News January 18 & 19, 2016 ^ Top Road transport and highways ministry will soon set up empowered committee to clear stalled road projects Government mulling to bring large hydropower units under renewable energy ambit Rajeev Chandrasekhar: An agenda for investment Easwar panel recommends lower capital gains tax Budget 2016-17 to give some clarity on PPP infra projects Regulatory hurdles slowing down transport projects Concrete roads: Transport Ministry uses portal to negotiate with cement firms Make in India: Shipyard industry gets infrastructure status, move expected to bring down costs Yamuna bridge to be ready by October Road transport and highways ministry will soon set up empowered committee to clear stalled road projects The Economic Times, January 18, 2016 The road transport and highways ministry has proposed setting up an empowered committee to clear stuck road projects worth Rs 30,000 crore while seeking a huge bump up in allocation in the upcoming budget. The ministry will soon move a Cabinet note on the panel, a senior government official told ET. The proposal figured in road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari's pre-budget meeting with finance minister Arun Jaitley on Friday. Gadkari has sought Rs 85,000 crore as budgetary allocation for 2016-17, almost double of what it received in the current fiscal year. "The ministry expects that finance ministry will increase its budgetary allocation as the receipt from toll collection is also is also going to be high in the current year. Since, the private investment is still low, we need to push public spending," the official said. Gadkari has also called a conference of bankers and concessionaires in Delhi on January 28 where Jaitley is also expected to be present. Road construction has been among the News top priorities of the Narendra Modi-led government. It allocated Rs 45,800 crore for road and highway construction in the 2015-16 Budget. Gadkari has a target of awarding 30 km of road construction contracts per day from the current pace of 18 km. There are over 19 road projects that are stuck due to various problems including cost escalation, unviability of projects and spat between bankers and concessionaires. "Despite all the policy changes in recent times, there still are stuck projects that can't be rolled out as they need special attention and project-wise decisions. We'll be proposing a committee for those projects projects," the official said. According to officials, some of these projects need special mediation between banks and concessionaires as cost escalation has been as much as 30% and the traffic projections were shown really high in the Detailed Project Report (DPR). The government in recent months has taken several steps to streamline clearances, allowing the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to compensate developers for delays not attributable to them and putting in place an exit policy that allows private players to sell off their projects after two years of completion. It has also empowered the road ministry to approve projects on its own if civil construction cost of projects is less than Rs 1,000 crore. In recent months, the ministry has been able to roll out over 200 stuck projects worth over Rs 3 lakh crore. ^ Top Government mulling to bring large hydropower units under renewable energy ambit The Economic Times, January 18, 2016 The government is mulling to bring big hydropower plants under the ambit of renewable energy, giving the capital-intensive projects access to international funds and benefits available to green power, besides raising carbon-free generation of electricity as committed by India in UN climate talks. Power industry experts see this as a shot in the arm for hydropower projects, which will not only get more capital but also find it easier to sell power as state power distribution companies are obliged to purchase some power from renewable sources. Government mulling to bring large hydropower units under renewable energy ambit News The move, however, may face resistance from environmentalists who argue that though hydropower plants do not pollute the air, they impact fisheries by altering the natural course of rivers, cause flooding and emit green house gases due to submersion of plants. The Supreme Court had stalled work on 24 hydropower projects in Uttarakhand on allegations that they led to catastrophic floods in June 2013. The case is scheduled to be heard on Wednesday. "There is no reason why hydropower should not be a part of clean energy while many developed western countries count on hydro. At least run-of-river plants that do not require dams should be part of renewable," said a senior power ministry official. Another official said the proposal will have to be approved by the Union Cabinet as an entire wing of the power ministry will shift to the new and renewable energy ministry. If the plan is approved, about 42 gigawatts of installed hydro power plants will get added to the country's existing green energy portfolio of 37 GW, more than doubling the green portfolio of power generation to 28% from around 13% now. There is a good case to broaden renewables to include carbon free generation, PwC leader (energy) Kameswara Rao said. "Large hydro in several European nations is already categorised