USISPF President and CEO Mukesh Aghi spoke in Mumbai at #IMECSummit2025 on the economic potential and growth of the India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC).
Organized by the Vishwamitra Research Foundation, Dr.Aghi laid the case for the IMEC as a powerful corridor of connectivity, across rail, roads, and ports, and one that connects like-minded partners and counters the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Dr. Aghi made the case for IMEC as a powerful opportunity to enhance connectivity, collaboration, and sustainable growth through strategic infrastructure development, efficient capital deployment, and integrated trade linkages.
IMEC has the potential to build a strong foundation for partnerships rooted in shared prosperity and purpose.
The discussion was moderated by Sanjeev Krishan of PwC India and other panelists included The Hon. Steven Ciobo, Ahmed El-Safty, Afaq Hussain, Alok Agarwal.
The underlying message is that IMEC is a platform for an enduring and successful partnership.
The Consulate, in collaboration with the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), hosted a discussion on “Understanding Recent Legal Changes in India: Implications and Opportunities for Foreign Partners.”
The event brought together business leaders, and top corporate law firms both from India and USA. The event started with a minute of silence and condolences to the innocent victims of terrorism in Pahalgam on 22 April 2025. Consul General highlighted India’s streamlined legal reforms, ease of doing business, thriving innovation ecosystem, and the expanding investment opportunities for US Law firms in India.
The panel of speakers included Justice Sanjay Taylor, Illinois Appellate Court, First District, Ms. Shoba Pillay, Partner, Jenner & Block, Collin Vierra, Partner, EimerStahl, Ms. Priti Suri, Founder & Managing Partner, Priti Suri & Associates, Ms. Charandeep Kaur, Partner, Trilegal, Dhruv Suri, Partner, PSA Legal Counsellors.
USISPF’s U.S.-India Tax Forum had the honour of appearing before the Select Committee of the Indian Parliament, chaired by Shri Baijayant ‘Jay’ Panda, on the transformative Income-tax Bill 2025.
We extend our sincere thanks to the Honourable Chairperson Shri Baijayant Panda, and the esteemed members of the Select Committee for this invaluable opportunity. Their openness to dialogue and commitment to reform exemplify the spirit of collaborative policymaking needed to drive India’s economic future.
The Indian Parliament stands as a powerful symbol of the nation’s democratic ideals and progressive vision. Engaging with 20 distinguished parliamentarians in such a historic setting made the conversation especially meaningful as we collectively explored ways to strengthen a taxpayer-centric framework.
We are proud to support this landmark initiative aimed at simplifying tax language, reducing compliance burdens, streamlining dispute resolution, and enhancing the ease of doing business in India.
Throughout the discussion, there was a strong, shared commitment to building a transparent, inclusive, and growth-oriented tax system-one that thoughtfully balances economic advancement with public welfare.
We are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to this pivotal moment, helping shape outcomes where policy, business, and the public good converge.
USISPF, in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), hosted the Inaugural U.S.-India Economic Forum on the sidelines of the 2025 International Monetary Fund (IMF) and The World Bank Spring Meetings.
The Forum convened senior financial and investment leaders from both nations to examine the future of the U.S.-India economic partnership, assess evolving financial trends, and explore new opportunities for strategic cooperation.
We were honored to welcome Governor Sanjay Malhotra of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Dr. V Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India, Prof. Krishnamurthy V Subramanian, Executive Director, International Monetary Fund, and other distinguished leaders from the financial sector.
The event provided a high-level platform for meaningful dialogue on macroeconomic trends, trade and investment priorities, and the shared goal of deepening financial linkages between the U.S. and India.
USISPF hosted Shri. Tuhin Kanta Pandey, Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), for a luncheon roundtable discussion at State Street in Boston, Massachusetts.
Chairman Pandey began his term as SEBI Chairman on March 1st.
Productive discussions and insights with our member companies on India’s regulatory environment and strengthening the commercial relationship.
USISPF in partnership with Silverado Policy Accelerator, convened a closed-door roundtable in New Delhi focused on enhancing U.S.-India Collaboration on critical minerals.
The session featured addresses from Lekhan Thakkar, Joint Secretary, National Security Council Secretariat; Dinesh Mahur, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Mines and Amy Schedlbauer, Minister-Counselor for Economic Affairs, U.S. Embassy India.
