POT HOLES ARE FOR EVER ?

With rainy season in full swing , newspapers / TV channels, are full of reports on pot holes on Mumbai roads

I am sure , situation cannot be much different in other cities

Here are some extracts :

# Times of India ( July 09 )

   A High Court bench asked BMC : How pot holes keep coming back ? Even if material is  expensive , it must be used , as it will sustain for a longer period

Central Road Research Institute had suggested ( to BMC ) , nine methods for road repair . BMC said , two methods failed ; others were either not feasible or expensive

The Bench has directed the BMC to examine the CRRI's methods at its July 13 meeting , The matter is posted for July 15 for an up date

# Mumbai Mirror ( July 08 )

Assistant Municipal Commissioner , Ramakant Bidar writes a letter to Sanjay Darde ( Chief Engineer ) , saying :

" The raw material we are getting for the job ( pot hole repair ) , from the civic body's Worli plant is sub standard ; also there is no standard operating procedure ( SOP ) , for filling pot holes "

BMC has now admitted that the material from its plant is of poor quality and it does not have an SOP

BMC Commissioner , Mehta informed the general body that Rs 1638 crore had been spent on road works this year

#  DNA ( 09 July )

BMC , on friday , informed the Bombay High Court that it is considering bringing home , techniques used in Australia for road repair and maintenance. 

The bench directed BMC to file an affidavit on the steps taken to repair roads and fill up pot holes

#  DNA  ( 11  July )

Union Minister , Shri Nitin Gadkari is going to USA for seeking US help for modernizing infrastructure

Shri Gadkari will seek US cooperation in innovative technologies in highway projects  , material , equipment etc

All of this, when THE SOLUTION is hiding in PLAIN SIGHT ?( read my following email - and blog - to Shri Gadakari )

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sunday, 21 February 2016

Keep Experimenting !

Shri Nitin Gadkari likes to experiment and take the accompanying risks

He is not afraid to stick out his neck for fear of it getting chopped off 

He is not paralyzed into inaction by  " fear of failure "

He like to tell his officers , " Forget the  history - what is your problem ? "

Then offers solutions such as :

*  Logistic parks around big cities to decongest roads and reduce pollution

*  RFID sensor embedded vehicles , paying toll amount electronically without stopping / needing humans

*  E-rickshaws to be treated on par with petrol driven rickshaws

*  By passing Bharat V emission standards to directly jump to Bharat VI standards for all vehicles

*  Introducing hybrid model of financing for attracting private participation in Highway construction

*  Use of slag cement in construction of highways ( use of waste by-products of Steel Industry )

Dear Shri Gadkariji  :

Allow me to suggest use of " COLD  ASPHALT " technology for building new roads / filling pot holes

Use of hot asphalt requires a very narrow temperature range within which it must be spread on roads before rolling

Any hotter and it will just stick to the roller . Any colder and it just won't set

It is difficult to maintain such narrow range ( of temperature ) after asphalt carrying truck travels hundreds of kilometers - even when that truck has a heating jacket ( consuming lots of fuel ! )

If solidified asphalt ( usually stored in steel drums ) is used at the construction site , then it needs to be heated / melted locally ( usually by creating a wood fire ) - causing pollution and consuming trees !

And hot asphalt would just not adhere to a wet surface , rendering it useless for use in monsoon - especially for repair of pot holes

"  COLD  ASPHALT  " technology overcomes ALL of these problems  !

*  It consists of mixing water ( 90 % ) with hot asphalt ( 9 % ) in presence of a specialty chemical ( 1 % ) , in a

    very simple Mixing Machine which can be transported anywhere on a trolley

*  This liquid mixture can remain stored in steel drums at ROOM  TEMPERATURE for over ONE YEAR !

*  Drums containing liquid can be transported and stored at road construction sites and COLD  ASPHALT mixed

    with sand / aggregates as and when required . No ripping / destroying of drums and breaking of solid asphalt

*  There is no need for ANY temperature control as mixture / aggregate can remain at  AMBIENT  temperature

*  Since Cold Asphalt is basically water ( 90 % ) , it is ideally suited for filling wet pot holes or laying on wet roads

*  After laying / spreading , as soon as a heavy roller is driven over Cold Asphalt mixed aggregate , chemical bond

   between water and asphalt is broken due to heavy pressure and  setting process starts , causing the layer to

   solidify . 

Within a matter of MINUTES , regular traffic can flow over the road  ! or over the filled pot holes  !

