Wipro acquires South African personal care company #Wipro #Sukumarbalakrishnan

The consumer care business of software provider Wipro Ltd, Wipro Consumer Care and Lighting (WCCL), acquired Canway Corporation, a South African personal care maker to enter the country with 58 million consumer base.
Canway Corporation, a Durban-based company is US$ 21 million personal care company having portfolio in category including bath and shower, hand cream, body spray and kids' products and markets mass brands such as Oh So Heavenly, Iwori and IQ.

The deal size of the transaction was not disclosed by the companies and is now subject to the approval of regulatory authorities.

The acquisition will act as an opportunity for Wipro Consumer to enter into South Africa which is the largest personal care market in Africa and is the second largest economy of the continent.

"We are clear that we want a footprint in developing countries where we have a headway and penetration and consumption goes up. South Africa is a developing country with a per capita income of US$ 6300, which is three times that of India. Canway has grown double digit over the years. It gives us a tremendous base," said Mr Vineet Agrawal, chief executive at WCCL.

The company already has a small presence in South African market with its flagship soap brand Santoor. The company plans to evaluate its launch in India, after this deal, in terms of appealing packaging, perfume parameters and gifting by February.

The company had acquired Philippines’ personal care maker Splash Corporation for US$ 80 million in April. The acquisition of Singapore’s Unza Holdings in 2007 of worth Rs 1000 crore was the company's largest deal.

"We have spent US$ 950 million over the last 17 years on 12 acquisitions. This is the first time that WCCL has made two acquisitions this fiscal. The geographies are different, and we are equipped to handle two acquisitions in a year now."

After this deal, WCCL now has presence in India, South Africa, China, Malaysia and Philippines. The sale from international business accounted for nearly 51 per cent of Wipro Consumers' annual sales of a billion dollar in 2018.

"Post the Philippines acquisition in Splash in April, we roughly earned 54 per cent of our business from overseas. Since this deal is relatively smaller, we will remain at the same value," Mr Agrawal added.

The company plans to expand its presence in the markets of Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe.

Total value of organic products exported from India is Rs 5150.99 crore in 2018-19: Shri Narendra Singh Tomar #OrganicProducts #Sukumarbalakrishnan

Government of India has been promoting Organic farming in the country through dedicated schemes namely Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) and Mission Organic Value Chain Development North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER) since 2015-16. Both the schemes aim at promotion of cluster/ Farmers Producer Organization (FPO) based chemical free, low input cost sustainable organic farming and support farmers from input procurement to market linkages.

The quantity of organic product produced during 2018-19 under Participatory Guarantee System-(PGS)-India and National Programme on Organic Production (NPOP) of Agriculture Processed Food and Export Development Authority (APEDA) is given at Annexure I. The total value of organic products exported from India is Rs 5150.99 crore (US$ 737 million) (for 614089.614 MT).

Assistance of Rs 50,000 (US$ 715) per hectare/ 3 years is provided, out of which Rs 31,000 (US$ 444) (62 per cent) is directly given to the farmers through DBT for inputs (bio-fertilizers, biopesticides, vermicompost, botanical extracts etc) production/ procurement, post-harvest management etc in PKVY scheme. Farmers adopt low cost Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) of certification for domestic markets.

Assistance of Rs 25000 (US$ 340)/ ha/ 3 years to farmers is provided for both on-farm & off-farm organic inputs, and seeds/ planting material in MOVCDNER and third party certified organic farming is encouraged for export of niche crops.

Organic Farming has also been supported under other schemes viz Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) and Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH), Network Project on Organic Farming under ICAR.

The major thrust of the Government has shifted from production centric to market linked production so that farmers can get better returns for their produce including organic produce. To further boost production of organic produce, a dedicated web portal https://jaivikkheti.in/ has also been created to connect farmers involved in organic farming with consumers directly for better prices.

Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned 18 projects covering all the North Eastern States for Rs 1456 crore for development and promotion of tourism: Shri Prahlad Singh Patel #Tourism #Sukumarbalakrishnan

The Ministry of Tourism is focussing on development and promotion of tourism in the North Eastern Region. For development Ministry under the Swadesh Drashan and PRASHAD Schemes has sanctioned 18 projects covering all the North Eastern States for Rs 1456 crore (US$ 208.3 million).

The Ministry of Tourism undertakes various activities for the promotion of North Eastern region of the country as a tourist destination. These activities include:

(i) Release of television campaigns on Doordarshan and private channels in the country.

(ii) Production of publicity material, creatives and television commercials/promotional films on the region.

(iii) The North East region is the theme of the India Pavilion set up by the Ministry at the South Asia Travel and Tourism Exchange (SATTE) in which the Ministry participates annually.

(iv) Complimentary space is provided to the North Eastern States for their participation in the India Pavilion set up by the Ministry at major international travel fairs and exhibitions.

(v) The Ministry organizes an annual International Tourism Mart in the North Eastern region with the objective of highlighting the tourism potential of the region.

The projects under the Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD schemes are identified for development in consultation with the State Governments / Union Territory Administrations and are sanctioned subject to availability of funds, submission of suitable detailed project reports, adherence to scheme guidelines and utilization of funds released earlier. Submission of project proposals by the State Governments and its sanctioning is a continuous process.Ministry has also identified Kaziranga as one of the 17 sites for development in the country under the
Development of Iconic Tourist site scheme.

Ministry of Railways signs an MoU with Department for International Development (DFID), United Kingdom #DFID #Sukumarbalakrishnan

With a goal of transforming Indian Railways into "Green Railways", complete electrification of Railway network has been approved by Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) which will reduce its carbon footprint and will also improve its finances through reduction in fuel cost.

As part of its obligations & commitment to reduce carbon footprints, Indian Railways is taking several initiatives in the field of Green Energy to achieve the same. In line with this, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Ministry of Railways, Government of India and Department for International Development (DFID), United Kingdom on 2nd December 2019 for collaboration on energy and sustainability. The MoU was signed in the presence of Mr. Rajesh Tiwari, Member (Traction), Railway Board by Mr. Rajesh Kumar Jain, Executive Director/Electrical Engineering (Development), Indian Railways and by Mr. Gavin McGillivray, Head, DFID-India.

Through Power Sector Reform (PSR) programme, the MoU with DFID envisages to include co-operation for Energy Efficiency & Energy Self Sufficiency for Indian Railways. The MoU will broadly cover:

i. Energy planning for Indian Railways in line with Governments' policies and regulations as applicable from time to time including 100% greener sources of electricity supply through

Renewable energy planning and deployment

Off-shore wind and solar energy

Energy storage and new energy technologies

Off-grid renewable energy services
ii. Promoting energy sustainability initiatives like

Adopting energy efficiency practices

Enabling Fuel efficiency
iii.Electric Vehicle charging infrastructure deployment

iv. Battery operated Shunting Locomotives

v. Capacity development like training programmes, industrial visits, field visits etc.

The collaboration of Indian Railways with DFID, United Kingdom will go a long way in ensuring self-sufficiency and efficiency in terms of energy and greener Indian Railways.

Wind Power Projects of 12,162.50 MW Capacity awarded so far #WindPowerProjects #Sukumarbalakrishnan

Wind power projects are set up in the country, including in the state of Rajasthan, on the basis of commercial principles taking into account wind resource, land availability, transmission infrastructure, etc.

So far, bids for 15,100 MW of wind power projects have been issued, out of which projects of 12,162.50 MW capacity have been awarded.

The cumulative installed capacity of wind power (as on 31.10.2019) in the country is 37,090.03 MW. The details of state-wise installed capacity of wind power are given in Annexure I.

The Government has issued 'Guidelines for Development of Onshore Wind Power Projects' on 22 October 2016 with an objective to facilitate development of wind power projects in an efficient, cost effective and environmentally benign manner taking into account the requirements of project developers, States and national imperatives. The Guidelines have provisions for requirement of site feasibility, type and quality certified wind turbines, micrositing criteria, compliance of grid regulations, real time monitoring, online registry and performance reporting, health and safety provisions, decommissioning plan, etc.