as renewable. It will also place capital-intensive hydro favourably to secure financing flow anticipated post Paris." Association of Power Producers had last year written to the government seeking renewable energy status for hydropower projects. "For optimal load management, hydro needs to be around 40% of the energy mix. During the last three decades, hydro generation has deteriorated considerably. The introduction of hydro purchase obligation will help restore the balance," said Ashok Khurana, director-general at Association of Power Producers. News The government had on October 1 last year submitted the Intended Nationally Determined Contribution to the UNFCCC, where it vowed to reduce carbon emissions intensity by 33-35% by 2030 from the 2005 level and achieve about 40% power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources. India's existing generation capacity is dominated 70% by conventional thermal power plants whereas non-fossil fuel generation constitute the rest, including 13% by renewables, 15% by large hydro plants of less than 25 MW capacity are already counted as renewable energy. The Narendra Modi-led government's push to a five-fold increase in renewable energy target to 175 GW by 2022 has attracted huge investment commitments from local and international firms while companies have stopped expanding coal-based electricity generation. This is expected to help the government in balancing the energy portfolio between green and conventional resources in the near future. Share of hydropower generation has shrunk to just 15% though the country ranks fifth in the world in hydroelectric potential with an estimated potential of 148 GW. Issues like long construction period, lack of transport infrastructure, geological risks, land acquisition and environmental and religious concerns have slowed hydropower projects including 50,000 MW being allocated to private companies in north and northeast India. ^ Top Rajeev Chandrasekhar: An agenda for investment Business Standard, January 18, 2016 Three key action areas for the Budget if private investment flows are to be restored Rajeev Chandrasekhar Budget 2016 is just round the corner and one thing that should be worrying our policy makers in North Block is the stalling of private investments into the economy. The Mid-Year Economic Analysis recently released by the finance ministry has lowered projections for GDP growth in FY16 to 7-7.5 per cent, from 8.1-8.5 per cent. One of the main reasons for this continuing stalled private investment, which hasn't seen a restart since the bleak days of 2012-13, is scams and economic mismanagement, which took investor sentiment to its lowest ever. Read our full coverage on Union Budget 2016 The Indian economy is currently being driven largely by public spending and private consumption - of which public spending will start hitting fiscal walls, and therefore, has limited headroom. The World Bank reports that private investment in India reached a 10-year low in the first half of 2015 as the country fell out of the top five countries globally. If the trends and signals from the core sectors are to be believed, private investment shows very little signs of picking up during this year. There's no doubt that high debt and low profitability are crippling corporate India. Nearly a fifth of India's corporate sector reported sub-debt service levels of profits in the last financial year. This, combined with continued moderate-to-high risk aversion, is News putting the brakes on efforts to restart the investment cycle. Stalling of important reforms like GST in Parliament haven't helped either. This risk aversion, which has its roots in the chaotic slide of our economy in the last half of the UPA government, has not been adequately addressed. While efforts such as Ease of Doing Business and other efforts by the prime minister and the government to restore investor confidence have helped improve overall sentiment, the lack of visible structural reforms and policy action in various sectors continued to make investors wait and watch, instead of writing the investment cheques and restarting the investment cycle. A HSBC research note on the investment cycle has pointed out that government policy action in land acquisition, environmental clearances and availability of fuel, raw material and supply problems were the biggest factors behind stalled projects. According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), stalled private sector infrastructure projects stood at about Rs 16,500 crore in the October-December 2015 quarter. Key action areas for the government to focus on include: Reform the banking sector The Indian economy's Achilles heel continues to be the public sector banking (PSB) system and its high NPAs. A report by Macquarie Research - Apocalypse Now - states that several potentially non-performing accounts are being hidden behind the screen of statutory debt restructuring (SDR) and 5/25 refinancing. It adds that 16-18 per cent of the total loan book could become sources of stress over the next three to four years. As of September 2015, only 11.5 per cent of loans had been recognised as stressed. These are extremely worrying figures. I have long been advocating, in both Parliament and outside, the need for urgent banking sector reforms - deep and structural. The finance ministry, in August last year, did come up with a seven-pronged strategy called 'Indradhanush' to revive PSBs, covering appointments, bank board bureaus, capitalisation, de-stressing PSBs, empowerment, framework of accountability and governance reforms. This transformation needs to be speeded up. Cleaning out bad loans from the system would provide an impetus to the economy, enabling it to infuse more liquidity in the market. A strong bankruptcy law is also needed. It is important that banks have sufficient power to get their money back without being trapped in judicial processes, which many wilful defaulters hide behind. The bankruptcy law can also allow greater leeway including sale of whole or part of a company and change of management or promoter, to revive distressed assets. As per the recent Doing Business, 2016 Report, India is ranked 130 on ease of doing business and at 136 for resolving insolvencies. An effective bankruptcy law would help ensure efficient allocation of funds and greater availability of capital for businesses by freeing up capital, which in turn would fuel economic activity and bolster innovation. I hope the Bankruptcy Code Bill will get passed in the upcoming Budget Session of Parliament. Revive public private partnerships One way to get private capital flows to restart is the PPP model. In the past, PPPs had become a smokescreen for private profiteering. A new framework based on transparency News and equitable returns to public and private shareholders is needed soon. The recent Kelkar Committee report on reviving PPPs makes sound recommendations to overhaul the PPP model and reaffirms my views, especially on the need for strong and independent regulators. This needs to be finalised at the earliest so that PPPs can boom in a sounder, more transparent framework. A clear and transparent contractual framework also is good for genuine investors who do not need to face the risk of future reviews and pressures as governments change. The government must quickly set up a National Facilitation Committee for the resolution of prickly project issues, as recommended by the Kelkar Committee. Strengthen independent regulatory institutions This is an important signalling requirement for investors that seek to invest in projects that will have life spans across various government terms. Investors want policy making and regulatory action that is consistent and sound across infrastructure, technology and 'Make in India' - as we seek out FDI, FDI looks for clean, clear regulation and policy making. Therefore, rebuilding and/or enhancing the capacities of our independent regulators will be a powerful beacon to investors. However, regulatory reforms do not seem to figure high on the government's agenda. In a Parliamentary question during Parliament's last Winter Session, I had asked the government whether it is reviewing the performance of independent regulators across all sectors. The answer I received was a bland 'No'. Given patchy regulatory performance like FSSAI's Maggi ban fiasco, Trai's net neutrality flip-flops and others, this is not the answer investors want to hear. To get global investors, we need regulatory institutions that meet global standards. This requires deep changes, ranging from better oversight and financial independence, to clarity of roles and separation from administrative ministries. After two years of a benign external environment, there is a perception that potential headwinds may show up in the global economy. To continue our growth in that backdrop, we have to focus this Budget on restarting the private investment cycle. ^ Top Budget 2016-17 to give some clarity on PPP infra projects The Hindu Business Line, January 18, 2016 In a move to ‘revitalise’ the PPP business model, which has been losing sheen, Budget 2017 is set to give some clarity on public-private-partnerships in the infrastructure sector, “We are reviewing the Vijay Kelkar Committee report to see how much of it can be implemented… The Ministry also has had talks with various stakeholders separately… Some views have been formed. We will see what best can be worked out,” Shaktikanta Das, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, told BusinessLine. Declining to elaborate on any specific measures, he said the government will consider the measures suggested by the Kelkar panel to push PPPs in the infrastructure sector. News Indications are that the government will give some guidance in the Budget, while administrative measures will be taken outside of it. The government is also collecting feedback from all stakeholders, including States, which play a key role on issues like renegotiation and equal sharing of risk between public and private partners. A decision will be taken by the end of this month. The Kelkar Committee was set up following an announcement in Budget 2016. The Committee, in its report submitted to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on November 19, had called for a number of measures to revitalise PPIs, including an independent regulator and establishing a relationship of equals between public and private players. On the issue of a regulator (National Facilitation Centre) for resolution of issues arising in a PPP project, as suggested by the Kelkar Committee and