of global scale and strong Microsoft DNA make us one of the top Azure service providers in
the market. Aditi gives us and our customers deep competency and scale in leveraging Azure to build large
scale complex solutions. I am incredibly excited and look forward to replicate and amplify Cumulux's
proposition at a global scale with Aditi." Paddy has joined Aditi's cloud advisory board and will continue to
drive and build the Azure business for Aditi.


US investments in India
Goldman Sachs Acquires 6.47% Stake in Max India
Goldman Sachs has bought a 6.47% stake in Max India for Rs. 308 crore through bulk deals. Before this
transaction, Goldman Sachs held around 9% stake in the company after it converted its debentures into shares
earlier this year. Goldman Sachs is now the largest shareholder in Max India after Analjit Singh who owns a
37% stake.

Warburg Pincus had 14% stake in Max India at an average price of Rs. 40 per share. In June this year, it sold 2%
stake in June at around the same price. With this deal, Warburg Pincus stake has come down to 5.82%.

In October, South Africa based hospital chain - Life Healthcare acquired 26% stake in Max Healthcare for
R516.5Cr, valuing the company at around Rs. 2000 Cr in all cash transaction. Before that in June, Warburg
Pincus sold its 16.37% stake in Max Healthcare Institute Limited to Max India Limited for Rs.140 Cr.


Morgan Stanley to pump in $125 million in Mumbai realty
The global real estate fund of Morgan Stanley is in talks with Mumbai-based Sheth Developers to invest $100
million to $125 million in a residential project in Mumbai, three sources with direct knowledge of the matter
said. The Morgan Stanley fund will invest in the unlisted Indian firm’s project in the western suburbs of
Mumbai said the sources, which declined to be named as they were not authorized to speak to the media.

Morgan Stanley declined to comment and Sheth Developers did not return phone calls seeking comment.
Sheth Developers acquired an 18-acre land parcel in Andheri from Borosil Glass Works in 2010 for about Rs
875 crore and plans to develop a large residential project there, said the sources.

If completed, the investment would be the first in India by the Morgan Stanley fund in three years, two of the
sources said. The fund has invested about $750 million so far in India. In October, sources said that a bunch of
investors including a fund managed by Morgan Stanley and the Government of Singapore Investment Corp are
in separate talks to buy a Mumbai property from Indian textiles firm Alok Industries for about $200 million.
Last month, the Wall Street bank named Shirish Godbole as the head of its global real estate investment fund
in India. Indian developers have come under pressure over the past year as rising interest rates deter
residential buyers and funding for builders becomes scarce as economic growth slows.

Equity International to invest $75 million in SAMHI
US-based investor firm Equity International will invest USD 75 million (about Rs 370 crore) in SAMHI, a
developer and owner of hotels in India that has partnership with Marriot Hotels.

Gurgaon-based SAMHI is a newly-formed hospitality property company co-sponsored by GTI Capital Group, a
privately held investment firm founded by Gaurav Burman, Gaurav Dalmia, Jonathan Schulhof and Madhav
Dhar. "This investment perfectly represents our model of partnering with the best-in-class management
teams in India, and investing both our own capital as well as aggregating capital from the finest co-investors
globally," GTI Capital Group Co-founder and General Partner Gaurav Burman said. While the investment will
involve picking up of equity stake in SAMHI by Equity International (EI), the company has not disclosed the
same.

SAMHI has already commenced development of properties in Bangalore, Chennai and Gurgaon, which will
comprise four hotels and 630 rooms with brands such as Courtyard and Fairfield by Marriott and Hyatt Place.
The company had recently formed a JV with Marriott Hotels to develop mid-scale and economy hotels across
key Indian cities under the brands Courtyard by Marriott and Fairfield by Marriott. In addition, it has plans to
set up properties in top markets, including Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Pune and Kolkata.

Commenting on the company's investment in SAMHI, Equity International Chief Executive Officer Gary
Garrabrant said: "With SAMHI we have the opportunity to create the leading hotel property company in India,
and we are privileged to partner with GTI Capital in this highly compelling market." SAMHI was founded by
Ashish Jakhanwala, SAMHI's Chief Executive Officer, who previously led the development of Accor's hotel
portfolio in India; Manav Thadani, Chairman of HVS India; and Steve Rushmore, President and Founder of HVS,
the global hospitality consulting firm.

