Srikanth Badiga, elected as Regional President, Southern Region of IACC

Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC) Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Chapter elected a new team of Office Bearers.

Mr. Srikanth Badiga, Group Director, Phoenix Group was elected as the Regional President for the Southern Region of IACC in an election held in the city disclosed in a press note issued in Hyderabad today.

 

Srikanth Badiga, elected as Regional President, Southern Region of IACC

Mr. K. Ganesh Subudhi, CFO, K. Raheja IT Park (Hyderabad) Limited, is unanimously elected as the Chairman of IACC AP & TS. Mr. Avinash Chukkapalli, Director, Phoenix Infocity Private Limited, is unanimously elected as the First Vice Chairman and Ms. Sreedevi Devireddy, Director, Venture Development Centre, GITAM, as the second Vice – Chairperson of IACC AP & TS.

The newly elected leaders said the membership growth with more women leaders in IACC, increased engagement of members, and engaging stakeholders and the government on matters of great concern are a few areas of priority during their term in office.

The newly elected Regional President, Srikanth Badiga is a well-known corporate leader of the city and served on many panels of various central government panels and international panels. He has been on various committees and industrial bodies. Some of them include the National Vice Chairman, EPCES, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Govt of India.; Board of Director - Asia, on the World Free Zones Organisation and others. He is the First Chairman of ASSOCHAM Telangana State Development Council and completed three terms of tenure this year.

The newly elected IACC AP & TS Chairman K. Ganesh Subudhi is a Chartered accountant and law graduate with 24 years of experience. He is currently working with the CFO of the K. Raheja group.

The Vice Chairman, Mr. Avinash Babu is a graduate of MS Henley Business School, United Kingdom and has over 10 years of experience in the automobile and real estate industry. His proven track record has taken Phoenix Group as Director to greater heights.

Another Vice Chairperson, Ms. Devireddy Sreedevi, Vice Chairperson, is a thought leader in the Innovation and entrepreneurship Ecosystem of India. She currently heads the Venture Development Centre at GITAM (Deemed to be University)

The IACC, established in 1968, is the apex bilateral Chamber synergizing India-US Economic Engagement. It was started by Ambassador Chester Bowles along with the then Industry leaders and visionaries like Mr S L Kirloskar, Mr Harish Mahindra, Mr H. P. Nanda, Mr Ambalal Kilachand, Mr A. M. M. Arunachalam, Mr Frederick Fales and Mr John Oris Sims for enhancing US India Economic Engagement. Today IACC has a pan-India presence with around 1500+ members, representing a cross-section of US and Indian Industries.

Vijaya Sai Meka elected Chairman of IACC AP & TS Chapter

New team of office bearers also elected

Vijaya Sai Meka, Managing Director of S&S Green Projects Pvt. Ltd, a leader of Real Estate Industry elected unanimously Chairman of Indo American Chamber of Commerce(IACC) Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Chapter for the year 2020-21.

Vijaya Sai Meka succeeds Srikanth Badiga, Group Director, Phoenix Group.

Srikanth Badiga is now escalated to South India Council of IACC.

Vijaya Sai Meka brings over 20 years' experience in Construction and Real Estate. He is a pioneer in implementing green building initiatives and also associated with the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC). He is also the Executive Vice President of Telangana Real Estate Developers Association (TREDA) and is actively involved in Basic Research Education and Development Society (BREAD) working in the field of improving school education in Government Schools, as Joint Vice-President.


Membership growth, increased engagement of members, engaging stakeholders and the government on matters of great concern are few areas of priority. It is also a very significant year for IACC local Chapter as one of its member Purnachander Surapaneni is elected as the National President. It is also an important year Indo American bilateral trade observed Vijaya Sai Meka responding on his appointment. We will give our members new experience IACC, he added. 

I wish to put on a record of appreciation for the excellent leadership of Sreesanth Badiga, my predecessor, during the last three years to improve the brand image of IACC.


