India Inc calls Narendra Modi leader with vision

Anil Ambani teams up with China’s WandaNarendra Modi making false claims, Congress saysNarendra Modi accused of crony capitalismInflation: Narendra Modi demands Sonia's apologyGadkari’s plight a Narendra Modi plot? GANDHINAGAR: There were no lofty investment promises but captains of the industry and a battery of foreign diplomats queued up to hail Gujarat's economic progress on Friday when the sixth edition of the two-day Vibrant Gujarat business summit started at Mahatma Mandir here on Friday. Apart from tycoons, several foreign dignitaries, including Japanese ambassador to India Takashi Yagi, Canadian high commissioner Stuart Beck and UK high commissioner James Bevan were present. As were heads of US India Business Council, UK India Business Council and Japan External Trade Organisation. While most industry captains praised Modi, the most lavish praise came from ADAG chairman Anil Ambani, who placed Modi on the same pedestal as Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel and Dhirubhai Ambani, as a visionary. He called Modi "king of kings"; at last year's Vibrant Gujarat, Anil Ambani had controversially said Modi should become a national leader. Ratan Tata, the star attraction of the 2009 Vibrant Gujarat summit for bringing Nano factory to Gujarat from West Bengal, said Gujarat stands out, the credit for which goes to Narendra Modi. He has set "high standards" for investment, said Tata. Adi Godrej, who came as Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) representative, spoke of Modi's "futuristic approach" in making Gujarat "one of the best investment destinations". Shashi Ruia of Essar, whose company was forced to pay thousands of crores as sales tax dues to Gujarat government, also referred to "Modi's vision and unparalleled leadership" — which was in complete contrast to his reference to being treated as "ghar ki murgi" (taken for granted) at a previous summit. Most tycoons confined their focus on what they called "the entrepreneurial spirit of Gujarat". In fact, speaking of the great strides made by Gujarat in the past, General Motors' Lowell C Paddock recalled how Halol, where the GM plant came up decades ago, was connected with a "high-speed highway" with Vadodara. "Earlier, it took four hours to reach Vadodara but after the highway it takes just half-an-hour," he said. Modi, who concluded the inaugural ceremony, said this summit was about "finding solutions" to the impact of global slowdown. "Despite the slowdown, Gujarat did reasonably well," he claimed, adding, "We did well with 10% rate of growth in service, industry and agricultural sectors." Modi further claimed Gujarat accounts for 72% of nation's employment generation, and the growth rate of small and medium industries was 85% in a year. The Times of India News

India Inc showers praise on Narendra Modi

RIL commits Rs 1-lakh-cr investment Essar, Jubilant join in India Inc was very generous in its praise for Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who inaugurated the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit at a packed Mahatma Mandir in the state’s capital on Friday. Industry captains made it clear Modi was the man they trusted. While RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani referred to India’s largest private firm as a “Gujarati company”, his brother Anil went one up. Describing Modi as “a king among kings”, he compared the chief minister with Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabbhai Patel and Dhirubhai Ambani. Anil, however, stopped short of committing any fresh investment. The man of the moment, fresh from his third victory in the state polls, was grinning from ear to ear as audiences clapped incessantly. But the generosity towards investment commitment was muted at least on the inaugural day, compared to earlier years. In a departure from past summits, only three firms — Reliance Industries (Rs 1,00,000 crore over three years), Essar (Rs 14,000 crore) and Jubilant Lifesciences (Rs 1,300-1,500 crore) — gave firm commitments. These projects would create close to 15,000 jobs directly and indirectly. However, the final investment commitment figure would come only at the conclusion of the summit. Last year’s edition of the summit had attracted investment proposals worth Rs 20 lakh crore. But Modi said the summit was not just about investments. “It is about injecting positivity in the economic environment. It is about inducting togetherness in our socio-economic activities. It is about bringing global and local inclusiveness in our economic processes,” he said. The Gujarat growth model, Modi said, was the way ahead for other developing nations since the state’s development model was recognised internationally and replicated by other states. He also promised creation of three million additional jobs through the state’s development initiatives. India Inc clearly agreed. Ratan Tata, former chairman of Tata Sons, talked about the group’s earlier commitment to invest Rs 34,000 crore in the state, which “gives investors a sense of fulfilment”. On his part, Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra reserved his praise for the people of Gujarat. “There is magic in the salt that Gujaratis put in their food. It gives them such unique entrepreneurial spirit,” he added. Maruti Suzuki India Chairman R C Bhargava found Gujarat a better state to invest in than other parts of the country. “After meeting Modi, I found the reality to be far better than what people had talked about,” added Bhargava, who called Gujarat a second home for Maruti. News from Bushiness Standard