Participants deliberated on the opportunities and challenges in building resilient critical mineral supply chains, as well as the potential for integrating critical minerals into a broader trade framework.
The roundtable brought together a diverse group of industry leaders from across the value chain, policy makers from the Government of India, representatives from the U.S. Embassy, and leading think tanks. The discussion was moderated by Mahnaz Khan and Ripu Bhanjan Singh.
USISPF President and CEO, Dr. Mukesh Aghi spoke at Ananta Aspen Centre’s India-US Forum (IUF) on a panel titled “From Market to Maker: India’s $500 Billion Electronics Ambition.”
Dr. Aghi touched on how India stands at a critical inflection point in its economic trajectory against the backdrop of global trade being reshaped and the quest to restore resilient supply chains in an era of friendshoring and nearshoring.
As India advances in its ambition to become a global manufacturing hub, what are the challenges and opportunities for the country?
How can India compete with other markets with speed, scale, and systems-level coherence?
India has a young and vibrant demographic dividend, and its strides in AI, machine learning, and big data position it as a global hub for data-driven technologies, such as semiconductors.
Dr. Aghi was joined by
Josh Foulger, President, Electronics ZETWERK
Chantal Lakatos, Managing Director, Government Affairs, Lam Research
Sunil Vachani, Chairman, Dixon Technologies India Limited
Sushil Pal, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITy)
Ishtiyaque Ahmed, Programme Director- Industry/MSME, NITI Aayog
The session was moderated by Virat Bhatia, Managing Director, Apple, India.
USISPF held a Congressional Staff briefing on the outlook for U.S.-India trade on Capitol Hill.
The conversation touched on strengthening commercial relations and building stronger trade ties between Washington and New Delhi in an era of tariffs.
The discussion focused on how both governments are working toward expanding bilateral trade to $500 billion by the end of the decade, as per the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), announced by both leaders during their meeting in Washington in February, and building on digital trade to leverage India’s robust digital economy.
Riveting insights from the panel featuring Aparna Pande, Research Fellow at Hudson Institute, and Mark Linscott, Senior Advisor, Trade Policy, USISPF, and former Assistant USTR, as well as insights from USISPF member companies.
The briefing was moderated by Anushka Shah, Manager – Trade Policy and Critical & Emerging Technologies.
USISPF organized a roundtable on the sidelines of the India-US Forum on defense industrial cooperation.
The discussion focused on strengthening U.S.-India defense and the defense acceleration ecosystem and leveraging technological advancements to boost defense ties.
Shri. Vishwesh Negi, Joint Secretary, International Cooperation, Ministry of Defence of India, and Doug Beck, Director, Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), co-chaired the session that was attended by startups, investors, primes, and government officials from both sides.
USISPF hosted an exclusive roundtable discussion titled “The Future of Technologies,” led by USISPF Board Member, Mr. Prabhakar Raghavan, Chief Technologist at Google.
We were delighted to be joined by Sh. S. Krishnan, Secretary of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), and key stakeholders from the industry.
This closed-door session convened a small group of influential leaders to explore key themes shaping our digital era, touching on advancing resilient and inclusive digital infrastructure, navigating the rise of next-generation technologies like edge AI, and addressing the societal implications of AI on knowledge, work, and trust.
As innovation outpaced regulation, the conversation reflected on the delicate balance between technological progress, ethical responsibility, and global governance.
Our member insights contributed to this thought-provoking dialogue.
USISPF and Startup Policy Forum have signed an MoU to enhance and strengthen India’s start-up policy landscape. Since their inception, both organizations have worked to promote start-up growth and strengthen India’s commercial and innovation ecosystem.
This partnership aims to fructify this mission, leveraging the strengths of both organizations, accelerating the growth of India’s start-up ecosystem, and helping start-ups scale.
The MoU also envisions fostering a deeper U.S.-India innovation partnership and facilitating a connection for global investors with start-ups to help channelize capital into unicorns and the burgeoning start-up scene in the country.
USISPF was delighted to host a roundtable discussion on “Building a U.S.-India Advanced Energy Ecosystem” at Stanford University in collaboration with the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment.
The session brought together a group of investors, entrepreneurs, climate scientists, academics and researchers to explore opportunities shaping India’s clean energy and sustainability landscape and strengthening U.S.-India energy collaboration.
