Digital India’ is to be A Game Changer for the Country

Electronics Manufacturing to be Given Major Boost Communications-Call to all New Goal Posts set for the Postal Department

YEAR END REVIEW-2014 One of the India’s core strength the Information Technology is sought to be taken to new heights.  Midway through the year the new Government came in and shifted gears to fast track usage of all technologies including the Information Technology.  The Digital India is to be an overarching Programme for empowering people. E-governance is to be hallmark for good governance. Steps have been initiated to connect over 2.5 lakh Gram Panchayats by laying about 7 lakh kilometers of optical fiber cable in the next three years. Over 1,13,000 crore rupees is expected to be spent on the programme over next 5 years. Launching the National Digital Literacy Mission in August this year, the Prime Minister had said that a digital revolution was about to begin. Modi went on to say that his vision of a `digital` India encompasses a time when the common man is able to track the government`s work from his mobile phone.  There is the Digital Saksarat Abhiyaan (DISA) to make 42.5 lakh people digitally literate. A scheme for the purpose was approved on 9.12.14 under Digital India. Out of the total target, 4 lakh candidates are to be trained by Industry, NGOs and others through their own resources/under CSR and remaining 38.5 lakh candidates would be supported by Government. Various applications of IT have started to be introduced. Jeevan Pramaan is one such application for biometric identification system for pensioners and biometric attendance for government employees. The Jeevan Praman was also launched by the Prime Minister indicating the importance that the Government is giving to the sector. The minister for Communications & Information Technology Shri. Ravi Shankar Prasad stating some details relating to his ministry. (Courtesy: Doordarshan News) <iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/nT0ZQeJQILs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> Another area that a new focus was laid was Electronic manufacturing. Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMC) Scheme now provides financial assistance for creating world-class infrastructure for electronics manufacturing units and Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme (M-SIPS) provides financial incentives to offset disability and attract investments in the manufacturing of electronics products (including telecom).  Electronic Development Fund to promote Electronic System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM)has been set up Promotion of Electronic Manufacturing Clusters: foundation stone laid at Bhopal and Jabalpur. In principle approval given to 16 more clusters. Giving importance to the skill development in Electronic System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) sector, the Prime Minister again took time to lay foundation stone for National Institute for Electronics & Information Technology (NIELIT) center Ranchi. Again at the initiative of the Prime Minister a High Level Task Force headed by the former Cabinet Secretary Shri T.S.R. Subramaniam was constituted to propose for revitalization of the Department of Posts. As a part of the modernization of the Department Selection of vendor for supply of hardware connectivity and services to about 1,30,000 rural post offices has been completed and Letter of Intent (LoI) issued to the selected bidder. Most other developments in the Department through the year are as illustrated below:- As the communications forms the basis for the Information Technology, there have been efforts to strengthen the sector through allocation of more spectrums to the Telecommunication operators. Public WiFi hotspots in universities and public places are sought to be installed. Some of the details relating to Telecommunications are :- The Minister for Communications & Information Technology as a part of the Good Governance Day tomorrow is to launch among others the following new initiatives of his Ministry:- . The invitation for the same is:-http://pib.nic.in/newsite/invitation.aspx?relid=113954 1.      Gyansetu- internet based real time ICT system to provide e-services to be launched on 25thDecember, 2014. 2.      Jodi Plan for Mobile for MTNL Subscribers to be launched on 25.12.2014 3.      One month rental free for broadband and broadband & landline combo plans for new bookings for MTNL customers on 25.12.2014. 4.      Launch of Time Stamping of CCA - Time stamps establish the time when a document or transaction was created. The service has been created and is ready to be launched by three Certifying Authorities (CA) – (n) Code Solutions, eMudhra and SIFY. 5.      Launch of Good Governance Booklet:  As indicated by a note received from Cabinet Secretariat, this booklet will highlight key achievements of DeitY and will act as a ready reckoner for general public. The booklet will be published in both physical form and e-Book. The draft list of the items to be included in the book has been prepared 6.      Short Audio Visual (Film)- The proposed AV/Film will highlight the key achievements of DeitY. The proposed length of the film is 8-10 mins and the key projects taken up by DeitY namely MyGov, Biometric Attendance, Revamping of MMPs, Digital Locker, e-Book & e-Bhasha platforms, Jeevan Praman, e-Sampark and Mobile Seva. 7.      