US CEOs Seek Faster Reforms; PM Modi Promises Speedier Decisions

When Thursday dawns here, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to launch a full day of economic diplomacy, cajoling titans of industry, finance and media to invest in his hallmark “Make-in-India” programme.

Prime Minister told the chef that he had done him proud by preparing an elaborate menu for his guests- 47 top American CEOs who met him at the Waldorf Astoria hotel.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup told reporters after the meeting, “By and large the mood was very upbeat”. We will get people online for the first time…Prime Minister Modi’s digital India vision is central to this revolution.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has assured the global innovative industry that India not just values intellectual property but will also protect it, especially in this era of technology advancement.

The top executives at the dinner table included Indra Nooyi of Pepsico, Ginni Rometty of IBM, Sanjay Mehrotra of San Disk, Andrew Liveris of Dow Chemical, Marc Allen of Boeing global, Marillyn Hewson of Lockheed Martin, Mark Fields of Ford, Ajay Banga of MasterCard, Michael O’Neill of Citigroup, Gary Cohn of Goldman Sachs, Hamilton James of Blackstone, Dinesh Palatal of Harman worldwide, and Joe Ripp of Time Inc.

According to an official Indian government statement, the media CEOs “were enthusiastic about the digital transformation that is taking place in India through the Digital India initiative”, but also called on the government to focus on “speeding up” of television digitization and enhancing the country’s mobile and broadband infrastructure.

The prime minister has also lined up site visits, notably to Tesla Motors, Facebook and Google.

Others critics want to highlight allegations Modi did not stop religious riots that killed at least 1,000 people, mostly minority Muslims, while he was running the Gujarat state in 2002. All the CEOs said that India is already a big market for them and they do not have any issues with the existing norms.

During the meeting, Modi circulated a one-page fact sheet summarising the steps taken for deregulation, reforms and bringing consistency in the tax administration. He said all the rating agencies were saying that India is the fastest growing economy in the world, and “if this trend continues, then in another 30 years, there will be no sign of poverty (in India)”. At present, 10 of the top 15 technology firms operating in India are United States owned and the momentum would increase with new opportunities. “Some emphasis on the needs in the infrastructure sector and appreciation for the way in which the concept of smart cities has been approached”, he added.