We were honored to have Shri Jayant Sinha, President of Eversource and Visiting Professor at LSE, led the discussion, alongside Dr. Arun Majumdar, Dean of the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability, and Dr. Chris Field, Director of the Stanford Woods Institute.
Key themes included:
Investment in India’s power, transportation & infrastructure sectors
Innovations in advanced energy systems & climate tech
Strengthening the U.S.-India energy ecosystem
Blended finance & multilateral models
Regulatory pathways enabling the energy transition The roundtable reinforced the urgency—and the opportunity—to scale U.S.-India collaboration for a sustainable, secure, and inclusive energy future. Thank you to all who joined us and contributed to a rich dialogue!
Anushka Shah, Manager – Trade Policy and Critical & Emerging Technologies in conversation with Mark Linscott, Senior Advisor – USISPF, Former AUSTR on the implications of the Trump administration’s Executive Order on Reciprocal Tariffs and what it means for India’s trade trajectory and ongoing discussions on a Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA).
USISPF’s Col. Baljinder Singh spoke at the Indian DefSpace Symposium 2025, which was held at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses in New Delhi.
Col. Singh addressed U.S.-India space collaboration during a broader panel discussion.
The symposium brought together esteemed dignitaries and stakeholders from the Indian Armed Forces, DRDO, Ministry of Defence, Government of India, ISRO, various government ministries, academia, global missions in India, and the private sector investing in space.
Discussions focused on the progress achieved in the Indian space sector, collaborations with international space agencies, and developments in the military and commercial aspects of the space domain.
Tuesday, April 8, 2025 | 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM | New Delhi
USISPF hosted a closed-door roundtable titled “The Evolving Semiconductor Landscape,” which brought together senior policymakers, industry leaders, and global stakeholders for an in-depth discussion on advancing India’s semiconductor ambitions.
As India’s semiconductor market continued its rapid ascent—projected to grow to over $100 billion by 2032—participants explored strategic partnerships, investment opportunities, and policy interventions aimed at strengthening India’s position in the global value chain.
USISPF had the honor of welcoming John Neuffer, President and CEO of the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), and Mary Thornton, Vice President for Global Policy at SIA, who shared valuable insights on global trends and opportunities for U.S.-India collaboration in the technological domain.
This roundtable marked another key step in advancing India’s vision of becoming a leading global hub for semiconductor and electronics manufacturing.
USISPF in collaboration with the Baker Institute Center for Energy Studies (CES) at Rice University and the Consulate General of India in Houston, held a discussion titled “The Evolving U.S.-India Trade and Investment Relationship: Trump 2.0 and Beyond” in Houston, Texas.
The session featured Mark Linscott, Senior Advisor at USISPF, and Consul General Manjunath Chenneerappa in a discussion that touched on the impact of tariffs, past policies, key milestones, Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), and the road ahead for U.S.-India trade relations.
The discussion was moderated by Gabriel Collins, Fellow at the Baker Institute Center for Energy Studies (CES).
USISPF’s Senior Advisor for Trade Policy Mark Linscott convened an in-person USISPF Trade Taskforce meeting. Discussions with members across tech, financial services, education, pharma, logistics on strengthening US-india trade ties, the importance of the TPF and the renewal of the GSP in fostering stronger commercial links and enhancing bilateral trade.
U.S. Grains Council and USISPF hosted the inaugural U.S. – India Biofuels Summit 2024 in New Delhi. (April 23, 2024)
Tuesday, April 23, 2024 | New Delhi
U.S. Grains Council and USISPF hosted the inaugural U.S. – India Biofuels Summit 2024 in New Delhi. Since the launch of the Global Biofuels Alliance under India’s G20 Presidency, the focus has been on working towards biofuels as a cost-effective and attainable energy transition strategy.
The U.S.-India Biofuels Taskforce under the U.S.-India SCEP is a bilateral forum where industry experts provide sharp insights on best practices to leapfrog biofuel adoption. Honored to have U.S. Ambassador Eric Garcetti provide the opening remarks.
He participated in a distinguished panel discussing “Opportunities for Transcontinental Cooperation & Emerging Space Frameworks.”