Equity International (EI) invests in companies outside the United States with a particular focus on identifying
and initiating high-growth sectors. It has raised over $2 billion and invested in 22 portfolio companies to-date
across 14 countries.

Bunge Inc. To Acquire Edible Oil Business of Amrit Group for $ 78 million
(Deal value includes cash consideration for oil business on slump sale, trademark and non-compete fee.)

Headquartered in White Plains, NY Bunge Ltd. has struck a deal to acquire the edible oil business of Noida-
based diversified Amrit Group in a deal worth Rs 413 crore ($78 million). The deal would give Bunge, one of
the world’s largest agri commodity traders, a key position in the north Indian edible oil market.
Under the deal, Bunge will acquire the edible oil business of the public-listed firm Amrit Banaspati Company
Ltd. (ABCL) for Rs 220.72 crore on a slump sale basis.
The sale would include the entire edible oil business of ABCL including manufacturing, marketing and
distribution of vanaspati, refined and filtered edible oil, bakery shortening, table margarine & speciality fats,
and salt & soya nuggets. The company owns a manufacturing unit located at Rajpura in Punjab.
Bunge will also acquire secured and unsecured loans of ABCL amounting to Rs 40.6 crore besides paying the
key promoters Naresh Kumar Bajaj, Ashwini Kumar Bajaj and Vikram Kumar Bajaj a sum of Rs 47 crore as non-
compete fee for the next five years.

Among the various brands marketed by ABCL, there is also Gagan, owned by a separate public-listed group
firm Amrit Corp. As a part of the deal, Bunge is also acquiring the Gagan brand for Rs 104.5 crore from Amrit
Corp. The overall edible oil business of ABCL employs 450 people; features brands like Gagan, Ginni, Amrit,
Bansari and MerriGold and generates most of the sales. The firm clocked sales of Rs 1,010 crore for the year
ended March 31, 2011, with net profit of Rs 22.06 crore. For Bunge, this will be a big boost to its India business
as it already owns key oil brands like Dalda. The company has been present in India for around a decade and
has manufacturing units at Trichy in Tamil Nadu and Bundi in Rajasthan.

Amrit Group’s decision to exit a well-established business is marked by business fundamentals as edible oil is a
thin-margin business and ABCL has been operating on full-capacity utilisation for the last couple of years.
Growth would have meant addition to capacity and, therefore, further investments. The edible oil business in
India is inherently dependent on palm oil imports and associated with currency risks. In such a scenario, entry
of MNCs like Cargill, Bunge, Noble Grain, LouisDreyfus and ADM meant local players were at a disadvantage,
compared to the global biggies with backward and forward linkages due to their access to global plantations.


AptarGroup Inc. buys Hyderabad’s TKH Plastics for $18 million
AptarGroup, Inc., a Illinois based manufacturer of cosmetics and perfume dispensers, has acquired Hyderabad-
based TKH Plastics Pvt. Ltd for $18 million (Rs 89 crore). New York Stock Exchange-listed AptarGroup will pay
approximately $17 million in cash and $1 million in assumed debt as a part of the transaction.

TKH Plastics is in the business of injection molded dispensing closures, with clients in Indian personal care,
food, and beverage markets. The company has also been a licensee of AptarGroup’s dispensing closure
products since 2006. TKH had annual revenues of approximately $8 million (Rs 39.6 crore) in the most recent
fiscal year, an AptarGroup statement said.

In addition, AptarGroup’s new pharmaceutical device facility in Mumbai is nearing completion and is expected
to be fully operational in the beginning of 2012.

AptarGroup completed its strongest year in 2010 with sales increasing 13 per cent to $2.1 billion while
operating income went up to a record $268 million, up 35 per cent from a year ago. Europe accounts for 57
per cent of the sales, followed by the USA and Latin America. However, Asia accounted for only 4 per cent of
the AptarGroup’s revenues in 2010 at $90 million.

AptarGroup’s key customers include Johnson & Johnson, P&G, Unilever, Merck, Henkel, Revlon, Cipla, Reckitt
Benckiser, Kraft and LVMH, among others.