*  Use of Cold Asphalt technology results in a HUGE COST SAVING  ( remember , it is 90 % water ! )

*  Cold Asphalt roads are much easier to repair , with no pollution , and very little energy consumption


*  Using Cold Asphalt technology, 3 machines ( leveller /spreader/roller ) can lay 1 KM road in a day  !

I have personally seen NATIONAL HIGHWAYS being constructed with Cold Asphalt technology in France , way back in 1988  !

You may turn around and ask :

"  With these advantages , how come our PWD / Municipalities have not adopted this revolutionary technology ? "

My guess :

Because those responsible for drawing up tender documents , insist on use of Hot Asphalt !

And you know , why  !

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

12  July  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

Self - Advertizing Black Money ?

Hindustan Times ( 07 July 2016 ) carries following headline :

" Black Money Window : Tax dept launches Rs 100 cr ad campaign "

As per that report , Rs 100 cr will be spent to advertize government's Income Declaration Scheme as follows:

#  Printing of the Scheme details on the back of boarding passes of 7 airlines

#  Printing details on Railway tickets  ( First Class / II tier A/C )

#  Promoting 3 minute videos on Youtube , Twitter , Facebook and other Social Media platforms

#  Asking tax officers to circulate videos on WhatsApp to their contacts

#  Conducting Town Hall meetings / Issuing of book-marks / Ads in Shopping Malls - Clubs - Showrooms etc

#  Posters in regional languages at stalls / local fairs in tier II / III cities

Dear Policy Makers :

NDA government has repeatedly said that this is a " One Time " window for the BLACK MONEY holders to come clean

It follows that this proposed spend of Rs 100 cr , is also a " One Time " expense and this advt campaign will stop on September 30 , so that the black marketers can resume their activities , as before !

But how about spending that money to embed RFID micro-sensor into 1000 cr individual notes of Rs 500 / Rs 1000 ( @ 10p per sensor in each note ) ?

And enable those high denomination notes to advertize their GPS locations ( 24*7 ) , to the Income Tax Department , as soon as they manage to connect with internet anywhere

And , like me , if you consider that permanent elimination of BLACK MONEY takes precedence over any privacy concerns of our citizens , then also implement a Mobile App - OMNI , ( like TraiMyspeed app of TRAI ) , which will enable the Government to track physical movement of each and every high denomination note as it moves from one pocket to another pocket ? ( see my yesterday's blog : March of the Algorithm )

If we sincerely want to save those 1.2 million Indian children ( under age 5 ), from starvation deaths every year , we must not bother about the privacy of those who have stashed away Rs 340 lakh*crore of BLACK MONEY locally , ( ten times the amount of illegal undisclosed assets of Indians , abroad )

Let me remind you that none of the following have any " Privacy Concerns :

#  400 million people under the Poverty Line ( who don't carry , even a Rs 50 note in pocket ! )

#  200 million unemployed desperate youth ( fodder for militancy - drug abuse - street robberies ! )

#  100 million who go to bed every evening without a meal ( your Advts won't fill their stomachs ! )

How long do you want to continue " begging " these  BLACK MONEY  holders to " oblige " you ?

Just implement my suggestion and watch them " beg for mercy ", even as they gorge out those Rs 340 lakh*crore , in 6 months !

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

07  July  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

  

The March of Algorithms

The following news appeared in Times of India ( 06 July , 2016 ) :

 In a bid to improve the quality of data service for Indian mobile users, telecom regulator Trai has launched an application to help consumers check real-time internet speed on their handsets and report the same to the regulator.

" Through the application (Trai Myspeed app), we will get real-time data from customers. This will be put on Trai Analytics Portal. It will show mobile data speed of each operator in a given area on a real-time basis," Trai chairman R S Sharma said here.

Remember , what George Orville predicted in his book , " 1984 " ?

No matter where you go , the BIG BROTHER ( the Establishment ) will be watching you - and will know exactly, what you are doing / saying , through ubiquitous CCTV cameras

This prediction is gradually being realized in a few cities of the World - with still , a long way to go

But can you believe that the arrival of TraiMyspeed App , opens up the possibility of eliminating the scourge of BLACK MONEY ?

Consider the following :

#  For over a year now , I have been advocating replacing paper notes of Rs 500 / 1000 , and replacing these with

    plastic notes with embedded RFID micro-sensor ( thinner than a human hair ) and each note assigned a unique

    IP V 6.0 URL address , linked to its own unique printed Serial Number

    This sensor will announce its physical location to the Central Servers of IT / ED departments , thru Internet ,

    where , any accumulation of ( say ) Rs ONE CRORE worth of these notes in an area of 1 Sq Meter , will show

    up as a TAG CLOUD !