demanded by some private players, Das said: “We have to see whether there is a need for setting up a separate regulator as we do have sector-specific regulators also.” “Many of the (Kelkar) proposals are aimed at improving the capacity of the public sector agencies for PPP,” he said, noting that the government has also set up a National Investment and Infrastructure Fund to provide finance to core sector projects. The NIIF, a corpus to mobilise funds for infrastructure projects, is “likely to see huge investments from the next fiscal year,” he said. On the issue of fiscal consolidation, Das said the government was confident of achieving it. In pre-Budget consultations with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, economists were divided on the issue given the need for stimulating growth and the additional expenditure requirements of over ₹ 1,40,000 crore on account of the Seventh Pay Commission and the One Rank One Pension. But Das said: “I would not like to comment on the figures we are looking at, but the current numbers show that it (the commitment in the roadmap) is doable.” The government is keen to follow the medium-term fiscal consolidation roadmap that aims to lower the fiscal deficit from 3.9 per cent in 2015-16 to 3.5 per cent in 2016-17. Expenses factored in Asked where the Finance Ministry was getting its confidence from, he said the mediumterm fiscal consolidation roadmap had taken into account the need for additional expenditure on higher salaries and pensions following the Seventh Pay Commission report. Das also stressed that the government would comfortably meet its fiscal deficit targets for 2015-16. “We are on track to meet the fiscal deficit target. All Budget projections for revenue and expenditure were realistic and this has helped us continue spending as well,” he said. News The need for continued public spending in 2016-17 was raised by the Mid-Year Economic Analysis, which scaled down the growth forecast for the current fiscal year to 7 per cent and cautioned that the next fiscal year would also be challenging. ^ Top Regulatory hurdles slowing down transport projects The Hindu Business Line, January 19, 2016 Urban mass transit authority to be set up; it will act as nodal agency for planning and coordination of project related works Transport Ministry to award 3 highway projects under hybrid annuity model soon Highway projects reach a fork in the funding road Rail Ministry announces scheme for alternate train accommodation for wait-listed passengers Rail ministry awards Rs 14,656-cr Marhowra locomotive project to GE Regulatory hurdles seem to be coming in the way of fast implementation of new mass public transport projects, including metro rail systems. While issues of relocation of colonies and technical clearances from the rail ministry has slowed down the 140-km phase III of Delhi Metro's expansion, pushing the deadline for completion to 2017 from end-2016, a controversy over the impact on archaeological sites has delayed the next phase of Jaipur Metro project. Metro rail in the pink city could start commercial run only in March 2015, even though work was completed in a record time between 2011 and 2014, owing to the delay in technical clearances. It is the same story with Bangalore Metro - popularly called Namma Metro - where the just-opened Reach 2 between Mysuru Road and Magadi Road as an extension of the existing line had faced delays owing to pending civil works even as the safety clearance was obtained in September. According to experts, using private cars to travel should be discouraged and public transport must be strengthened. "On a per-capita basis, private cars occupy much more space compared to public modes of travel. Unfortunately, thanks to the strong auto industry lobby, citizens are made to believe a surplus of private vehicles is a sign of prosperity," said infrastructure expert Amrit Pandurangi, senior director, Deloitte. He added the implementation of public transport projects in India has not kept pace with the rise in demand due to increasing urbanisation. "As a result, our transport infrastructure is not as good as some of the advanced geographies like Singapore. Except Delhi, most metro train projects are badly managed. The reasons are many - inefficient management, bad financial planning, poor design, bad contract management, and a lack of consultations with the stakeholders," said Pandurangi. Another key reason for the enormous delays in building public transport is the lack of coordination among the various agencies implementing the projects and those according approvals. "There are at least 10 different agencies in each city, which handle project- News related work or award approvals. Often, projects are completed without advanced information to the testing and safety clearance authorities. In Bengaluru, for example, some stretches were ready much earlier but trains are yet to run on them," said a senior analyst from a consultancy firm, who did not wish to be identified. The urban development ministry is currently trying to address the issue of delays owing to coordination among agencies by setting up an urban mass transit authority (UMTA). It will act as a single nodal agency for planning and coordination of project-related works. UMTA's mandate will include setting