The discussion emphasized the benefits of collaboration in space exploration and development, highlighting the sector’s vast commercial opportunities for both states and private companies. Public-private partnerships are crucial for unlocking the full potential of this new economic frontier.
As the first phase of the general elections commenced in India, USISPF hosted a curtain raiser webinar with Aparna Pande at Hudson Institute and Pramit Pal Chaudhuri at Eurasia Group. Topics and themes explored domestic and foreign policy and relations for the rest of 2024.
USISPF hosted a roundtable with Dr. V Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India in Washington, D.C. (April 15, 2024)
Monday, April 15th 2024 | Washington DC
A busy week in Washington, DC with the World Bank and IMF News spring meetings. On the sidelines of these meetings, USISPF was delighted to host Dr. V Anantha Nageswaran, the Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) to the Govt of India.
Dr. Nageswaran touched on India’s economic performance and future trends, particularly the growth outlook for the previous and current financial year. At a time of global economic headwinds, India bucks the trend and continues to be the fastest emerging economy, estimated to grow at near 7-8% .
Riveting insights on policies and outcomes on the Indian economy for our members across an eclectic mix of energy, financial services, tech, consumer goods, and logistics sectors. Thank you to our members and ficci india for partnering for this event.
USISPF’s Malachy Nugent moderated a spiritied discussion on “The Indian Boom: Understanding the Drivers of Rapid Economic Expansion” with Raghuram Rajan and Prof. Krishnamurthy V Subramanian at the Kellogg School India Business Conference 2024.
The panelists shared their personal journeys, drew from their experiences shaping India’s economic policies, and delved into the fundamentals of the Indian economy, manufacturing landscape, and investment climate.
As the Strategic Partner of the Conference, USISPF is honored to have facilitated this enriching exchange. We extend our gratitude to the panelists, organizers, and audience for making this session truly unforgettable.
USISPF hosted a luncheon in New Delhi for David Druley, CEO of Cambridge Associates. The conversation focused on the investment landscape in India, ease of doing business and policy reforms and changes. Boston headquartered, Cambridge Associates, has 11 global offices and a diversified investment portfolio featuring foundations, endowments, pensions, private clients, and corporate and government entities. Thank you to our board members and members for attending.
USISPF hosted a luncheon with Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra in Washington, D.C. (April 12, 2024)
Friday, April 12th, 2024 | Washington DC
USISPF was honored to host a luncheon with Amb Vinay Mohan Kwatra, Foreign Secretary, Government of India in Washington, D.C. Foreign Secretary Kwatra had a detailed discussion with our members across energy, technology, defense and aerospace, and financial services. Productive discussions on strengthening U.S.-India commercial ties in areas of semiconductors, AI, quantum computing, and space, with a vision of boosting India’s manufacturing economy, creating resilient supply chains, and enhancing the ease of doing business environment. Thank you to FS Kwatra, DCM Sripriya Ranganathan, colleagues from the Randhir Jaiswal, India in USA and to all our members.
USISPF hosted a luncheon with Smt. Ravneet Kaur , Chairperson of Competition Commission of India in Washington, D.C. (April 11, 2024)
Thursday, 11th April | Washington, D.C.
USISPF was honored to host CCI India Chairperson Smt. Ravneet Kaur in Washington, D.C., for a productive luncheon with our members.
Discussions highlighted CCI’s crucial role in promoting fair competition, easing business operations, and encouraging greater investment from US companies in India. Valuable insights shared on competition law, regulations, and India’s evolving business climate. Grateful to the Chairperson and our members for an engaging conversation!
Professor Chand shared his insights on the future of agriculture, the role of AgTech, best practices across the sector, FPOs, priorities of Vikas Bharat, and public-private partnerships in this sector.
USISPF recently hosted a dinner in New Delhi with Caroline Vik, Senior Advisor, House China Select Committee, (Majority), and Mr. David Dorfman, Deputy Staff Director, House China Select Committee, (Minority).
USISPF President and CEO, Dr. Mukesh Aghi led a delegation to meet with Mr. Manoj Ahuja, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Agriculture INDIA in New Delhi. Touched on strengthening the US-India commercial partnership across the food processing sector.