e-Book platform developed by CDAC – Developed by CDAC, the e-Book platform will allaow all Govt Dept/agencies to create e-Books in standardized format. This will allow the general public to have cost effective access to large amount of educational material and Govt reports/Publications in digital formats. 8.      e-Governance Competency Framework :- Competency based selection for implementation of e-governance would also support good governance. Developed by DeitY, this framework assesses and enhances the competencies of Government officers for visualizing, conceiving and delivering projects aimed at transforming existing systems. eGCF will make the e-Gov services in the country more sustainable and responsive to the needs of citizens. 9.      Chips to Institutions/Systems Project :- The project aims at developing skilled/specialized manpower in areas of micro electronics, VLSI, Systems development on Chip, through premiere institutions like IITs and IISCs etc. It will result in development of more than 50,000 industry ready professional will be produced. 10.  NIXI project (Gujarati idn) :- An initiative of the Internet Governance Division of DeitY to ensure inclusive development using the Internet. The local language plays a critical role in making Internet more inclusive by widening the knowledge base across communities in the native language and promoting the use of local language content. The growth of Internet has mainly taken place in one language namely English leading to the language barriers for non-English speakers. . भारत Country Code Top Level Domain Name (ccTLD) in Devanagari script was formally launched by the Hon’ble Minister for Communications and Information Technology,  Mr. Ravi Shankar Prasad on 27 August, 2014. After the launch of .Bharat in Devanagari script National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) jointly with C-DAC propose to launch the IDNs in Gujarati, Bengali and Manipuri on Good Governance Day on  December 25th, 2014. 11.  Mobile as Digital Identity: - DeitY conducted a consultation workshop in October 2014 to brainstorm on various aspects of how mobile phones can be used as instruments for electronic authentication of individuals’ identities. The participants included industry practitioners/ bodies, members of the academia, implementers, regulatory authorities, and officials from DeitY and other departments. The key outcome of the workshop and further deliberations was that “digital identity” should imply enabling mobility while establishing a person’s identity. For usage of mobile as an instrument of digital identity, three possible mobile identity solutions emerged: (1) mobile number linked with Aadhaar; (2) mobile digital signatures; and (3) voice biometrics (either standalone, or linked to mobile number). Work is underway to implement the most efficient and effective solution to enable citizens to enjoy the benefits of a mobile cradle-to-grave digital identity. A report on “Mobile as Digital Identity” is proposed to be launched on 25th December 2014. 12.  NGN (Next Generation Network)Switch of BSNL, DoT:- BSNL will able to offer new services after NGN like Wide Area IP Centrex (WIPC), Multimedia services (MMVC), Prepaid which are not available on TDM switches. It enables to offer Multimedia communication with Quality of Services (QoS). The service will be launched through a Video phone facility between Delhi & Bangalore

Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion

YEAR END REVIEW- 2014 - Measures to Bring Industry and Manufacturing Centre-Stage for Economic Growth Marks 2014 In the wake of global economic slowdown persisting in 2013-14, India’s GDP growth for 2013-14 had recorded just 4.7% with industry growth at 0.4% and manufacturing growth recording a negative growth of -0.7%. During the year several initiatives were taken   to give the necessary thrust to industry, whose share in the GDP was hovering around 15%. 1.Ease of Doing Business. Major Initiatives have been taken in 2014 for improving ‘Ease of Doing Business’ in India through simplification and rationalization of the existing rules and introduction of information technology to make governance more efficient and effective.  ·        A comparative study of practices followed by the States for grant of clearance and ensuring compliances were circulated among all the states for peer evaluation and adoption, and Chief Ministers were requested to partner with DIPP in taking these initiatives forward to ease the business regulatory environment in the country. Other suggestions include filing of returns on-line through a unified form; placing a check-list of required compliances on Department’s web portal; replacing all registers required to be maintained by the business with a single electronic register; no inspection without the approval of the Head of the Department; and introducing a system of self-certification for all non-risk, non-hazardous businesses. ·        The process of applying for Industrial License (IL) and Industrial Entrepreneur Memorandum (IEM) has been made online and this service is now available to entrepreneurs on 24x7 basis at the eBiz website.  