“These steps are part of our strategy to expand our footprint in the region. We recognize that India is a
significant and growing market. The acquisition allows us to serve our personal care, food and beverage
customers even better and the clean-room facility will enable us to provide locally produced delivery devices
to our pharmaceutical customers,” said Peter Pfeiffer, president and CEO of the AptarGroup.

US-based Briggs & Stratton Acquires Premier Power For $3M
US-based gasoline engine maker Briggs & Stratton Corporation has acquired Tamil Nadu’s Premier Power
Equipment’s and Products Pvt. Ltd for an approximate value of $3 million or Rs 14.89 crore, the company has
said in a statement. The current acquisition marks the US Company’s initiative to expand into developing
markets in order to diversify its products and geographic portfolio, the company has further added.
Founded in 2004, Premier Power manufactures and markets Briggs & Stratton generators in southern and
eastern India. The company also specializes in stand-by power and agricultural equipment. It has a
manufacturing facility at Pappampatti, Coimbatore, and operates an in-house research and development
centre. “Premier has the agricultural products and distribution network that will serve as a platform for our
future growth within India,” said Todd Teske, chairman, president and CEO of Briggs & Stratton. The company
will finance the transaction from cash on hand. It also expects that the acquisition will not have a material
effect on its earnings in fiscal 2012.

Founded in 1908 and headquartered in Wauwatosa (Wisconsin), Briggs & Stratton designs, manufactures,
markets and services air-cooled gasoline engines for outdoor power equipment worldwide. It operates in two
segments – engines and power products. The engines segment products are primarily used for lawn and
garden equipment like walk-behind lawn mowers, riding lawn mowers, garden tillers and snow throwers.
Besides, this segment caters to industrial, construction, agriculture and other consumer applications, such as
generators, pumps and pressure washers. The company also manufactures replacement engines and service
parts.

The power products segment offers portable and standby generators, pressure washers, snow throwers and
lawn and garden powered equipment. Manufactured under various brands such as Briggs & Stratton, Brute,
Craftsman, Ferris, John Deere, GE, Murray, Simplicity, Snapper, Troy-Bilt and Victa, these products are sold
through several retail distribution channels including consumer home centres, warehouse clubs, mass
merchants and independent dealers

HT Media and Apollo Global Inc., Form Joint Venture to Provide Educational Services
HT Media Ltd, publisher of the Hindustan Times newspaper, has entered into an agreement with an affiliate of
Apollo Global, Inc. (USA), to form a 50:50 joint venture in order to provide educational services and
programmes across the country, the company has disclosed in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
However, the financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

The JV between HT Media and Apollo Global aims to address the need of quality educational services and the
education-employment mismatch, so that employees are well-trained for the 21st century global workplace.

Founded in 2007, Apollo Inc. is a joint venture between Apollo Group, Inc. and the Carlyle Group, a private
equity major. The Apollo Global network also includes BPP, a leading provider of education and training to
professionals in the legal and finance industries in the UK and Europe; Universidad de Artes, Ciencias y
Comunicación (UNIACC), a leading arts and communications university in Chile; the Universidad
Latinoamericana (ULA) , a renowned communications, business and medical university in Mexico and Western
International University (WIU), a US-accredited university specializing in business and technology education
with online delivery worldwide.

Incorporated in 1924, HT Media is based in Gurgaon and the company, along with its subsidiaries, primarily
engages in the publishing business. It has also made foray into the education space with the launch of
StudyMate, a chain of tuition centers in Delhi for 9th-12th standard students. StudyMate helps students
master the course materials with the help of learning activities, self-assessment tools and educational games.
Students select activities which appeal to their learning styles, making the whole experience a personalized
one and effective.

US Realty Co Portman Holdings Picks Stake in Pune’s Tuscan Estate
US-based realty development and advisory firm Portman Holdings, LLC has acquired significant minority stake
in Tuscan Estate (a 900,000 sq. ft. residential development located in Pune) from ICICI Venture for an
undisclosed sum. According to VCCedge, financial research arm of VCCircle, Portman Holdings has bought 49
per cent stake in the company.