USISPF took a delegation of its Food Processing Industries and Agriculture sector. Delighted to meet with Ms. Anita Praveen, Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Mr. Clay Hamilton, Minister Counselor, Department of Agriculture, U.S. Embassy India, Mr. Manoj Ahuja, Secretary, Agriculture INDIA and Mr. Kamala Vardhana Rao, CEO, FSSAI.
The conversations focussed on the priorities, vision, and areas of partnership across the respective ministries and departments. The participating companies touched on the ease of doing business in India and highlighted their areas of expertise and willingness to partner with the government across technology, capacity building, financing, skilling, ESG, and supply chains.
USISPF organized a roundtable on setting up MROs in India. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Sameer Kumar Sinha, Additional Secretary and DG Acquisition at RMO India. Delighted to be joined by stakeholders from Ministry of Financeand members from the defense and aviation industry.
USISPF was honored to have led a delegation of it’s members representing the Food Processing and Agriculture sector for a very productive discussion with Ms. Anita Praveen, Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries. The meeting aimed to understand the government’s priorities, vision, and areas of partnership in initiatives crucial to the industry’s growth.
We extend our gratitude to Secretary Praveen and the senior leadership of MoFPI for an insightful discussion on government priorities, including technology, skilling, capacity building, food processing, social transformation, and sustainability. Exciting opportunities lie ahead for both US and Indian industries to collaborate and contribute to the government’s vision. Let’s be partners in India’s journey of #Viksatbharat.
A wonderful evening in Amritsar with Mr. Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the former Indian Ambassador to the U.S.
April 2, 2024 | Amritsar
A wonderful evening in Amritsar with Mr. Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the former Indian Ambassador to the U.S.
Discussed ways of strengthening the US-India commercial partnership with more opportunities and investments in Amritsar across key sectors from agriculture, healthcare, education, manufacturing, IT and startups.
As India achieves its aim of a $5 trillion economy, the focus will be building new economic hubs and growing new corridors of innovation.
The US-India Strategic Partnership Forum in partnership with NITI Aayog announced the launch of its adult immunization initiative “Immunization: Pulse of a Resilient Public Health System”. This timely initiative aims to create a platform to initiate a dialogue among key stakeholders on the role and importance of creating a resilient public health system through immunization among adults.
Despite being one of the top ten public health interventions, vaccines are typically synoynyms with pregrnant women, infants and children. In reality reality far too many adults fall ill or die each year from diseases that can either be prevented by vaccines or the risk can be mitigated. Additionally, there are no national adult immunization guidelines in India, therefore making it unclear as to who should receive certain vaccines among adults. USISPF’s initiative will help India strengthen its vaccine delivery programme towards adults through the following objectives:
Adapting global best practices on adult immunization on implementation of vaccination programs for adults & vulnerable groups
Building new partnership models around disease surveillance, awareness, capacity building, research, supply chain resilience to support immunization against diseases preventable by vaccines.
Developing a national policy on adult immunization.
Through this initiative USISPF plans to host a series of discussions on issues pertaining to healthy ageing, vulnerable groups, vaccinating workforce, protecting healthcare workers as well as at-risk groups, among others.
To kick off the initiative, USISPF hosted a virtual roundtable on April 16, 2021 with senior government and industry leaders including –
Dr Manohar Agnani, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India
Prof N K Ganguly, Former Director General, Indian Council of Medical Research
Dr Arindam Ray, India Country Office, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Prof Srinath Reddy, President, PHFI
Sriram Shrinivasan, National Life Sciences Lead, Ernst & Young
Dr Rana Mehta, Partner & Leader Healthcare, PricewaterhouseCoopers Services
Dr Sanjay Singh, CEO Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Ltd.
Dr Srirupa Das, Director Medical Affairs, Abbott India Limited
The Launch saw the participation of over 400 people from various sectors such as Government, Media, NGOs, Public health experts, Industry representatives, Economists, Academia, among others. Discussions focused on vaccine delivery mechanism, in light of the current global health crisis; highlight the need for public and private sector intervention towards immunizing adults to reduce the burden on public health infrastructure; overcoming regulatory challenges to incentivize immunization of adult population.