This had led to ease of filing applications and online payment of service charges. ·        A major breakthrough has been pruning the list of Defence industries which require industrial licensing. Dual use items, having military as well as civilian applications, unless classified as defence item, will also not require Industrial License from defence angle. The   requirement of affidavit from applicants that they will comply with the safety & security guidelines/procedures has been dispensed with. ·        After this simplification, 61 pending applications for Defence Industries have been disposed of, including granting of 43 licenses, and advising that 18 applications do not need license. ·        Initial validity period of Industrial License has been increased to three years from two years, also, two extensions of two years each in the initial validity of three years of the Industrial License shall now be allowed up to seven years. This will give enough time to licensees to procure land and obtain the necessary clearances/approvals from authorities. Partial commencement of production is now being treated as commencement of production of all the items included in the license.  ·        The latest National Industrial Classification Code NIC 2008 has been adopted, which will allow Indian businesses to be part of globally recognized and accepted classification that facilitate smooth approvals/registration. ·        The process of Registration with Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) has been integrated with eBiz and launched for public on 12th December, 2014. Integration of 8 more Central Services with e-Biz are at an advanced stage of integration. Further, other than the Central Bank of India,  e-Biz portal has been integrated with 4 more banks, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, Canara Bank and Punjab National Bank. ·        A checklist with specific time-lines has been developed for processing all applications filed by foreign investors in cases relating to Retail/NRI/EoU foreign investments and placed on the DIPP website. 2. Make in India The ‘Make in India’programme has been launched globally on 25th September 2014 with 25 thrust sectors and a dedicated portal with back end support up to Sectoral and State levels for facilitation. The initiative was simultaneously launched in the Capital of all States and in several Indian Embassies/High Commissions. Few other Indian Embassies have also organized “Make in India” interactions after the launch. The ‘Make in India” initiative is based on four pillars, which have been identified to give boost to entrepreneurship in India, not only in manufacturing but also other sectors. The four pillars are: (i)     New Processes: ‘Make in India’ recognizes ‘ease of doing business’ as the single most important factor to promote entrepreneurship. A number of initiatives have already been undertaken to ease business environment. The aim is to de-license and de-regulate the industry during the entire life cycle of a business. (ii)   New Infrastructure: Availability of modern and facilitating infrastructure is a very important requirement for the growth of industry. Government intends to develop industrial corridors and smart cities to provide infrastructure based on state-of-the-art technology with modern high-speed communication and integrated logistic arrangements. Existing infrastructure to be strengthened through upgradation of infrastructure in industrial clusters. Innovation and research activities are supported through fast paced registration system and accordingly infrastructure of Intellectual Property Rights registration set-up has been upgraded. The requirement of skills for industry are to be identified and accordingly development of workforce to be taken up. (iii) New Sectors: ‘Make in India’ has identified 25 sectors in manufacturing, infrastructure and service activities and detailed information is being shared through interactive web-portal and professionally developed brochures. FDI has been opened up in Defence Production, Construction and Railway infrastructure in a big way. (iv)  New Mindset: Industry is accustomed to see Government as a regulator. ‘Make in India’ intends to change this by bringing a paradigm shift in how Government interacts with industry. The Government will partner industry in economic development of the country. The approach will be that of a facilitator and not regulator. An Investor Facilitation Cell has been created in ‘Invest India’ to guide, assist and handhold investors during the entire life-cycle of the business.This Cell will provide necessary information on vast range of subjects; such as, policies of the Ministries and State Governments, various incentive schemes and opportunities available, to make it easy for the investors to make necessary investment decision. Information on 25 sectors has been put up on ‘Make in India’s web portal (http://www.makeinindia.com) along with details of FDI Policy, National Manufacturing Policy, Intellectual Property Rights and Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor and other National Industrial Corridors. 