In October 2009, Kolte Patil Developers Ltd (KPDL) in charge of Tuscan Estate, entered into a joint venture with
Portman Holdings for a project worth Rs 275. The two companies had planned to develop around 8.5 lakh sq.
ft. of mid-segment residential project in the eastern suburb of Pune.

Incorporated in 1953, Atlanta-based Portman Holdings caters to owners, lenders, private equity investment
funds, institutional investors and closely held private real estate investment partnerships. The company claims
to have raised and deployed over $6 billion and developed over 50 million sq. ft. of premium real estate across
the world. Tuscan Estate, already under construction, is being developed in multiple phases and is slated to be
finished by 2016. The project master plan includes 11 towers containing a total of 517 residential units. “This
property is an ideal follow-up to our first direct investment in India and a good opportunity for us,” Ambrish
Baisiwala, CEO of Portman Holdings, commented on the deal.

In October this year, Ambuja Realty acquired the RMZ block of Ecospace Business Park in New Town
(Rajarhat), Kolkata, for an undisclosed sum. Also in September, Chennai-based Kalpathi Group, with business
interests in private equity and entertainment, acquired the IT Park Rantech Towers for around Rs 50 crore.
Spread over 2.2 lakh sq. ft., the IT Park is located at Sholinganallur (on Old Mahabalipuram Road) in Chennai.
Of the eight-storey building, 15 per cent area will be for self-use by the group and the rest will be
commercially leased/rented out to other IT companies.

Although the private equity action in Indian real estate sector has been muted, there have been a couple of
large deals this year across income-generating developments. In February this year, Ascendas India Trust
entered a deal to acquire a portfolio of five buildings in Phoenix Infocity Pvt. Ltd. SEZ for Rs 855 crore. Kotak
Realty Fund also sold Peepul Tree Properties (an IT park in Goregaon) to Tata Realty and Infrastructure Ltd and
Tata Realty Initiatives Fund 1 for Rs 525 crore.

Omnicom Group Inc. Enters Agreement to Acquire Majority Stake in India's Mudra Group
Omnicom Group Inc. announced today it has entered into an agreement to acquire a majority stake in Mudra
Group, India's leading integrated marketing communications group. Mudra will significantly expand
Omnicom's service capabilities and presence in Asia's third largest economy. As part of the agreement,
Omnicom will extend its partnership with the Reliance ADA Group.

Mudra Group utilizes a deep understanding of consumers, brands and media to deliver creative solutions
through four agency networks: branding and communications agency Mudra India; marketing and advertising
agency DDB Mudra; integrated engagement and experiential agency Mudra Max; and Ignite Mudra, India's
only agency that caters to entrepreneurs. Mudra has 26 offices across the country and an extensive field
activation network.

In conjunction with the strategic partnership, Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani will join the Omnicom
International Advisory Committee. Mr. Ambani has vast experience in the international business community,
leading businesses in the areas of telecom, capital, power, infrastructure, entertainment and health. In
aggregate, the Reliance Group businesses serve a customer base of more than 100 million people.

"This acquisition is an important step in achieving Omnicom's strategy to extend and deepen our presence in
rapidly growing markets," said John Wren, President and CEO of Omnicom Group. "Our vision is to be a source
of innovation in every market we serve. Mudra is widely acknowledged as an outstanding company with
impressive creative product and expertise in a broad range of disciplines. Mudra's innovation and depth of
talent will strengthen our business capabilities not only in India but around the world."

Mudra, a DDB Worldwide partner since 1993, was the only agency in India to win a medal in the Agency of the
Year category at the Spikes Asia Advertising Festival in 2011, and Mudra won more Lions at the 2011 Cannes
Lions International Festival of Creativity than any other agency group in India.

"DDB has been an excellent partner over the years. We have benefited immensely from the collaboration and
transfer of knowledge from around the globe. We are proud to belong to such a storied network," Mudra
Group CEO Madhukar Kamath said. "Omnicom and DDB have clearly been the inspiration for Mudra Group's
transformative growth over the last five years. My colleagues and I look forward to the next decade of
explosive growth in the Indian market."

DDB Worldwide President and CEO Chuck Brymer noted, "This acquisition will further unite two companies
that have long held the same values, creative goals and ambitions. Under Madhukar's leadership, Mudra is the
original challenger brand of the Indian communications industry, and it shares DDB's culture of creative
excellence. Together, we will create even greater growth for our clients in this rapidly changing,
technologically driven region."