The Government has also issued 'Guidelines for Tariff Based Competitive Bidding Process for Procurement of Power from Grid Connected Wind Power Projects', on 8th December, 2017, with an objective to provide a framework for procurement of wind power through a transparent process of bidding including standardization of the process and defining of roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders.

The Government is promoting capacity addition of wind power projects through private sector investment by providing various fiscal and financial incentives such as Accelerated Depreciation benefit; concessional custom duty exemption on certain components of wind electric generators. Besides, Generation Based Incentive (GBI) is available for the wind projects commissioned before 31 March 2017. In addition to fiscal and other incentives as stated above, technical support including wind resource assessment and identification of potential sites is being provided through the National Institute of Wind Energy, Chennai.

This information was provided by Union Minister of State (IC) New & Renewable Energy, Power and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Shri R.K. Singh, in written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.

Annexure I

The state wise wind power installed capacity as on 31.10.2019.

STATE Cumulative wind power capacity as on 31.10.2019 (MW)
Andhra Pradesh 4092.45
Gujarat 7203.77
Karnataka 4753.40
Kerala 62.50
Madhya Pradesh 2519.89
Maharashtra 4794.13
Rajasthan 4299.72
Tamil Nadu 9231.77
Telangana 128.10
Other States 4.30
Total 37090.03Wind power projects are set up in the country, including in the state of Rajasthan, on the basis of commercial principles taking into account wind resource, land availability, transmission infrastructure, etc.

Apollo Tyres enters Saudi Arabia through tie-up with Al Jomaih Tyres #ApolloTyres #Sukumarbalakrishnan

Apollo Tyres Ltd, plan to enter Saudi Arabia through a tie-up with Al-Jomaih Tyres Company Limited. The company is aiming at the large and growing truck-bus radial and passenger car tyre market, looking to obtain a sizeable market share, in each of the segments, in the next couple of years.

"The entry into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the culmination of a long-term product planning and development programme. We are now ready with products suited to cater to the Saudi market, which is the largest and important replacement tyre market in the Middle East region," said Mr Shubhro Ghosh, group head ASEAN, Middle East & Africa of Apollo Tyres.

"Saudi Arabia has a market potential of approximately 22 million tyres, and we have set a very aggressive target for ourselves, of selling nearly 800,000 tyres per annum, including both commercial vehicle and passenger vehicle tyres, within the next five years", he added.

Mr Sheikh Abdullah Al-Jomaih, CEO, Al-Jomaih Tyres, said: "We have noticed that the premium tier 2 market in Saudi has been expanding at a fast pace and Apollo Tyres meets the need of local customers who are seeking quality products at competitive prices."

The tyres sold in Saudi Arabia would be modified according to the demand of the local market and would be covered under a 5-year warranty from the date of manufacturing.

Apollo Tyres had set-up its hub for the Middle East and Africa region, in Dubai, in 2011.

GNFC launches Neo Neem World outlet #GNFC #Sukumarbalakrishnan

Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd, a major state-run fertilisers company launched its first Neo Neem World parlour, which is an exclusive retail outlet for its products. This comes after it successfully introduced a range of neem-based consumer products in market.

The company launched a range of consumer products with neem as its base, including Neem hand wash, shampoo, face wash, soap, all-purpose oil and hair oil.

Mr JN Singh, Gujarat Chief Secretary said, "It is the need of the hour to develop, promote and use natural products. We are all aware of the benefits of neem. Neo Neem Project is an effort to modernise the neem application and present it in a consumer-friendly form."

Ahmedabad City Mayor Mr Bijal Patel and senior GNFC officials, including the Managing Director Mr MS Dagur were present at the launch event.

"Brand Neo Neem is created after studying changing consumer aspirations. We recently took brand Neo Neem to an international exhibition at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi. The overwhelming response that consumers gave us has filled us with pride" Mr Dagur said.