up a system of joint ticketing across multiple modes of transport including trains and buses. A glaring example of the bad planning and lack of coordination is the Mumbai Monorail System, which was thrown open to the public in 2014 after a three-year delay due to issues involving land, removal of encroachments, and delays in getting necessary permissions. The original deadline for the project was April 2011. A Right To Information (RTI) request filed by activist Anil Galgali revealed the three-year delay in commissioning the monorail was primarily due to change of alignment of its route, which also led to cost escalation of the project. Line 1 of the Mumbai Monorail - a 20-km stretch between Chembur and Jacob Circle - was inaugurated by the then Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan in February 2014 at the Wadala Depot monorail station. Vinayak Chatterjee, chairman of infrastructure advisory firm Feedback Infrastructure, terms steps such odd-even number formula for cars and car-free Tuesdays in Delhi 'gimmicks'. "Improving mass transport systems is a no-brainer. The question is how to roll it out in advance before the roads start getting choked." He added most of the civic infrastructure-related problems in India, including lack of public transport, stem from a weak city administration framework. According to him, schemes such as odd-even, which aim at cutting half the number of private vehicles from roads through physical rationing, must be complemented with a parallel effort at boosting public transport infrastructure. ^ Top Easwar panel recommends lower capital gains tax The Hindu Business Line, January 19, 2016 The RV Easwar Committee on simplification of income tax laws has suggested amendments to allow for lower capital gains tax on annual earning of less than rs. 5 lakh from share trading rather than treating it as a business income. Accordingly, it has suggested taxing the gains at 15 per cent and not 30 per cent. But it will be taxed as longterm capital gains if held for more than one year and shown as capital assets. On the issue of disallowance under Section 14A, it has proposed that the dividends received after levy of dividend distribution as well as income from shares that have already been taxed at the firm’s hands will not be treated as exempt income and no expenditure will be disallowed on them. News It has proposed raising the TDS rate on winnings from lotteries, horse races and crossword puzzles to 30 per cent. However, one of the members of the 10-member committee raised concerns that lower TDS rates may impact revenue collections. With a one-year time frame, the committee has said issues requiring deeper review will be dealt with in the next batch of recommendations and even the first report is not fully exhaustive in nature. In all, the report includes 27 suggestions for amendments to the Income Tax Act and eight for reform through administrative instructions. Public comments have been sought till January 23, following which the committee will finalise the first part of the report by January 31. ^ Top Budget 2016-17 to give some clarity on PPP infra projects The Hindu Business Line, January 19, 2016 The Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has started price negotiations with cement companies for supply to concrete road projects through INAMPro, a web-based portal for infrastructure and materials providers launched by the Ministry in March 2015. Three-year deal “The new price will be for a period of three years starting April 1, 2016. Negotiations were held with over 25 cement companies that will supply specific quantities of cement at an agreed price for customers ordering through the portal,” said Sanjay Saju, Director (Fin/Admn), National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd, which runs the portal. Since the start of the portal, nearly four lakh tonnes of cement has been ordered. Things will pick up once the price is fixed for three years, he told BusinessLine. The quantity of cement to be supplied by each company is yet to be fixed, he said. There are 500 buyers registered on Inam-Pro, which stands for platform for infrastructure and materials providers, said Sahu. Facilitating price change Meanwhile, there are plans to change the price structure wherein sellers can supply at a negotiated price for each buyer. In the earlier pricing, if the company sells at a price to a buyer, that rate will be the base price for all other customers. This did not help the sellers. There will also be an escalation clause, sources said. The portal facilitated contractors/ cement buyers engaged in executing Central and State-funded road projects to place cement orders online with the registered cement companies offering cement at competitive rates in the vicinity of project execution locations. News Cement suppliers through the portal were eligible for Excise Duty, Sales Tax and Freight, sources said. Transparency Sources said hitherto details such as price negotiated for the supply was known only between the buyer and the seller. However, through online payment through the portal, the Ministry and various stakeholders will be able to monitor the price and the quantity supplied. INAM-Pro allows buyers and suppliers to have fair understanding of stocks, prices and orders placed. The