DDB and Mudra Group's shared history is rooted in a relationship that began in 1988 and has grown
tremendously since the formation of DDB Mudra in 2007, which established DDB India, Tribal DDB, Rapp and
DDB Health & Lifestyle in the Indian market. John Zeigler, CEO, DDB Asia Pacific, added, "Mudra has an
impressive history as both creative leaders and strong believers in integrated solutions making them one of
the most innovative companies in India."

Omnicom Group EVP and CFO Randall Weisenburger also noted, "In addition to significantly expanding our
service capabilities in the region, this partnership will bring with it an exceptional Shared Services and
Operations Center in Ahmedabad that will help Omnicom more efficiently expand its other operations in India.
Additionally, Mudra recently moved into a new headquarters facility in Mumbai called Mudra House, a
sustainable building and one of the few in India to be awarded LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental
Design) Gold certification. Mudra House is widely acclaimed for its conservation features and state of the art
technology."


Caterpillar expanding in India: to invest $ 3 billion in next 5 years

Construction and mining equipment major Caterpillar Inc. is investing $210 million (around Rs1, 096 crore) in
its Indian operations as part of its global plans to invest up to $3 billion over the next 5 years.

The company will set up an engine manufacturing facility for electric power generation sets and expand its off-
highway truck manufacturing facility in Chennai, according to Richard P Lavin, group president, Caterpillar
Inc. ''We are yet to decide on the location, though we have short-listed some of the states. The final
announcement on the same will be shared in 2-3 months,'' said Lavin.

The plant, he said, would have an initial capacity for 3,000 units, which will be expanded to 5,000 units in 12-
18 months from the start of the production. The facility, to be set up as a new subsidiary incorporated in
India, will start production in two to three years, he added.

The engine manufacturing facility, to be set up with an investment of $150 million, will produce Perkins brand
4000 Series engines, which will cater to 750-2500 kV electric power gensets, said Kevin R Thieneman, India
Country Manager, and President Caterpillar Asia.

Perkins is a wholly-owned diesel engine manufacturing subsidiary of Caterpillar. ''The Indian facility will be the
first facility outside the UK and 50 per cent of the machines produced will cater to parts of Asia and other
markets,'' he added. The expansion would be in addition to the company's investment of around $108 million
on the truck manufacturing facility.

The current investment plans, a part of Caterpillar's 2015 corporate strategy, are in tandem with the
company's earlier investments in India, which are nearing completion, added Thieneman. ''This new
investment will play a role in developing our technology further while benefiting our customers who are
playing a vital role in the transformation of the Indian economy,'' he added.


Not-for-profit Teach For India Secures $2.5M From Omidyar Network
Teach For India, a non-profit organisation aiming to eliminate educational inequity in the country, has raised
$2.5 million (Rs 13.4 crore) funding from Omidyar Network. The monies raised will be used to cover new
schools and expand its operations across new cities in order to accelerate vital improvements in Indian
education system, the company has said.

Teach For India, modelled after Teach For America, was incorporated nearly four years ago. It enables college
graduates and young professionals to commit two years and teach full-time in under resourced schools. In
June 2009, Teach For India placed its first cohort of Fellows in low-income municipal and private schools in
Pune and Mumbai.

The organization was founded by its current CEO Shaheen Mistri who is also the founder of Akanksha
Foundation, a not-for-profit supporting underprivileged children. Incidentally, Ashish Dhawan, co-founder of
the Indian PE firm ChrysCapital, is one of the board members of Teach For India. This is the second education
sector investment in India by Omidyar in as many months and third in the field this year.

Omidyar Network, incorporated in 2004 by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam, is an investment
firm specialising in early, mid and late-venture investments, as well as non-profit organisations. Bulk of its
investments supports companies in India and Sub-Saharan Africa and focuses on areas like microfinance,
SMEs, emerging market ventures and property rights.

Last month, Omidyar invested an undisclosed sum in Gurgaon-based Aspiring Minds, an employability
assessment company that provides standardised employability benchmarks to students and enables
employers to evaluate students for job placements. Earlier in April, Omidyar had invested in Tree House
Education in a pre-IPO round, along with existing investors Matrix Partners India and Foundation Capital.