The other office bearers elected include: Dr. Ramkumar Rudrabhatla, Senior Vice Chairman; Mr. C. Narayana Rao, Vice Chairman. 

Dr. Ramkumar is also MD of P&P Nexgen Tech Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. C. Narayana Rao is a CFO, DivyaSree NSL Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd.

The other Eminent Industry leaders elected as the branch committee member include: Mr. P V Rao, Joint Managing Director, Pennar Group, Mr. Avinash Babu. Chukkapalli, Group Director, Phoenix Infocity Private Limited, Mr. Sourabh Jain, Head Aerospace and Airport city Business, GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd, Mr. C. Narayana Rao, CFO, DivyaSree NSL Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd, Mr. Chebrolu Sundeep, Director, Delta Technology & Management Services Pvt. Ltd, Mr. K. Ganesh Subudhi, CFO, K. Raheja IT Park (Hyderabad) Limited, Mr. CH. Rajagopal Choudary, Chairman, Devi Fisheries Ltd, Mr. Anvesh Dasari, Executive Manager, Efftronics Systems Pvt. ltd, Mr. M. Muralidhar, COO, Kakinada Seaports Limited and Ms. Sreedevi DeviReddy, CEO, SR Innovation Exchange( SR Foundation).

The Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC), established in 1968, is the apex bi-lateral Chamber synergizing India-US Economic Engagement. IACC promotes Indo-American business, trade and economic relations. Today, it has pan India presence with 2400 members, representing a cross-section of US and Indian Industry.


IACC AP & TS is one of the most vibrant Chapters under IACC. It has a membership strength of 150 approximately.

India and US to Form the New Allied Forces in the War Against COVID-19

Even as rising COVID-19 numbers add fuel to anxiety, the indefatigable human spirit is looking for ways to move on to the LWC (Living with Covid) phase of world history. A high-level digital conclave comprising of some of the keenest minds deliberated on the opportunity for Indo-US Trade Cooperation post-COVID19.

Organized by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce along with Forbes India, the panel comprised of Suresh Prabhu, former Commerce, Industry and Civil aviation minister, Lt General (Retd.) Syed Ata Hasnain, India's Sherpa to G20 and the Chancellor of the Central University of Kashmir, Dr Ajit Ranade, President and Chief Economist of the Aditya Birla Group and Naushad Panjwani, Regional President, IACC West India Council. Brian Carvalho, Editor, Forbes magazine, moderated the discussion.

The panelists discussed the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the Indian and global economy, impending sectoral changes, Indo-US trade ties and the way forward. They deliberated on the various options and routes by which India and the US could come out of the current recessionary strains on the economy and forge new paths going forward.

Appreciating the alacrity with which India responded to the Covid-19 crisis, Lt General (Retd) Ata Hasnain said, "India has handled the Covid-19 pandemic with an appreciable balance between public health, economic and social harmony. In the international strategic domain, the post-pandemic factors which would dictate global recovery will be medical research cooperation, economic stabilization and the overcoming of international trust deficit.”

Pointing the way forward for India as it battles and recuperates from the crisis, Dr Ajit Ranade, Chief Economist of the Aditya Birla Group said "Sectors like healthcare and pharma will become more prominent. In India, public health spending will go up considerably and many new ways of conducting business will come up.”

The group foresaw opportunities for a new realm of Indo-US trade and economic collaborations. "The methods of wealth creation for a nation have evolved from conquering to colonization to cartels to the competition. The way forward now is collaboration. Here, India and USA are perfect partners", said Naushad Panjwani, Regional President, IACC West India Council.

Former Commerce and Industry and Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu said, "Now, India and USA need to not only continue investing in each other's countries but also invest and operate projects in other countries jointly."

Dr Ranade joined in and added that he saw scope for greater collaboration between Indian and American companies in vaccines and medical research.