India Inc. promises Narendra Modi much investment, as always, at Vibrant Gujarat meet

January 11, 2013 Gandhinagar: The who's who of industry lavished praise on Narendra Modi and promised him more investment at the Vibrant Gujarat summit today. The Chief Minister of Gujarat uses the biennial event to showcase his marketing savvy and drive investment in his state. Thousands of crores in investments for Gujarat were pledged today by many leading industrialists. But every Vibrant Gujarat summit - initiated by Mr Modi in 2003 to attract investment after communal violence and a huge earthquake tore through the state in 2001 - has been attended by many corporate officials who promise huge investments every time. So far, only a fraction has seen the light of day. Of the Rs. 67.8 lakh crore in investment proposed at the 2009 event, just 8.5 per cent had been spent as of November 2011, according to state government data. At the end of the day, Mr Modi tweeted, "Vibrant Gujarat 2013 is not only about investments, but about bringing positivity and global and local inclusiveness in our economic processes." At the event, Mukesh Ambani, the chairman of Reliance Industries, said he was proud of his Gujarat roots and that "in Narendra Bhai, we have a leader with a grand vision". Mr Ambani said his company had "committed over Rs. 1 lakh crore; in the next three years we will invest this back in Gujarat expanding Jamnagar and Hazira." He also promised to create next generation mobile broadband infrastructure, second to none in the world, he said, to "provide employment to lakhs of Gujaratis". Mr Ambani also announced a Rs. 500-crore university that will be set up in collaboration with the Gujarat government. Ratan Tata said Gujarat would continue to attract investment because of its unwillingness to be the second best. And that the Tata group had committed to investing another Rs. 34,000 crore in the state. Mr Modi had lured Tata Motors to the state in 2008 after the company's plans to build a factory for its low-cost Nano car were thwarted by farmer protests in West Bengal. "(I) hope the world sees Gujarat as an outstanding example of what can be done," Mr Tata said at the summit today. Maruti Suzuki chairman R.C. Bhargava said Gujarat would now be the car-maker's "second home", and that it was a "better state than anywhere else in the country for Maruti to grow". India's largest automaker has signed a memorandum of understanding for a new plant in the state, and will start work before March 2013, he said. The plant will manufacture cars from Gujarat by 2015. Private sector lender HDFC Bank said it would open 250 branches in the next three years in the state because, its managing director Aditya Puri said, it "believes Gujarat will continue to grow at the same levels". The paeans continued and the pledges. Anil Ambani acknowledged "respected elder brother Mukesh Bhai" in his opening remarks before going on to call Mr Modi "a king among kings". He said the chief minister's skills had "acted as a huge magnet for investors and entrepreneurs from India and across the world in the past decade". The Essar Group, which is investment of more than $20 billion (Rs. 1,09,481 crore) in the state so far, said it would invest another Rs. 14,000 crore in the ports sector; a move that was expected to create 15,000 jobs, it said. And the Adani Group said it would create 5,000 jobs through additional investments. The Jubliant group plans to invest Rs. 1,300-1,500 crore in the next few years. It had committed to developing a special economic zone in Baruch six years ago and has invested Rs. 2,000 crore in the state so far. Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro has invested Rs. 8,000 crore in the state and employs 5,000 at its Hazira unit. The best -- and the most unique -- approbation came from Anand Mahindra, the chairman and managing director of Mahindra & Mahindra. "There are very frequent comparisons between Gujarat and China. But I think a day will come when we won't talk of the China model in Gujarat but the Gujarat model in China." "Earlier, Gujarat was the gateway to the globe from India. Now it is becoming the global gateway to India," Mr Modi tweeted. Article Credits NDTV