Other organisations that have received investments from Omidyar include Janaagraha Centre For Citizenship
& Democracy, Foundation For Ecological Security, D.light Design, Quikr India, Sa-Dhan, Rural Development
Institute and Comat Technolgies.

Norwest Invests $5 million in Former eBay India Head's E-com Start-up
Trendsutra Platform Services Pvt Ltd (Pepperfry.com), a lifestyle e-commerce start-up co-founded by former
eBay India country manager Ambareesh Murty but yet to be launched, has raised $5 million in venture capital
funding from Norwest Venture Partners.
The company has said in a statement that over the past few months, it has built a team of over 70 e-
commerce and retail professionals. By Christmas 2011, Pepperfry aims to offer a range of 25,000-plus lifestyle
products across categories like clothing, furniture & home décor, precious & fashion jewelry, lifestyle
accessories and personal care. The company is headquartered in Mumbai and has ground sourcing and
fulfillment operations in Delhi and Jodhpur.
The company was set up in July and targets the $30 billion offline retail market for lifestyle products spanning
these categories. Discounts available on the site will vary between 20 per cent and 70 per cent. Currently, the
site is in the last stage of testing and is set to be launched before December 25, 2011.
Ashish Shah, former head of eBay Motors, will be the COO of the company. Shah’s LinkedIn profile shows him
to be a co-founder of the firm. “Pepperfry’s goal is to make affordable indulgence possible. We will ensure
that our customers get competitively priced lifestyle products without needing to compromise on style or
choice,” said Ambareesh Murty, CEO of Pepperfry.
The differentiators for Pepperfry.com are its product range and transparency in pricing. “In terms of
differentiation, it is the sheer range of products that we offer. We have 25,000 products and one can easily
search through those to find what he wants. Second factor is the transparency – when you come to our site,
look at the product page and you will find there are terms, descriptions, pricing details, price of gold and the
gems used for jewellery, for example, as well as return arrangements. We have tried to be very forthcoming
about our prices,” said Murty.
“Pepperfry has a strong team, extensive e-commerce and retail expertise and great execution abilities
reflected in the imminent launch of Pepperfry.com in less than five months since commencing operations. We
are excited by the e-commerce opportunity in India and believe that Pepperfry is a great addition to our
robust global Internet portfolio,” said Niren Shah, managing director of Norwest Venture Partners India.
Incidentally, Norwest has recently invested in Fashionandyou.com and Smile Group’s daily deal site
Dealsandyou.com. According to Murty, products and goods-related e-commerce has come into its own in the
country. “It is symptomatic of the trend that customers are comfortable with using their credit cards online
and buying from someone who is not in front of them. This fundamental shift in customer behavior has
translated into purchase of goods online,” he said.

UTC Climate Acquires Controlling Stake in Agnice Fire Protection
UTC Climate, Controls & Security Systems, part of the US-based diversified aerospace and building systems
provider United Technologies Corp (UTC), has acquired a controlling stake in Chennai-based Agnice Fire
Protection Ltd, for an undisclosed sum, the company had recently said in a statement.

The acquisition of Agnice complements existing capabilities and offerings, and further strengthens its
foundation in India, the statement has added.

Incorporated in 1995, Agnice is engaged in the engineering, procurement and construction of fire protection
systems for petrochemicals and refineries in India and abroad. The company provides a plethora of services
such as fire risk evaluation, engineering, system design, hydraulic calculation, quantity surveying and
budgeting, drawing and documentation, procurement installation, testing and commissioning, and
maintenance. The company is based in Chennai, with additional offices in Oman, the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Founded in 1934 and based in Hartford, Connecticut, UTC is a leading provider of heating, ventilation and air-
conditioning systems, building controls and automation, and fire & security systems. The company’s UTC Fire
and Security segment provides electronic security products comprising intruder alarms, and access control and
video surveillance systems.