That was old hat !

Version 2.0 of that suggestion stands modified as follows :

#  Every man carries currency notes in a wallet kept in his pocket , with his mobile in another pocket ( - a lady

    carries her mobile as well as cash in her purse , in closer proximity with each other )

#  RFID embedded currency notes and the mobile , are both connected to the internet ( Internet of Things ? ),

    capable of exchanging data about their GPS location ( among other data )

#  Mobile will count the Number of all those high denomination currency notes and add up their total value

#  Mobile will transfer this DATA to the Central Servers of IT / ED ( much like TryMyspeed app ) - total value , as

    well as Serial Numbers of each and every high denomination notes ( linked to specific Mobile Number )

#  During CASH transactions , a Rs 1000 currency note moves from pocket of Mr A, to the pocket of Mr B

#  And the Mobile of Mr B , will now tell the Central Server : I just received a Rs 1000 note , bearing Serial No

    9GP 487136

#  That would enable the Central Servers to keep track of EACH and EVERY note , as it moves from one person to

     another ! And the Velocity with which a given note is changing hands ( pockets ) !

Of course , I know that this suggestion will be summarily thrown out as an Invasion of Privacy !

In 1999, Sun Microsystems' then-CEO, Scott McNealy , infamously declared,

“ You have zero privacy anyway. Get over it ”

There is no way , any Government will be able to " Arrest the March of Algorithms "

Day is not far when Algorithm ( AI ) will become ,

OMNIPRESENT - OMNISCIENT - OMNIPOTENT

There is no use fighting !

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

06  July  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

  

   

 

Epilogue of Exit ?

If Referendum was the Prologue , Exit will be the Epilogue

And George Osborne ( Chancellor of Exchequer - UK ) fired the first salvo yesterday by announcing :

"  In UK , we will reduce Corporate Income Tax from 20 % to 15 % "

Earlier last week , he told his countrymen :

" We will have to learn to live within our means "

He wants UK to avoid the mistake ( of expenses exceeding the earning ) which is forcing many European countries ( and some South American countries ) , to launch a series of unpopular " Labour Reforms "

Osborne knows that for 45 % of its world-wide exports , UK depends upon " Tariff Free " entry of its goods into EU

Once UK exits , EU will impose 20% - 30 % tariff on British goods , making them uncompetitive

That will force many current UK factories ( British-owned or EU / USA / India owned ) , to relocate inside EU , leading to massive job losses in UK

By reducing Corporate Income Tax , Osborne hopes to retain those units in UK , thereby saving these jobs

This is just the beginning !

As the full impact of BREXIT unfolds , expect the following tougher / unpopular measures :

*   Freeze wages / salaries of government employees, and / or cancel annual salary increments / leave etc

*   Cutting back on free ( or highly subsidized ) Public Services ( Health - Transport - Education etc )

*   Freeze on recruitment in government departments , and / or increase working hours

*   Pull out of expensive overseas military interventions ( eg: Syria )

*   Negotiate for reduction in UK's contribution to various Word Organizations

*   Cut out " Social Security " available to EU immigrants ( eg; 850,000 from Poland )

*   Stop immigrants from Iraq / Syria / Pakistan / Afghanistan etc from coming in

*   Without violating WTO rules , introduce all kinds of indirect subsidies for goods manufactured in UK

*   Go into overdrive to " Sell " British Goods to India

In short , Osborne will leave no stone unturned to make UK , a " Low Cost Economy " to remain competitive and not lose the " Export Market " when EU tariffs go up . And make inroads into new markets

Although not faced with any kind of " Exit Crisis " , we in India , need to take following steps RIGHT NOW , to ensure that our economy, does not become a " High Cost Economy " leading to a crisis :

*  Abolish Personal Income Tax ( to eliminate CORRUPTION )

*  Introduce RFID sensors in Rs 500 / 1000 ( plastic ) currency notes  ( to eliminate BLACKMONEY )

*  Introduce decreasing Corporate Income Tax , linked to rising Employee Count for companies ( JOB CREATION )

*  Introduce EB-3Scheme to bring back $ 500 billion of Black Money stashed abroad by Indians

*  Create Self Employment ( See my blog : A NewEconomic Order - Start Up Act , 2015 )

*  Enable Indians to remotely operate / maintain , factories / offices around the World , (  BackFactory )

*  Increase accountability of Govt Officers by implementing mobile app " ISIN > < U SIN "  

Right now , new Ministers are being sworn in Rashtrapati Bhavan

Our only hope is that , some of those new faces will have the courage to introduce the above-mentioned reforms , without worrying about " losing face "

It is better to have tried and failed rather than having failed to try !