About IACC



The Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC), established in 1968, an apex bilateral Chamber was founded by the then US Ambassador, Chester Bowles and other industry leaders. The Chamber is dedicated to promote the bilateral economic and trade cooperation between India and US. A not for profit, non-government body, IACC is industry led and managed promoting Indo- American business and economic relations, bilateral trade, investments and technology transfers and facilitating business collaborations, joint ventures, marketing tie-ups and strategic alliances through a set of proactive business oriented initiatives.

The Chamber has over 2300 members from all over the country in diverse sectors. IACC has the privilege of working closely with the US embassy and the Indian government providing feedback and recommendations on various issues and also giving an opportunity to its members to interact with senior officials from both the governments regularly.

IACC to bring in American companies to further strengthen the Aerospace and Defence Sectors in Hyderabad:Mr. Shrikant Badiga, Chairman, Indo-American Chamber of Commerce – AP & TS

Indo–American Chamber of Commerce (IACC) AP & TS organized a Round-Table Discussion on “Overcoming Challenges in Aerospace and Defense sectors for sustainable business growth at Hyderabad” on Friday at Novotel Hotel Airport, Hyderabad. The Round-table discussion supported by GMR Aerospace & Industrial Park was attended 35 people comprising of MDs / Directors / CEOs / CFOs of sectors. The round table saw people from different sector put forth the problems they face and opportunities they foresee in the Aviation, Aerospace and Defence sectors.


[caption id="attachment_142308" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] View of the Round Table on Aerospace and Defence organised by IACC and GMR Aerospace and Industrial Park at Hyderabad[/caption]

Giving details in a press note issued in city today Mr. Shrikant Badiga, Chairman of IACC – AP & TS said that Aerospace and Defence sector play a very important role and to compliment and accelerate economy more industries need to come up. Hyderabad has a very good potential and the GMR Aerospace and Industrial Park is complimenting the growth of the sector for India. The eco-system is there but minor issues have to be addressed and ironed out for the sector to bloom. Most international companies are looking at Hyderabad as a potential hub for setting up industries, he said. 

There is a huge business potential for Aerospace and Defence sectors in Hyderabad. With the encouragement and the positive policies of the Telangana Government a huge eco-system of Aerospace and Defence sectors can be created in Hyderabad. There is a very investor-friendly environment in Hyderabad. The Aerospace and Defence sectors have taken off smoothly and have a promising journey ahead. IACC would coordinate with American companies to bring in a good number of American companies to develop a very positive ecosystem and further strengthen it, said Mr. Shrikant. 

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Praveen PA, Director, Aerospace and Defence, Government of Telangana said that Aerospace, Defence, IT and Pharma are the thrust areas of the Telangana Government. More companies are looking at Hyderabad as it has the people with right skill sets, infrastructure, vendor base and a proactive government. Aerospace and Defence companies are looking at Hyderabad to set up their manufacturing bases, he said. With GMR Aerospace and Industrial Park, Adibatla, Hardware Park, etc. the south of Hyderabad city is becoming home to 4-5 strong clusters in these sectors, Mr. Praveen said. 

Hyderabad will be a hub of aerospace and defence where all activities, including R&D, manufacturing, etc. will happen, Mr. Praveen opined. The government is having a multi-pronged approach with tie-ups with universities to setup need based education programs, setting up of centres of excellence and promoting lot of startups and related activities, he stated. 

Some other things discussed, shared and suggested by the eminent leaders from State Government, Industry leaders and other stakeholders were: Regulatory Certification processes to be streamlined; Tax structure in Engine MRO (Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul) to be rationalized as compared to other countries; Delay in processing of tax rebates by various ministries to be addressed; Focus on Aerospace and Defence industry for youth; Startup ecosystem in Aviation, Aerospace and Defence to be created; Skill development programs to be strengthened; Skill development programs between MSMEs Tier1 and Tier2 suppliers to be developed; etc. 