Dr Mukesh Aghi, President and CEO US India Strategic Partnership Forum welcomed the speakers and participants. Dr. Aghi laid special emphasis on replicating India’s success in polio eradication to reduce burden of VPDs in adult population. Dr Manohar Agnani explained the robustness of India’s vaccine ecosystem and its readiness to support immunization of large population for any future interventions if they are cost effective and for the public good. He also endorsed the recommendation of Prof. Srinath Reddy on the need for robust, responsive and timely surveillance system through epidemiological surveys on deaths, diseases and burden to be able to measure current and anticipate future disease burden to support timely measures. Prof N K Ganguly recommended immunization of elderly with co-morbidities like COPD, diabetes, hypertension, acute kidney ailments etc by saying that vaccination will be a savior to such population. He also emphasized on the need for strong collaboration between public and private sector to create sustainable financial architecture to ensure equitable distribution of vaccines to adult population from various economic sections of our society.
Speakers representing industries deliberated on leveraging infrastructure created during ongoing pandemic for immunizing adults against many other high burden VPDs, role of private sector partnership on mass awareness among healthcare workers and larger population on various VPDs common among adults especially high-risk population with co-morbid conditions. Dr Srirupa Das proposed a way forward for private sector partnership on disease surveillance and monitoring by offering strong pharmacovigilance system available with pharma companies. Dr Sanjay Singh, CEO, Gennova Biopharmaceuticals emphasized on the need for creation of National Advisory Group by the Government of India to develop standard guidelines on Adult Immunization.
Dr Arindam Ray from BMGF endorsed the need for a strong disease monitoring system to prioritize immunizing adults. Dr Ray also informed about BMGF future initiatives on enhancing HPV vaccine coverage among adolescent girls through school programme under RBSY scheme which is part of Ayushman Bharat-PMJAY.
On April 9, 2021, USISPF and the Raj Center at Columbia University hosted N.K. Singh, the Chairman of the Fifteenth Finance Commission, for a discussion on the federal polity of India, India-US relations, and the farmers’ protests. The session was moderated by Dr. Arvind Panagariya.
Singh explained that India is a union of states, rather than a confederation. The evolution of the same is marked by the Government of India Act of 1919, followed by the Government of India Act of 1935. The federation of states has been clearly defined in the constitution. The 7th schedule of the Constitution defines subjects that are the domain of states, subjects under the central government, and concurrent subjects with the Indian parliament’s decision being binding. The classic distribution of subjects between the union list, states list, and concurrent list has faced many challenges. For instance, education was a subject that was transferred to the concurrent list leading to the enactment of the Right to Education act. Employment was a subject in the states list, however, that too was transferred to the concurrent list when the parliament implemented the MNREGA. The distribution of subjects has made it difficult to address issues such as natural disasters as it has become unclear who is responsible for spearheading the crisis response. In the past half century, most centrally sponsored schemes had previously happened to be under state domain but were undertaken through the mutual consent mechanism exercised under Article 282 of the Constitution. In the report put forth by the Fifteenth Finance Commission, Singh stressed that the 7th schedule and use of Article 282 must be reviewed.
Explaining the history behind the finance commission, Singh stated that between 1949 and 1951, an interim finance commission was created which attempted to resolve issues surrounding what percentage of union tax revenue should go to the central and state governments – an issue that cropped up once again when India created the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council, a permanent body to look into indirect taxes and manage the newly adopted GST. Furthermore, Singh said that the Finance Commission has submitted its report to the President who has accepted their recommendations. Accordingly, the Finance Commission has suggested fiscal reforms to increase the tax-to-GDP ratio, through an overhaul of the GST. The share of taxes to be devolved to states, including Ladakh and Jammu & Kashmir, has remained at 42%. The shares of taxes to individual states were then determined through a careful consideration of geographic area, forest cover, demographic management and tax effort to judge performance, equity, efficiency, and needs.
Dr. Panagariya asked Singh regarding agriculture market, which was historically a state subject. For the same, reforms have been ongoing since 2003 to assuage the plight of small farmers. He further added that every country that has gotten richer and more developed has done so because of moving workers away from farming. Singh lauded the farm laws for creating more options available for farmers to select the best person and price to sell their produce. He mentioned Bihar as a state that is reaping the benefits of eradicating the APMC. He cited the goal of the agriculture reforms as raising productivity in the agriculture track, adding that these reforms were the beginning of much more comprehensive agriculture reforms. The finance commission report has articulated areas of reform including diversification of cropping, water conservation patterns, and improvement of agricultural exports. The report also deals with urbanization, whereby resources assigned to states have been tied to some performance criteria via urban local bodies. Since urbanization is an important indicator of growth, cities have been classified by population between 1m+, 100k to 1m, and cities below 100k. This will incentivize the creation of new cities and spur urbanization.