3. E-Biz Project •          The eBiz project is one of the 31 Mission Mode Projects (MMPs) under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) of Government of India.The project envisages setting up a G2B portal to serve as a one-stop shop for delivery of services to the investors and addresses the needs of business and industry from inception through the entire life cycle of the business. During 2014, a momentum thrust has been given to integrate the Central services in the e-biz platform in a time bound manner. •          The eBiz platform with 2 DIPP services along with integration with Central Bank of India payment gateway and electronic Pay and Accounts Office solution were launched on 20.01.2014. Further, the Employee State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) service was launched on 12.12.2014. It is expected that 8 more Central Government Services , vizPAN and TAN services of CBDT, DIN, Name Availability, Certificate of Incorporation and Certificate of commencement of businessServices of Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Exporter-Importer Code Service of DGFT and Employer Registration Service of EPFO will be integrated shortly. The initial e-PAO solution is now working with Central Bank of India, Canara bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India and Punjab National Bank. E-PAO solution with State Bank of India and its associate banks are currently under implementation. 4.  Liberalisation in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)/ and facilitation of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) ·        During 2014, FDI in Defence Industry has been permitted through the Government route up to 49%. Also, higher FDI can be allowed on case to case basis.     Further, portfolio nvestment which was not permitted earlier has now been allowed up to 24% under automatic route. ·        Other important changes in the revised policy include doing away of the lock-in period of three years, mandating that investee  company should be structured to be self-sufficient in areas of product design and development, with full Indian management and control along with Chief Security Officer being resident Indian citizen. ·        Further, FDI in construction, operation and maintenance of identified railway transport infrastructure up to 100% has been permitted through the automatic route. In sensitive areas, from security point of view, FDI beyond 49% would be allowed on a case to case basis. ·        Recently, the norms for FDI in Construction Development Projects (which already permitted 100% FDI through automatic route) have been further liberalised.The minimum land area restriction has been removed for serviced plots. In case of construction-development projects, minimum built up area of 50,000 sq. meter has now been reduced to floor area of 20,000 sq. meter. Minimum capitalization has been reduced from US $ 10 million to US $ 5 million. Norms relating to repatriation of funds or exit from the project have also been liberalized. Investor can exit after the completion of the project or after development of trunk infrastructure. Earlier provision to bring in entire FDI within six months of the commencement of the project has been amended to provide that FDI can be brought in till the period of 10 years from the commencement of the project or its completion, whichever is earlier. To encourage investment in affordable housing, it has been provided that minimum area and capitalization norms will not apply to the projects committing 30 percent of the total project cost for low cost affordable housing. During 2014, approval has been given to the plan scheme for Modernization & Strengthening of Intellectual Property Offices. The scheme aims at reducing transaction costs, in improving transparency in the functioning of the IP Offices and in augmenting human resources with a view to enable examination of applications in a timely manner. Further during 2014, the National Institute of Design has been declared as the Institute of National Importance. Four more NID are being set up in Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana. 4.  Japan Plus DIPP has set up a special management team to facilitate and fast track investment proposals from Japan. The team known as “Japan Plus” has been operationalized w.e.f October 8, 2014. 5.  Industrial Corridors Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC ) ·                    The first node/ city level Special Purpose Vehicle ( SPV) under DMIC Project with the name and title of  “Aurangabad  Industrial Township Ltd.” has been incorporated.  ·                    Integrated Industrial Township Project at Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh;  Integrated Industrial Township Project  in VikramUdyogpuri Near Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh; Activation Area of Dholera Special Investment Region in Gujarat and Phase-I of ShendraBidkin Industrial Park in Maharashtra are moving  towards implementation. ·                    Request for Qualification proposal for the empanelment of the EPC Contractors for roads and services for Activation Area of Ahmedabad Dholera Special Investment Region in Gujarat has been floated. ·                    Final environmental clearance has already been obtained from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change for three DMIC Nodes viz.  