Incidentally, UTC has been increasing its presence in India by various acquisitions. In 2005, the company
acquired Kidde Fire in Mumbai (formerly Vijay Fire) for an undisclosed sum. Two years later, UTC Fire and
Security acquired majority stake in Alba Control Systems Ltd, currently called Chubb Alba Control Systems Ltd.
On the global front, United Technologies had acquired GE’s security business for $1.82 billion. Also, in August
this year, United Technologies was planning to acquire Bangalore-based Firepro Systems for around $200
million, according to various media reports.

Commenting on the deal, Zubin Irani, President of UTC Climate, Controls & Security Systems (India), said, “UTC
looks at India very strategically. With acquisitions like this, we enhance our position by building scale, reach,
product offerings and customer service capabilities across the country.”

“This acquisition will enable Agnice to expand to new horizons. By aligning with UTC’s global expertise,
capabilities and network, we will provide a superior platform for our continued growth,” said Agnice MD
Govindarajan.

In the News:
Visa norms for expats working at senior positions relaxed
Expats working at senior positions in India will not need to go back home and seek a fresh Indian employment
visa when they take intergroup transfers, the government has said in updated rules. This will provide flexibility
to foreign companies that have multiple businesses in India in deploying their resources.

"Ministry of home affairs may approve change of employer only if the foreign national holds a senior or skilled
position, "says the amended guideline issued by the ministry.

The earlier guideline was seen as a major irritant by expats and companies employing them as any transfer
within the group would mandate a homeland visit and a fresh work visa.

This not just inflated costs for companies who employed foreign nationals but also led to loss of crucial work
hours. The fresh clarification is seen as a welcome change by the industry that had been lobbying with the
ministry for relaxation in these guidelines for some time. "This will facilitate multinational companies in
transferring their expatriate employees to different subsidiaries in India based on business needs," said Sanjiv
Chaudhary, Tax Partner-KPMG.

Most multinationals and even Indian companies prefer to keep their senior and skilled expat employees
largely on project basis.

A mandatory visit home and a fresh employment visa led to unnecessary hassle, said a senior executive with a
multinational consultancy that faced this issued. Another firm had to lobby hard to get home ministry
permission to retain its senior consultant in a subsidiary.

Experts say the new guideline would also make the process more efficient and transparent as they had to
approach the ministry individually and each application was treated on a case by case basis. "..It is good that
the protocol has been put in black and white" said Amitabh Singh, partner, Ernst & Young.

However, the relaxation will only be limited to changing jobs between registered holding company and its
subsidiary and between subsidiaries. In other cases, where the foreign national desires to change employer,
he will be required to return to his home country and obtain a fresh employment visa.

Change of employer will be permitted only once during the tenure of five years of the original employment
visa and five years of residency on employment visa would be counted from the original date of its issue and
not from the date of change of employer.

However, experts say the new norm only partly addressed the issue and a further relaxation may be
required. "The government should also look at allowing movement of employees between joint ventures,"
said Chaudhary.

US appoints first woman Ambassador to India

Nancy J Powell, the new American Ambassador to India, is not only the first woman to head the US mission in
Delhi, but also the first career diplomat to take over the crucial post in nearly 15 years.

A South Asia expert, 64-year-old Powell had served as the US ambassador to Pakistan (2002 to 2004) and
Nepal (2007 to 2009) and had also held key diplomatic positions including as political counselor in Delhi (1993-
1995), consul-general in Kolkata (1992-93) and deputy chief of mission in Dhaka (1995-97). Her stint as
national intelligence officer for South Asia at the National Intelligence Council (2006-07) has also given her
adequate insights about the region. Powell moves to Delhi from the department of state, where she worked
as director-general, Foreign Service, and director of human resources.

The last US Foreign Service officer to be posted in Delhi was Frank Wisner, who served as ambassador for
three years from 1994. His successors – including Richard Celeste, Robert Blackwill, David Campbell Mulford
and Timothy Roemer – were political appointees. Only seven of the 22 US ambassadors in India since
Independence have been career officers of the Foreign Service, Powell being the eighth. The position has
attracted the likes of Chester Bowles, a former adman-turned-politician (who was ambassador to Delhi twice,
between 1951 and 1953 and 1963 and 1969), John Kenneth Galbraith, a renowned economist and author
(1961 to 1963) and Daniel Patrick Moynihan, a veteran Democrat (1973 to 1975).

