Date:07/09/2005 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2005/09/07/stories/2005090702910900.htm

Back India-EU summit set to foster business tie-ups

G. Srinivasan

New Delhi, Sept. 6

THE India-European Union (EU) summit, being held here for a day on Wednesday, is set to unveil a plan of action and a political declaration to signify the political will at the highest level to further foster the strategic bilateral relations, though some of the developmental concerns raised by New Delhi might also be addressed.

Sources in the Government told Business Line here that New Delhi would take up the new Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) introduced by Brussels from June 2005 which appears to have hit certain major export interest segments like textiles as the new GSP has excluded this from its coverage.

Similarly, India has also been pleading with the EU to remove some of the technical barriers to trade and sanitary and phyto-sanitary matters as they impinge on its export of pharmaceutical and processed food exports to the vibrant European market.

A point the EU has quite often made in the past about India pertains to economic reforms. The sources said the European Commission document on strategic partnership refers to the fact that if the potential of the Indian market is to be realised, India must continue and speed up economic reforms.

"India needs to tackle high and discriminatory tariffs/taxes, numerous non-tariff barriers, FDI restrictions, lack of intellectual property rights protection, as well as major improvements in infrastructure," it said.

The sources said the foremost item on the summit is a plenary session of a joint industry forum of both sides on "building strategic business partnerships" in which the Union Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Kamal Nath; the Secretary of State for Trade & Industry, United Kingdom, Mr Alan Johnson; and the EU Commissioner for External Trade, Mr Peter Mandelson, would address.

Even as the summit leaders of trade and industry hold their meeting, there would be parallel sectoral interactive sessions on themes ranging from infrastructure opportunities for India and EU, manufacturing: opportunities for India and EU, services: opportunities for India and EU to financial services: opportunities for India and EU.

The moderators in these parallel sessions include Mr A.M. Naik, Chairman, Larson & Toubro Ltd; Mr R. Seshasayee, Vice-President, CII, and Managing Director, Ashok Leyland Ltd; Mr S. Ramadorai, CEO, Tata Consultancy Services; and Mr Ashvin Parek, Partner & National Industry Leader - Financial Services, Ernst & Young.

Participants in these sessions include top brass from Mr Mike Blackburn, Chairman, Mott MacDonald; Mr Rakesh Bakshi, Managing Director, Vestas RRB; Mr Karan Bilimoria, CEO, Cobra Beer; Mr Lars Holmqvist, CEO, CLEPA a.i.s.b.l.; Mr Deepak Puri, Managing Director, Moserbear India Ltd; Mr Martin Harman, Chairman, Pincent Mason; and Mr Ashok Soota, Chairman and Managing Director, Mindtree Consulting Pvt Ltd.

There would be a luncheon session on the global impact of the outsourcing phenomenon in which the main speaker is Mr Martin Read, CEO, Logica CMG plc.

In the post-lunch session, there would be an India-EU business leaders' meet in which select CEOs from both sides would interact in Vigyan Bhavan, the main venue of the official event. This is to be followed by a special plenary session to be addressed by Mr Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission.

A special address in this session is by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and President of the European Union, Mr Tony Blair, and this is to be followed by a keynote address by the Prime Minister of India, Dr Manmohan Singh.