price of cement through the portal ranged between Rs. 165 and Rs. 210 (ex-factory), which was far below the market price, sources said. ^ Top Make in India: Shipyard industry gets infrastructure status, move expected to bring down costs The Economic Time, January 18, 2016 The government has granted infrastructure status to the shipyard industry in a boost to its Make in India initiative. The move is expected to bring down borrowing costs for the industry. At present, companies pay average interest of 14 per cent-15 per cent on their borrowings. "Shipyards industry has been granted infrastructure status. It will create right environment for the growth of shipbuilding industry that would now become globally competitive," a senior shipping ministry official said. Infrastructure status will also give a boost to government's 'Make in India' initiative and is expected to help the industry raise its share in global market to 5 per cent by 2020 from less than 1 per cent now. Indian shipbuilders carry a minimum cost disadvantage of about 30 per cent on the price of a ship. The promotion of the shipbuilding and ship repair industry in India will lead to higher multiplier effect on investment and turnover (11.6 and 4.2) and high employment potential due to multiplier effect of 6.4. In December last year, the government had granted Rs 4,000 crore subsidy to the shipbuilding industry to be paid over 10 years. The government will give a subsidy 20 per cent to private players on total contract cost after delivery of the ship. The subsidy will be reduced 3 per cent every three years and will be phased out in ten years. The step would make India's ship building industry more competitive globally. The government is also likely to make it mandatory for Indian state-owned firms to give half of their freight business to local shippers to help rescue an industry battered by the global commodities downturn. The step is being taken to protect the ailing local shipping firms. News ^ Top Yamuna bridge to be ready by October Times of India, January 19, 2016 A six-lane bridge under construction across the Yamuna, parallel to the existing Okhla Barrage, will be completed three months before the target date of January 2017. Rama Raman, chairman of the three development authorities, announced this in Noida on Monday and also inspected three other key projects in the city. Once in place, the new bridge on the Yamuna is expected to prove huge relief to the thousands who take the narrow Kalindi Kunj bridge to commute between Delhi, Faridabad, Noida and Greater Noida. Raman also reviewed three other important projects - remodelling of the Sector 18 commercial complex; construction of multilevel parking faciity in Sector 18; and widening of two Shahadara drains. After the inspection of the four projects, Raman said he has instructed his officers to fast-track them. "I have taken stock of the work being carried out at all the four construction sites and have directed officials to expedite work on all of them," Raman said. "I have asked my officers to instruct the contractors of all the projects to employ extra labour, put into operation enhanced resources and machinery and re-plan the target schedules," he said. According to Raman's directions, while the new target for the parallel bridge at Okhla Barrage is end-October 2016, the multilevel parking in Sector 18 will be ready by June 2016. The Rs 119 crore six-lane bridge across the Yamuna, parallel to the existing Okhla Barrage will be located about 120 metres to the left of the existing Okhla bridge when one goes from Noida to Delhi. The 574m long bridge will be supported on fifteen pillars with a 41 meter distance between two pillars and will have two carriageways of three lanes each. It will also have a central verge and pedestrian pathways on each side. The two bridge flanks being widened across the Shadara drain at Film City and Okhla Barrage will be ready by April and May 2016, respectively. The revamp of the existing two four-lane bridges to eight-lane ones has been hanging fire for several years. Two additional lanes on each side of the existing bridges will be constructed. Once the width of the bridges is doubled, commuters will enjoy a smooth ride to Delhi, Faridabad and Ghaziabad. The first phase of the revamp work being carried out on the Sector 18 market complex is over and the second phase will be launched next month. Remodelling work on the commercial complex is being targeted for completion within a year, said A.K Goel, chief project engineer, Noida. However, the sector 18 market area reconstruction work still has a long way to go. Authority officials said that they expected to complete it by 2017. The makeover plan News includes proper and adequate parking arrangements, an efficient sewer network and covered drains. "Underground electrical cabling, shifting of transformers to an area under a park will be the major part of Phase II," Goel said. The multi-level parking facility in Sector 18, which is among the projects announced by chief minister Akhilesh Yadav in April 2013, will house six floors including two basements. Two basements of the facility had opened for parking on February 21, 2015, to house about 1,000 vehicles but an Allahabad high court order has stayed its use until completion. ^ Top