The low-key Powell was ambassador in Islamabad during the crucial years following Pakistan's misadventure in
Kargil, when relations between the two South Asian neighbors had deteriorated. She had also warned the
Pakistan government that extremist outfits with links to Al Qaeda and the Taliban had regrouped, leading to a
crackdown on them.

Of course, Powell's India tenure could be brief, as US President Barack Obama, seeking a second four-year
term in 2012, could be voted out of office. A new Associated Press-GfK poll found that half of the Americans
surveyed felt he should not continue in office for the second term. Less than 40 per cent of the respondents
approved Obama's handling of the economy, with the vast majority disapproving it. Recent US diplomatic
postings to India have been political ones, with American presidents such as Bill Clinton, George Bush and
even Obama taking a greater interest in building up relations with the world's largest democracy.


US University to launch residency programme in India
A Southern California based doctoral research university is launching its third global residency Programme
next month in India and has plans to add two more in the future. "The Indian Economy and the Epicenter of
Globalization" is a one-week residency in Mumbai from Jan 1 to 8 for University of California, Riverside School
of Business Administration undergraduate students, graduate students and alumni.

It joins similar one-week residency programmes in England and China that were started the past two years,
the university announced Tuesday. Future plans call for adding programmes in Russia and Brazil.
"The programmes expose students to emerging markets and give them global experience in an academic,
business and cultural environment," said Sean Jasso, who organizes the trips and is a lecturer of management
at the School of Business Administration. The programmes started in spring 2010 with a weeklong residency at
the University of Oxford in England. In 2011, students returned to Oxford and added Guangzhou and
Shenzhen, China in June of that year.

In 2012, students will return to those two countries and travel to India from Jan 1 to 8. The past trips and the
upcoming trip to India have drawn about 80 students. The residency in India will explore the strategic issues
that US and foreign multinationals face when doing business in India. Lecture topics include India as a
transitional economy, Mumbai's economy, financing in India, culture and leadership in India and India's future
economic growth. Participants will visit Tata Consultancy Service; L&T InfoTech, a global IT services and
solutions provider; the US Chamber of Commerce; and the National Stock Exchange.

US House approves bill seeking faster green cards for Indian tech professional’s
In a move that could see more highly skilled immigrants from India and China obtain green cards faster, the US
House of Representatives has passed a bill that seeks to modify the current visa regime. The Fairness for High-
Skilled Immigration Act, seeking elimination of per-country caps on employment-based visas and instituting a
first come, first served system, received support from a broad section of representatives across both parties.
The act was passed in the House with a vote of 389-15 yesterday. The bill is now expected to pass through the
Senate smoothly. Under current immigration law, issuance of employment-based green cards is aimed at
restricting permanent residence for citizens from any one country to 7 per cent of the total green cards
approved by the State Department in any particular year. Under the rule, it is easier for applicants from
smaller countries that do not generate a significant number of applications to obtain a green card than
applicants from big countries that provide most of the foreign tech workers sought by companies.

Indian tech professionals, seeking immigration to the US, often have to wait up to 10 years for a green card
due to the per-country cap. The High-Skilled Immigration Act, introduced to Congress in September by Utah
Republican Jason Chaffetz, aims to address the imbalance with a switch to a first come, first served system for
the roughly 140,000 employment-based green cards awarded annually. "Per country limits make no sense in
the context of employment-based visas. Companies view all highly skilled immigrants as the same regardless
of where they are from--be it India or Brazil," Chaffetz said in a statement. Under the current system, India's
quota is roughly 3,000 green cards annually, which means that highly-skilled US visa applicants have to wait
for years before their visa gets approved. The new Bill seeks to cut the time span by removing the limit on
green cards.

According to Nasscom, the bill was a positive step from the perspective of the IT industry. Ameet Nivraskar,
vice president of Nasscom, says the move would certainly ease the pressure from the other categories of work
visas like H-1B. He adds the bill would now need to be approved in the Senate, after which there were other
administrative processes before it would be implemented, he added. Media reports say there would be a
three-year transition before the bill took effect following which green cards based on employment would be
allocated on a first-come, first-served basis -- with no country-based limits.

IACC Newsletter Welcomes 2012

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