Dr. Panagariya expressed doubt over centrally sponsored schemes whose progress is hard to track and questioned whether such schemes should be continued. Singh stated that all schemes will have a sunset clause, to be reviewed regularly so as to make sure that resources are not being wasted. He said that the report exercises for deep rationalization of state sponsored schemes, including the closure of many poor functioning schemes.
Speaking of India and the US, Singh said that the bilateral relationship has strengthened through the years. He mentioned the meeting between John Kerry, Special Envoy of Climate, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi as indicative of the countries’ strong ties on matters of renewable energy, green technology, health related infrastructure, and the deepening and diversification of the new partnership of the Quad. Dr. Panagariya brought about India-China relations, further adding that while he had advocated for India to be a part of RCEP, that confidence and level of trust had declined after the tragic skirmish between soldiers in Galwan Valley. Singh responded saying that India must not distance itself from China through embargo or such but through deeper connections with the US and the Quad, as well as active policies to enhance India’s productivity and defense capacity.
Responding to the probability of the US imposing sanctions on the delivery of the 1st battery S-400 missile Russia system, Singh stated that there was an ongoing dialogue to clarify the necessity of the system for India. On the topic of defense, he added that India must create a non-lapsing fund to generate resources to impart predictability and certainty for capital expenditure of defence, so states do not pay through a cess or sub-charge. Answering questions about the lessons learned from GST rollout, Singh admitted that he would prioritize simplicity, simplify risk and find one revenue neutral rate, one de-merit rate, and one merit rate. He also said that he would try for more predictability and greater robustness in the tech platform. Speaking of the reformulations in urban interconnectivity infrastructures in light of the pandemic, he said that there would be special initiatives from the incubation fund and the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana to promote the creation of new cites Lastly, touching upon the nation’s dependence on fossil fuel revenues, he stressed that we need to move away from fossil fuels dramatically, re-calibrate of the entire structure to allow market forces more leeway, and have systems of connectivity and storage with the grid. Singh added that both the India and the US are ready to meet these daunting challenges.
On July 28, USISPF hosted a virtual roundtable on the current state of the Indian distressed market and related investment opportunities. Featured speakers included Ambassador Frank Wisner, International Affairs Advisor at Squire Patton Boggs; Sunil Mehta, former chairman of Punjab National Bank and currently, the non-executive chairman of Yes Bank; and Cyril Shroff, Managing Partner of Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, as well as L Viswanathan and Dhananjay Kumar from Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas. Stephen Lerner, Global Chair of the Restructuring and Insolvency Practice Group at Squire Patton Boggs, moderated a panel discussion in which the speakers shared their insight on alternative mechanisms for insolvency and bankruptcy resolution, and opportunities these present for U.S. investors in India.
In his opening statements, Ambassador Wisner characterized distressed assets as “storehouses of great value and platforms for future growth,” and said that opportunities to restructure and refinance distressed assets in India could be a “fruitful endeavor” for U.S.-India cooperation.
Sunil Mehta discussed the improvements to India’s insolvency and bankruptcy policies since the creation of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) as well as some challenges that remain, particularly in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. He highlighted pre-packaged solutions, one-time restructuring, and asset reconstruction companies as potential resolution platforms that are being considered as alternatives to the IBC. Finally, he discussed the success of the bank-led resolution structure in the case of Yes Bank, which has been able to raise $2 million in capital through its public offering earlier this month.
Cyril Shroff also discussed the importance of the IBC, saying that the stressed assets environment has changed significantly as a result of having a rules-based system for resolution according to global best practices, and that its success has been supported by proactive legislative and executive action, as well as landmark judgements by the Supreme Court of India. While noting that the government’s decision to suspend the IBC in March was an appropriate policy response at that stage, he warned that the suspension may be abused by companies whose financial difficulties are not due to COVID- 19. Looking to the future, he predicts flexibility and open-mindedness on legislative reforms, new vehicles for private capital, meaningful action on pre-packaged regime, notification of a model code for cross-border insolvency, and a financial sector resolution code.