ManesarBawal Investment Region in Haryana, KhushkheraBhiwadiNeemrana Investment Region in Rajasthan and Ahmedabad Dholera Investment Region in Gujarat.  ·                    Detailed Project Report for Mass Rapid Transit System between Ahmedabad Dholera has been finalisedThe preparation of Detailed Project Report for the Mass Rapid Transit project between Gurgaon and Bawal is at an advanced stage of finalisation. ·                    Significant progress has been made in the Model Solar Power Project at Neemrana, Rajasthan which is being implemented as an Indo Japan Partnership Project. The first batch of Solar panels have arrived at the site, EPC contractor has been appointed and the actual commissioning of the project has been initiated. ·                    Considerable progress has also been made in the Logistic Data Bank Project, which is one of the Smart Community Projects being implemented in partnership with the Government of Japan. Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP) has notified the levy of Mandatory User Charges (MUC) as part of their scale of rates.  The project is being taken forward for the implementation in partnership with NEC Corporation of Japan. Chennai Bangalore Industrial Corridor (CBIC): ·               Perspective plan has been finalized, and three nodes, Tumkur (KN), Ponneri (TN), and Krishnapatnam (AP) have also been identified and finalized. Vizag Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC): ·               The Conceptual Development Plan has been finalized, and work on preparation of Regional Perspective Plan (RPP) has been  initiated. ·               Four nodes have been finalized and Asian Development Bank has agreed to prepare Master Plans for the two identified nodes viz. Vizag and Yerpedu-Srikalahasti, for which parcels of land have been identified. .  Bengaluru Mumbai Economic Corridor (BMEC): ·               Draft perspective plan has been prepared. Amritsar Kolkata Industrial Corridor (AKIC): ·               DMICDC has been entrusted with the responsibility of preparing feasibility report.  National Industrial Corridor Development Authority (NICDA) ·                    National Industrial Corridor Development Authority (NICDA) is being created. 6. Modified Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation Scheme (MIIUS) : ‘In principle’ approval have been accorded for 21 projects involving  central grant of Rs.550.00 crore under the ‘Modified Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation Scheme (MIIUS)’ .Out of the above projects, 15 State Implementing Agencies have submitted detailed proposals which are being evaluated by National Productivity Council, Project Management Agency(PMA) for granting ‘final approval’. 7.    Important Developments in Industries Administered by DIPP Leather Sector ·                    One of the major activities under Indian Leather Development Programme is to provide placement linked skill development training to unemployed youth. ·                    As against the target set out for 2014-15 to provide training under this programme to 54,000 persons, training has been provided to 92,500 unemployed persons in the current year. During 12th Plan period, 200503 persons have been trained and 161773 (80%) placed in the Leather Sector. ·                    Government is taking steps to ramp up this training programme to cover 1,38,000 persons for 2014-15 with mandatory placement of at least 75% by March 2015 and 1,44,000 persons during 2015-16. ·                    For augmentation of institutional infrastructure, funds have been released for establishment of two new branches of Footwear Design & Development Institute at Banur (Punjab) and Ankleshwar (Gujarat). ·                    In addition, 194 leather units have been disbursed assistance of Rs.40 crore for completion of their modernization and technology upgradation. ·                    Approval has been given for pilot project – Co-digestion of Tannery Solid waste with Biogas Generation in Calcutta Leather Complex (CLC) under Solid Waste Management component of the Leather Technology, Innovation & Environmental Issues sub-scheme of ILDP. Boiler ·                    Modified regulations and  several forms to simplify registration of  boilers and to reduce paperwork for boiler manufacturers & users have been undertaken. ·                    State Governments have been advised to introduce self- certification and third party inspection in Boilers. ·                    Qualification and experience for Competent Persons have been rationalized to facilitate increase in availability of Competent Persons for third party inspection. This will facilitate both, boiler manufactures as well as boiler users. ·                    Regulations have been amended to increase time period between   inspections requiring mandatory shut down of the boilers in power plants and continuous process plants which will result in increase in production from these plants. ·                    Regulations have been framed for prescribing procedure/criteria for approval of boiler/boiler component manufacturers in the country. It will   result in increase in transparency and setting of minimum