Or will this NDA government also get consigned to history's dustbin when 2019 elections arrive ?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

05  July  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

   

How to break the Vicious Circle ?

After recent announcement of 7th Pay Commission recommendations , there were many debates and " Expert Interviews " on TV channels

When asked :

" Will placing of Rs 1 lakh*crore into the pockets of government employees , push up the prices of all kinds of products ? " ,

experts ( including Shri Jaitleyji ) agreed that there is a good chance that the prices may go up by 1.5% to 2%

Of course , the common man has known this for ages !

Every time he got Diwali bonus or annual salary increment , the prices in shops invariably went up !

It was , as if the Shopkeepers ( and the Manufacturers too ) , were just waiting for these announcements 

Of course , when product prices go up , the CPI goes up 

In turn , the CPI linked wages / salaries go up , raising the cost of manufacture

It is a vicious circle of prices chasing the salaries / wages !

Now take a look at any " product " in your house ( Consumable or Durable )

And ask :

"  How much of its manufacturing cost is  Manpower Cost  ( wages / salaries paid to the people engaged in manufacturing it )  ? 

For most " products " , 

#  Salaries and wages would range from 10 % to 30 % 

#  Overheads of approx 30 % ( once again,mostly comprising salaries / wages )

#  Raw Material  + Bought Out Component would cost ( 40 % - 60 % )

And it is the same break-up ( of cost ) for the company which supplied that raw material or that component 

This Cost Structure repeats again and again , as you continue to " drill down " the entire " Supply Chain "  !

Not surprising , if you consider that eventually , everything that we see around us ( in the form of products ) , comes out of Mother Earth - and FREE !

World has no material cost  !

At each stage of processing ( from digging out that earth or cutting down that tree ) , all that adds " value " is nothing more than the wages / salaries of people who added that " value " and increased its usefulness 

Now , you get the big picture 

If , somehow , those salaries / wages remained " low " at each stage of processing / manufacturing , then the final product would come out " Cheap " 

And lesser product cost would lead to a lower selling price and consequently , a smaller increase in CPI 

Smaller increase ( or no increase ? ) in CPI , would mean smaller ( or no ) rise in CPI-linked wages / salaries

No problem ! 

People would need to earn lesser wages / salaries , to buy that product  !

There will be less demand to raise those salaries !

But , question is :

How can we ,

*  break the " Vicious Circle " ( of ever rising product-prices chasing rises in

    wages / salaries ) , and

*  turn it into a  " Virtuous Circle " ( of ever decreasing cost of manufacturing

   leading to lower selling prices , leading to lower CPI rise , leading to lower

   demand for salaries / wages ) ?


Can we learn something from the following lessons ?


In 1986 , inflation ( price rise / CPI etc ) , climbed to 9.2 % in Australia , forcing PM , Bob Hawke to tell his countrymen :

"  We have , for the time being , to accept reduced Standard of Living , and permanently , increased Standard of Effort "

Then he went on to :

#  Limit workers wage-increases to around 2.3 % per year

#  Appealed to Directors / Senior Managers , not to raise their own salaries

#  Reduce Public Services ( Government owned / operated services )


In same year , PM Lee of Singapore was facing 0 % growth in GDP !

So , he ordered one year WAGE FREEZE for all employees ( government as well as private sector )

Despite the fact that in 1986 , Singapore ( with a population of just 4 million ) , exceeded India's exports of approx $ 9 billion(with a population of 800 million !)

Why was Lee worried so much ?

Having no natural resources ( that can be dug out of earth ) , Singapore's entire " Value Addition " consisted of salaries / wages of its citizens !

He could not afford to let Singapore become a " High Cost Economy "

Right now , many European countries are trying to copy PM Lee  - albeit in a very diluted way - by introducing " Austerity Measures / Labor Reforms ", in their high cost economies

Governments of these countries are telling their citizens :

"  We have been living beyond our means and spending far more than we earn.

   To maintain our high Standard of Living , we have borrowed heavily from 
   
   everyone , raising our external debt to several times our GDP 

   With our high cost economy ( welfare nation ) , our product costs are so high

   that no one wants to buy these and our exports are shrinking !