Dr. Ramkumar Rudrabhatla, MD, P&P Nexgen Tech P. Ltd. sharing his thoughts said that Hyderabad has a huge potential and it needs to be tapped. The private sector has a critical part to play, he said. He opined that we need to integrate R&D to the industry operations. Though there are a lot of issues and challenges, but the defence industry is going from an era of self-sufficiency to self-reliance, Dr. Ramkumar said. 

Mr. Rajendra Velagapudi, MD & CEO, Cyient DLM lamented that it is a challenge and takes a lot of time to get approvals from the Government. Support is needed in this regard, he said. Giving example of them, he said that it took 1 year’s time for approvals from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MIETY). 

Mr. Gaurav Kamath, Head, Tata Advanced Systems Ltd.-Boeing (TASL-Boeing) stressed on skill and quality of STEM education; he said that it is a challenge to find and retain the right talent. Aerospace requires intellect, but with so many easier options available for youth, it is taking out much talent, he opined. We have defence offset but maybe civil offset will give the industry a nudge, he said. 

Mr. Vijaya Sai Meka, Senior Vice Chairman, IACC AP & TS said that the objective of the program is to highlight the challenges and to discuss the solutions for the sustainable business growth of Aerospace and Defence sectors at Hyderabad. The findings will be shared with the Government of Telangana and further steps will be taken to mitigate the problems. 

Ease of Doing Business Crucial if India wants to Scale Ambitious Peak of $5 Trillion - IACC

The Indo American Chamber of Commerce held a roundtable with Khaitan Co-hosting 30 of the top CEOs and Chairmen on the subject

The Indo American Chamber of Commerce plays a pivotal role of promoting and assisting companies with interest in doing business in both countries. Right from creating the need providing research assisting in setting up and thereafter also being their voice in conveying the pain points to both governments.

Today deliberation was one of the first in a series of listening to the pain points of companies operating in Maharashtra (which contributes 20% of India GDP) noting the suggestions for improvement and quantifying the impact of the same. Maharashtra has an ambition of becoming a trillion dollar economy by itself and will play a crucial role in India reaching its target of becoming a $5 trillion economy.

Mr. Naushad Panjwani President(West)Indo American Chamber of Commerce opened the roundtable with the following statement;The present govt has done well to introduce structural reforms be it in the segment of labour laws banking bankruptcy digitization and GST amongst others. These reforms were long overdue and the intent of introducing them was right but these could have been executed better.

Mr. Saurabh Shah VP (West)-Indo American Chamber of Commerce said It is heartening to see the Prime Minister personally meeting the industry leaders taking a cue from that we are meeting leaders of the next rung of companies and going to 10 cities (Mumbai Navi Mumbai Pune Aurangabad Nashik Nagpur Ahmedabad Surat Vadodara and Goa) to get a very wide perspective of their challenges.

A detailed white paper on the same will be presented to the state chief Ministers relevant union ministers and respective American Consulates along with engaging with them on the subject.

Ease of Doing Business in India Roundtable - Key Takeaways

Digitization is a key- Be it in compliances stamp duty court records or land records. While we are on track the process needs to be accelerated integrated and simplified.

Key to have clear rules - This is necessary to avoid any issues in interpretation or delay in implementation. Further the punishment/ penalty should be clear severe and uniform.

Facilitation - Focus should be on facilitation rather than on regulation.

Pendency of courts - This area needs a lot of work. Some thoughts include increased use of digitization artificial intelligence etc. Another suggestion is to have mediation; or conciliation; as pre-requisite before approaching any judicial authorities - this will reduce number of cases being filed.

Capacity building - More focus on capacity building by all Governmental/judicial authorities. Forums like AICC can play a big role in this area.

Easy access - Automated process to access government facilities. Say access to ESI hospitals PF withdrawals etc.

Ease of doing business - Time taken to setup and close business needs improvement. We need to provide incentives and handholding to set-up businesses and documents/ compliances required ndash; while some states are performing well in this area as a country we are far behind our developed counterparts.

Performance review - To incentivize better performance accountability a clear performance evaluation system needs to be implemented at Governmental authority level.

~ Newsvoir