quality standards for boilers manufacturers. ·                    Provisions have been made in boiler regulations for on-line submission of applications for registration of boilers and for recognition of Well  Knownfirms to do self-certification of their activities without approaching Inspecting Authorities. ·                    Time period for evaluation of firms by Evaluation Committee of the Central Boilers Board for recognition of Well Known firms reduced from 120 days to 90 days for manufacturing works in foreign countries and to 60 days for manufacturing works in the country. ·                    Provision made in boiler regulations for recognition of welders by the third party inspecting authorities which will facilitate boiler and boiler component manufacturers. ·                    Time period have been prescribed for recognition of qualification of welders  by the Competent Authorities.  Salt ·                    Identification of surplus salt land for development of infrastructure facilities for manufacturing sector is being carried out. ·                    Surplus salt land transferred in ( a)Tamil Nadu : EPL (764.64 acres),  BPCL (100 acres),  NTECL (75.19 acres) and   ETPS (24.81 acres)   for developmental activities on payment of market value of the land, IPAB in Tondiarpet (1.2 acre), (b) Andhra Pradesh : Customs and Central Excise( 0.5 acre), (c) Maharashtra: National Highway Authority of India (23.07 acre). ·                    The policy for transport of salt by rail was reframed and allocation of wagons to salt manufacturers was streamlined. Explosives ·        It has been decided that no licence under the Industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951 will be necessary by mine owners to manufacture Ammonium Nitrate Fuel Oil (ANFO) explosives.  This will help mine owners using ANFO to continue mining operations and will help the development of cement industry as well as the construction sector. ·        Tapering of user fee to Licensing Authority (PESO) has been introduced to ensure that explosives manufacturers are required to pay less for production/ storage for increased slabs beyond a ceiling. Licence fees for magazines used for fireworks has been kept less compared to other explosives. Fees for export of explosives and fireworks have been abolished. ·                    Keeping in view technological developments, the security scenario and demands of the stakeholders, an extensive exercise to review the Rules administered by PESO has been undertaken.  Development Councils  and Measures for Standardisation ·               Development council for the following industries has been constituted for Foundry Industry and Paper Industry. ·               The DIPP has taken up the issue of preparation of standards for lead free paints with BIS. In the first phase 9 items relating to different types of paints have been identified in consultation with the Indian Paint Association (IPA). BIS has finalized the standards for these 9 items. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE I.       WTO matters ·         India and USA successfully resolved their differences relating to the issue of Public Stock Holding for Food Security purposes. ·         The General Council of WTO also adopted a protocol to make Trade Facilitation Agreement a part of WTO agreement. II.    Foreign Trade and Foreign Trade Policy ·         Intensive discussions underway with Department of Revenue to finalise new Foreign Trade Policy (2014-19). ·         For mainstreaming of exports from States a matrix developed and sent to all State Governments.  6 States have finalised export strategy and 3 States have already appointed Export Commissioners. ·         Digitisation, simplification, trade facilitation, reduction in transaction costs have been taken up as an ongoing exercise by DGFT to enable online access on trade statistics and facilitation.             III. Bilateral Relations ·         ASEAN-INDIA agreements on “Trade in Services and Investment” were signed (except Philippines). IV.  Special Economic Zones ; ·        Service Delivery - Activities related to Developers and Units in SEZs were identified and timelines for completion of the said activities were prescribed and implemented.  Launched on 14.08.2014 in all Zones.  ·        Digitization and online processing of various activities relating to SEZ Developers and Units has been introduced in all Zones from 01.11.2014.                          Initiatives For Implementation in next 6-12 months : ·        Mixed land use in non-processing areas to be allowed. V.     Gems and Jewellery Sector ·         World Diamond Conference successfully organised. ·         Long term procurement agreement between Alroza and Indian Diamond firms for supply of rough diamonds signed. VI.  Good Governance initiatives: DGFT ·         A simplified system for issuance of Importer Exporter Code (IEC) online will become operational w.e.f. Jan 1, 2015. ·         A Complaint Resolution System for Resolution of EDI related issues has been set up. VII.           Achievements related to IT : ·         Website and intranet portal of the Department of Commerce revamped, redesigning and improvement of the websites of 33 Export Promotion Councils already taken up.