   We are even forced to sell our infrastructure assets and companies to the 
   
   Chinese ! "


And with rapidly rising wages , even the Chinese are getting worried !

Chinese manufacturers ( government + private ) are going all out to replace high paid workers with robots ! Some 65,000 robots in 2015 alone - nearly 85 % of all the robots installed world-wide !

Now of course , freezing wages / salaries across the board cannot be the answer for India to avoid becoming a High Cost Economy

But that does not mean we cannot try some " Out of the Box " innovations such as :

#  Wages / Salaries

    Assuming that A-B-C Analysis ( 10 % at the top / 80 % in the middle / 10 %

    at  bottom of the pyramid ) holds good for the our country's wage-bill as a 

    whole , it would follow that the TOP 10 % ( of the working class ) , take away

    90 % of wages / salaries of the entire country ( mostly in private sector )

    If they accept a 10 % cut in their salaries / wages for one year , that would 

    lead to , 9 % reduction in costs !

    Let us reward companies adopting this salary-cuts with 2 % reduction in 

    their Corporate Income Tax - a very powerful motivation !

    

#  For those the middle 80% of the working population , abolish Personal

    Tax , with the condition of NO wage increases ( increments + bonuses ) , for 

    2 years  ( this will effectively increase their take-home pay by 10 % per 
     
    year , allowing them to maintain their standard of living , without pressing

    for higher wages and running to labour unions  ! )



#  For the bottom 90 % of the people ( taking just 10 % of the total wage bill ),

     let us implement the just framed proposals of the Labour Ministry , for 

     raising their minimum wages in 45 economic activities covered by the 

     Minimum Wages Act , 1948 . Also , exempt them from Personal Income Tax


Unless we act fast to reduce our " Wage / Salary " bill , following consequences

are inevitable :


#   Our products will become noncompetitive in the export market , which has

      been continuously shrinking for the past 18 months


#   Instead of exporting " finished products " , we will end up exporting our Raw

     Materials to " Low Wage Cost " economies , for processing / value-addition


#   More and more Indian Manufacturers will switch over to automation through

     wide spread installation of Robots , eliminating high wage workers


#   Our goal of raising share of manufacturing in our GDP from 16 % to 25 % ,

     will not materialize



I believe , we must stop getting caught up in some " Ideological " debate , just

because we are a Democracy and cannot act like China 


If my suggestion is implemented ( with whatever modifications considered

necessary ) within the next 12 months , we still have a fighting chance to keep

ours , a " Low Cost Economy " and avoid the fate of those developed countries 

which are realizing their mistakes , 30 years too late !


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

04  July   2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Make    Yourself    Heard

Dear Visitor :

It is time for YOU to speak up - and demand that YOU are heard

By emailing this suggestion - incorporating your OWN improvements - to the following Policy Makers

(  Just multiple copy all the following Email IDs into the Recipient column of your Outlook and Copy / paste this suggestion in the Message Box ) :

    narendramodi1234@gmail.com; 38ashokroad@gmail.com;ajaitley@del5.vsnl.net.in; jayant.sinha19@sansad.nic.in;piyush.goyal@gov.in;nitin.gadkari@nic.in; spprabhu1@rediffmail.com;bandaru@sansad.nic.in;smritizirani@nic.in;nsitharaman@nic.in; ravis@sansad.nic.in;sureshprabhu@irctc.co.in;prakash.j@sansad.nic.in;secy-ipp@nic.in; amitabh.kant@nic.in; shaktikanta.das@nic.in; rsecy@nic.in; adhia1981@gmail.com; ceo-niti@nic.in; atul-chaturvedi@nic.in; uma.bharati@sansad.nic.in; d.pradhan@sansad.nic.in; rprudy.office@gmail.com; rudypr@rediffmail.com; eam@mea.gov.in; mosvks@mea.gov.in; mvnaidu@sansad.nic.in; mnaqvi@sansad.nic.in; rao.inderjit@sansad.nic.in; mljoffice@gov.in; sadananda.gowda@sansad.nic.in; ministerminority@gov.in; najmah@sansad.nic.in; minister-ca@nic.in; ramvilas.paswan@sansad.nic.in; gandhim@sansad.nic.in; akumar-alpha@sansad.nic.in; jpnadda@sansad.nic.in; hm.moca@nic.in; geete@sansad.nic.in; simratbadal@yahoo.com; ns.tomar@nic.in; rmsingh@sansad.nic.in; tc.gehlot@sansad.nic.in; dr.harshvardhan@sansad.nic.in   

    

     



    







  

FDI : By any other name ?