Financial Assistance provided to 10 Major Ports and 8 Non-Major Ports for procurement of Oil Spill Response (OSR) Equipments: Shri Mansukh Mandaviya #OSR #FinancialAssistance #Sukumarbalakrishnan

In a reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today the Minister of State for Shipping (I/C) and Chemicals & Fertilizers, Shri Mansukh Mandaviya said that the Government has developed a standard operating procedure for all ports in the country to deal with oil spills and other accidents that can damage the marine ecology surrounding the ports.

He said that the central government has formulated a scheme for providing assistance to major ports and oil handling non- major ports under state maritime Boards/State Govts. for combating oil pollution and for mitigation measures. Under the Scheme 10 Major Ports and 8 Non-Major Ports have been provided financial assistance so far for procurement of Oil Spill Response (OSR) equipment as per specifications suggested in NOSDCP-2015.

He said that the National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan (NOSDCP) delineates the role and responsibility of various authorities including ports during an oil spill. Annual calendar is published for conduct of different levels of exercises involving various stakeholders for exercising their capabilities in mitigating risk of oil spills in their area of jurisdiction. As per NOSDCP, ports are required to be capable of handling tier-I level of oil spill within their jurisdiction.

MSMEs contribute 29.7 per cent of GDP and 49.66 per cent of Indian exports #MSMEs #IndianExports #Sukumarbalakrishnan

MSMEs contribute 29.7 per cent of GDP and 49.66 per cent of Indian Exports. Government has taken various initiatives to enhance the competitiveness of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) through schemes such as Credit Linked Capital Subsidy and Technology Upgradation Scheme (CLCS-TUS), Micro and Small Enterprises - Cluster Development Programme, Procurement and Marketing Support and support for MSMEs to participate in international exhibitions / trade fairs, conferences / summits/ workshops.

This information was given by Shri Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.

Exploration of 37 and drilling of 121 non-CIL coal blocks this year; Country to produce 810 MT of coal in FY20: Shri Pralhad Joshi #Sukumarbalakrishnan

The government has planned exploration of 37 coal blocks and 10 lignite blocks along with drilling of 121 coal blocks and one lignite block in the current fiscal in addition to exploration and drilling of coal blocks allocated to state-run Coal India Limited (CIL) informed the Coal Minister Shri Pralhad Joshi to the Parliament on Monday.

"Exploration of Non-Coal India Limited (Non-CIL) coal blocks is carried out under the Central Sector Scheme 'Exploration of Coal & Lignite' of the Ministry of Coal. Under this scheme, both regional exploration and detailed drilling of these blocks are conducted. Each year exploration programme of regional exploration & detailed drilling in Non-CIL blocks in coal & lignite is approved. The regional exploration for the year 2019-20 has been planned for 37 coal blocks & 10 lignite blocks, whereas detailed drilling has been planned for 121 coal blocks & 1 lignite block." Coal Minister Shri Pralhad Joshi said in a reply to the Rajya Sabha.

The minister also informed to the upper house that fund of Rs 937 crore (US$ 134.07 million) have been allocated for exploration and drilling of Non-CIL blocks in coal and lignite out of which Rs 120 crore (US$ 17.17 million) have to be spent on regional exploration and remaining 817 crores to be spent for detailed drilling.

In a reply to the House, the minister also informed that the country will produce 810 Million Tonnes (MT) of coal in the current fiscal for which targets for Coal India Limited, Singareni Collieries Co. Ltd and Captive & others have been set as 660 MT, 67 MT and 83 MT respectively.

In another reply, the minister informed that the focus of the Government is on accelerating domestic production of coal through allocation of more coal blocks, pursuing with State Government for assistance in land acquisition and coordinated efforts with Railways for movement of coal. He also said that in order to enhance coal production, CIL has taken many steps. This state-run Manharatna company will open 55 greenfield projects having capacity of 92 million tonne per annum (MTPA) and expand 193 brownfield projects having capacity of about 310 MTPA in next five years.
He said maximum use of technology and portal-based monitoring of on-going projects are in place to ensure timely completion of projects.