Review of the policy on Foreign Direct Investment in Pharmaceutical Sector – carve out for medical devices

Review of the policy on Foreign Direct Investment in Pharmaceutical Sector – carve out for medical devices

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today gave its approval to amend the existing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy in the Pharmaceutical Sector to create carve out for medical devices.  As per the extant FDI policy for pharmaceuticals sector, FDI up to 100% is permitted subject to specified conditions. While FDI for green-field projects is under automatic route, brown-field projects are placed under government route. The Policy on the pharmaceutical sector covers `medical devices` since this area is not separately covered.  Since medical devices are part of the Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 1940 and fall under the Pharmaceutical sector, all the conditions of the FDI policy on the sector, including the condition relating to `non-compete clause`, apply on brownfield investment proposals of medical devices industry. As per National Industrial Classification (NIC) Code 2008, sector code of `Manufacture of pharmaceuticals, medicinal chemical, and botanical products` is 2100 while sector code of `Manufacture of medical and dental instruments and supplies` is 3250. Medical devices will fall under the category of `medical and dental instruments and supplies`. Therefore, drugs and pharmaceuticals and medical devices are two different industrial activities. The condition of `non-compete` was imposed so that the Indian manufacturers can continue manufacturing generic drugs and catering to the needs of the large number of people in the country and in other developing countries who cannot afford branded and patented drugs. This condition is not relevant to `medical devices` industry of the country where the country is substantially import dependent and the sector is adversely impacted because of the lack of adequate capital and required technology. Therefore, the Cabinet approved the following proposal to amend the relevant paragraphs of the extant FDI policy as contained in the Consolidated FDI Policy Circular 2014 as follows:          i.            FDI up to 100%, under the automatic route is permitted for manufacturing of medical devices. The abovementioned conditions will, therefore, not be applicable to greenfield as well as brownfield projects of this industry.        ii.            Medical device means- a. "any instrument, apparatus, appliance, implant, material or other article, whether used alone or in combination, including the software intended by its manufacturer to be used specially for human beings or animals for one or more of the specific purposes of- (aa) diagnosis, prevention, monitoring, treatment or alleviation of any disease or disorder; (ab) diagnosis, monitoring, treatment, alleviation of, or assistance for, any injury or handicap; (ac) investigation, replacement or modification or support of the anatomy or of a physiological process; (ad) supporting or sustaining life;  (ae) disinfection of medical devices; (af) control of conception, and   which does not achieve its primary intended action in or on the human body or animals by any pharmacological or immunological or metabolic means, but which may be assisted in its intended function by  such means; b. an accessory to such an instrument, apparatus, appliance, material or other article; c. a device which is reagent, reagent product, calibrator, control material, kit, instrument, apparatus, equipment or system whether used alone or in combination thereof intended to be used for examination and providing information for medical or diagnostic purposes by means of in vitro examination of specimens derived from the human body or animals; iii     The definition of medical device at Note (ii) above would be subject to the amendment in Drugs and Cosmetics Act. India has achieved an eminent global position in pharma sector. However, same has not been replicated in the medical devices industry. The country has huge pool of scientists and engineers who have potential to take medical device industry to a very high level. Domestic capital market is not able to provide much needed investment in the sector. Easing of norms for medical devices industry by creating special carve out in the extant FDI policy on pharma sector will encourage FDI inflows in this area.

PM’s Message to the Nation on Good Governance

·    सुशासन - Good Governance is the key to a nation’s progress. Our government is committed to providing a transparent and accountable administration which works for the betterment and welfare of the common citizen. ·    “Citizen-First” is our mantra, our motto and our guiding principle. It has been my dream to bring government closer to our citizens, so that they become active participants in the governance process. During the last seven months, our government has been consistently working towards this goal. mygov.in and interact with PM  seek to  make this engagement meaningful. The unprecedented response which these initiatives have evoked, places a large responsibility upon us, and I assure you, my countrymen that we will not let you down. ·    An important step for Good Governance is simplification of procedures and processes in the Government so as to make the entire system transparent and faster.  The push towards self-certification in place of affidavits and attestations is another indicator of the relationship of trust between the citizens and the Government. Doing away with cumbersome and out-dated legislations which no longer have relevance is another focus area.  Already Appropriation Acts have been identified for repeal and more Acts are being reviewed.  ·    Our government considers redress of public grievances as a very important component of a responsive administration. I have instructed all the Ministries to ensure that redress of public grievances receives the highest priority. ·    Government process re-engineering is yet another measure that we are pushing for. Ministries and Departments of the Government of India have been instructed to look into their work spheres, their internal processes and work on what and how to simplify and rationalise them. We are also working on a simpler internal work process manual, which would be delivered through an e-learning module. ·    I strongly believe that technology can and must bridge the divide between the government and the citizens. Technology is an empowering tool for the citizen and an accountability medium for the government. My government fully recognises the huge potential of this tool –Digital India aims to transform the country into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy.  Proposed to be implemented in phases, Digital India is transformational in nature and would ensure that Government services are available to citizens electronically.  It would also bring in greater accountability through mandated delivery of government’s services electronically.  ·    The effort to usher in an era of सुशासन has just begun, and begun on a very promising note. An open and accountable administration is what we had promised to deliver and we will do so. ·    Today is the birthday of our beloved leader, our former PM Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee. On this occasion, we reiterate our commitment towards providing transparent, effective and accountable governance to the people of this country. Let us embark on this mission for good governance together.