FDI Investment in India - Is it right or wrong

I am yet to understand why some people are opposed to FDI in retail. Are they so blinded by vested interests that they don’t see that this move will prove beneficial for the country?

The government has specified that 50 per cent of the FDI investment in the country should go towards creating rural infrastructure, thus paving the way for a revolutionary change in the face of villages. Of the total fruits and vegetables produced currently, about 40 per cent either goes waste or becomes rotten due to inadequate cold storage facility. Our post-harvest losses remain unacceptably high. A complex chain of middlemen has a cascading impact on supply inefficiencies and prices as well. As a result, on the one hand farmers are unable to secure remunerative price for their produce, while consumer ends up paying more than 5 times the price secured by the farmers. But all this will become a thing of the past once the effect of the new policy starts showing.

FDI will not only bring down prices for consumers, but also provide increased income to millions of farmers in the country. The successful deployment of 100% FDI in China is an example in point. The Chinese retail market was fully opened to retail FDI in 2004, resulting in the sector’s rapid growth. Today, its retail sector is the second largest (in value) in the world.

Multi-brand retail will transform India’s retail landscape in a significant way. Organised players will bring in investment that would spur further growth of the sector. India has also been crippled by rising inflation rates that refuse to come down to accepted levels. A key reason for this has been attributed to the supply chain costs in the Indian food and grocery sales which have been estimated to be a whopping US$ 24 Bn. The infrastructure support of organised retail will improve the backend processes of the supply chain and eliminate such wastages.

FDI in multi-brand retail would also lead to the creation of millions of jobs as massive infrastructure capabilities would be needed to cater to changing lifestyle needs of the urban Indian, who will be quite at ease shopping at supermarkets as well as the friendly, neighborhood kirana store. These stores would be able to retain their importance owing to their unique characteristics of convenience and proximity. Also, organised supermarkets would find it harder to get a footing in Tier-II and Tier-III cities where kirana shops will continue to rule. Take the case of China. Walmart entered that country some two decades ago and has opened over 300 stores till date. Yet it just has only 5 per cent of the market share in China. Local Chinese retail companies are all bigger than Walmart in China.

FDI in multi-brand retail is, therefore, a necessary step that needs to be taken to propel further growth in the sector. This would not only prove to be fruitful for the economy as a whole but also integrate the Indian retail sector with the global retail market.

Punjab’s government’s decision to increase the power.

I fail to understand the Punjab’s government’s decision to increase the power tariff by 12%. How could the government betray the trust reposed in them by the people of Punjab. The people had re-elected the SAD-BJP alliance thinking they will do good for the state, but this is how their hope was shattered.

 

The common man is already burdened with tax and the government instead of easing their problems is adding to them. The government is increasing electricity tariff at a time when people are reeling from severe power cuts and industries are shutting down due to lack of power supply. Furthermore this year the state has been hit by severe drought due to which all irrigation is done by ground water for which tubewells are extensively used and increasing the electricity tariff will increase the cost of agriculture putting undue burden on the farmers.

The government should immediately roll back the hike and concentrate on real problems like power theft and transmission losses. The stress should also be on increased production of electricity as this will solve the state’s power problem and bring relief to the people.

Different Peoples from Different States of India

I was deeply saddened and disturbed to see images on television of people from the Northeast boarding trains to return to their respective states from Bangalore. It is scary and unbelievable that people from the Northeast, who had simply gone to another state to earn a livelihood or study, had to undergo humiliation and fear in their own country. We cannot allow such jingoistic sentiments in our country.

Any community from any state can settle anywhere in India. We may be Punjabis, Assamese, Bengalis or Tamilians, but at the end of the day we are all Indians and we should be able to move about freely in the country without fear of being attacked or threatened.

I hear that miscreants from outside this country had spread the rumour that people from the Northeast will be attacked and killed in Bangalore, leading to the exodus. Thankfully, the government took effective measures to clampdown on the rumour-mongers. People who are trying destabilise India by creating disharmony should know that such vicious acts will never succeed in this country. India is one and will remain so.

Punjab can also shine like Haryana in Olympics

The success of Haryana sportspersons in the London Olympics has been lauded by the country. Out of the six medalists, four – Sushil Kumar, Yogeshwar Dutt, Saina Nehwal and Gagan Narang - have their roots in Haryana.

While I am proud of their achievement, I wonder why Punjab cannot replicate Haryana’s focus towards sports. Haryana-origin athletes have won 60 per cent of India's medals in the 2010 CWG and 67 per cent in 2012 Olympics. All this while only 2.1 per cent of Indians live in Haryana!

There was a time when Punjab dominated India’s hockey. But they are nowhere now. We should draw a lesson from the Olympics and start repairing the damages of the past years. There are two reasons why Haryana sportspersons did so well in the Olympics – training and infrastructure. Punjab, too, needs to identify potential sportspersons and train them from a very early age. We have to invest funds and create world-class training infrastructure and stadiums. There is no dearth of talent in the state. All we need to do is hone them.

Players should also be encouraged with government jobs such that they can concentrate on the game and not bother about supporting their families. I am totally for sports quotas in government departments to boost sports. If Haryana can do it, so can we.