Many years ago , Shakespeare wrote :

" A Rose by any other name , would smell as sweet "

English-speaking Americans have turned this around to say :

" FDI by any other means , would work as well "

They are calling their FDI , " Invest in US and get Green Card " scheme

Officially called , " The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program " , it invites foreigners to invest in USA , through following routes :

#   " Direct Investment Route " , which requires,

     *  Starting a new Business and creating at least 10 full time local jobs by bringing in $ 1 million

        But this process is very cumbersome

#   " Central Investment Program " , which requires,

     *  Bringing in and investing $ 500,000 in a Government approved EB - 5 project in America

     *  Get your full money back after 5 years

     *  If you are lucky , you may earn 0.5 % - 1 % return every year

In 2015 , 18,000 foreign citizens invested ( approx ) $ 9 Billion in US under these programs  - peanuts compared to a total of over $ 231 billion worth of FDI in USA in 2014 . Among these were 111 Indians

Now , I admit that no foreigner is dying to get a " Green Card " in India - and therefore unlikely to take advantage of a similar scheme , if we were to launch one !

But , we can come up with a scheme that will motivate 111,000 Indians to bring in and invest $ 500 billion within ONE YEAR ! ( remember that amount siphoned out of India illegally and stashed abroad by Indians , between 2005-2015 ? )

MY  SUGGESTION :

#  NAME  OF  THE  SCHEME :

    EB-3 Scheme ( Earn by Bring Back Black )

#  WHO  CAN  INVEST  ? 

    Any Indian citizen who has stashed away undisclosed / illegal assets abroad

#  WHERE  CAN  THEY  INVEST  ? 

    Scheme A >  Repay those loans taken from Indian Banks forming Rs 7 lakh*crore of NPA

                        Willful Defaulters repaying bad loans will be spared prosecution

                        No need for Govt money ( er , Tax-Payer Money ) , to bail out those banks !

  

    Scheme B >  Invest in State-wise Infrastructure SPVs ( not Central SPVs ) , managed by Private Sector

                       These will be approved by each state for implementation of the following projects within the state:

    *  Roads / Bridges / Ports / Airports / Smart Cities / Dams / Lakes-Ponds for water conservation / Forestation

    *  Healthcare / Education / Skills Development / Swatchh Bharat / Methane from Garbage  / Digital India

    *  Renewable Energy / Manufacture of Electric Vehicles / Setting up of Electric Charging Stations etc 

   

    All such State SPVs will need to be approved by the Central Government , for which the State will need to agree

    for full cooperation in implementation of the Central River Interlinking Project

#  HOW  MUCH  MUST  THEY  INVEST  ?

    No upper limit but a minimum of Rs 10 crores

#  WHAT  PROTECTION FOR  INVESTORS  ?

    No questions asked as to the source of funds , whether brought in from abroad using official channels or

    deposits made in CASH from local lockers ! No penalty , nor any civil / criminal action against investors

#  WHAT  INCENTIVE  FOR  INVESTORS  ?

    All interest / dividends paid out by the SPV , will be tax-free for 10 years if re-invested in any other similarly

    approved SPV

#  HOW  LONG  CAN  THEY  AVAIL  OF  THIS  SCHEME  ?

    This scheme will open on 01 April 2017 and close on 31 March 2018

#  HOW  CAN  INDIA  BENEFIT  FROM  THIS  SCHEME  ?

    *  Inflow of $ 500 Billion ( Rs 34 lakh*crore ) within ONE YEAR

    *  Generate 50 million jobs by 2020

    *  State Governments will go all out to

        >   Motivate private sector to set-up Infrastructure SPVs within their State

        >   Vastly simplify government approval process

        >   Eliminate / Reduce , rules , procedures and permissions

        >   Introduce " State level Incentives " to attract those BLACK MONIES into SPVs

I believe , with introduction of EB-3 Scheme , there will be such fierce competition between the States that India's rank in " Ease of Doing Business " will jump from current 130 to within TOP FIVE !

And all of this without having to pass any law in the Parliament - and with least dependence on bureaucrats !

Dear Policy Makers :

With two years already gone without making much of a dent ,  I urge you to stop tinkering with INCREEMENTAL IMPROVEMENTS

Promising freebies before State Elections , won't take you beyond 2019 !

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

02  July  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs