Update on India’s States: September 7, 2016

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Gujarat joins the center’s regional connectivity scheme; Maharashtra ranks highest in a new ease of doing business report by Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew School; Cisco partners with Rajasthan to promote digital learning; Tamil Nadu increases maternity leave to nine months; T-Hub Incubator will set up an outpost in Silicon Valley; Mamata Banerjee visits Munich, Germany, and more.

Center – State relations

Goods and Services Tax (GST) Ratification Tracker: 18 states have ratified the GST amendment, passing the threshold for the President to certify the amendment. The states are Assam (August 12), Bihar (August 16), Jharkhand (August 18), Himachal Pradesh (August 22), Chhattisgarh and Gujarat (both August 23), Madhya Pradesh and Delhi (August 24), Nagaland (August 26), Maharashtra (August 29), Sikkim, Mizoram, Telangana and Haryana (all on August 30),  Goa (August 31), Orissa (September 1), Rajasthan and Puducherry (September 2).

The cabinet committee on economic affairs has approved a $172 million redevelopment project for the Mormugao Port in Goa using a public-private partnership model. Source: Economic Times


Amaravati Metro Rail Corporation (AMRC) has signed a four-year agreement with the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation for the execution of the metro project in Andhra’s new state capital. The AMRC will continue to be the owner and administrator of the project. Source: The HansIndia

Based on the recommendations of the national commission for backward classes, 109 modifications were made to the list of reserved minorities in Andhra Pradesh. Seven communities will no longer be eligible for reservation in jobs and educational institutions. Reservations were made available to 87 new communities in Telangana. Source: The Hindu

Nothing critical to report this week.


The Delhi government has allowed the resumption of registration of diesel-run cars and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) with engine capacity of 2,000 cc and above on the condition of a new one percent “green” tax on the showroom price of such vehicles. Source: Hindu Business Line

Gujarat became the third state (after Maharashtra and Jharkhand) to join the center’s air connectivity scheme, signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the civil aviation ministry. Eleven airports/airstrips will be developed under the program. Source: Indian Express

The Gujarat government is setting up a common set of performance and administrative regulations for construction projects in its cities and towns, making non-agricultural status of land under town planning schemes the default, and removing the requirement of prior permission for the construction of homes up to 125 square meters. Source: Indian Express

Canada, United Kingdom, Poland have all agreed to be partner countries for the annual Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2017. Source: Times of India, Business Standard, Indian Express

The legislative assembly of Haryana passed nine bills in the session that just concluded, including a bill that allows states courts to use e-stamps for digital payment of court fees. The legislature also approved a mechanism for redressal of complaints under the Haryana right to service laws, reducing the time for secondary redressal to 30 days from 60. The legislators also increased their monthly salary to $2,250. Source: NDTV, Chandigarh Tribune

The Haryana government has announced that electricity rates will be brought down by $0.005 (37 paise) per unit and fixed charges will be reduced by 10 kilowatts per unit. The incentive for rooftop solar units has been increased to 1.5 cents per unit. Source: Times of India

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development has sanctioned a loan of $31 million for development of rural infrastructure in Haryana. Two thirds of the total has been designated for construction of three rural bridges, construction and upgrades of 26 rural roads in 10 districts. The remainder will be used to build a 10 megawatt (MW) Photo Voltaic Solar Power Plant at the Panipat Thermal Power Station. Source: Indian Express

Haryana’s chief minister announced the formation of task force for successful implementation of the GST, which will include traders, industrialists, advocates, chartered accountants, IT experts, and government officials. Source: MoneyControl

 

The Karnataka state cabinet has approved amendments to the Karnataka Aerospace Policy to provide special incentives for the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) sector, development of an exclusive defense park and to create MRO centers in the Mysuru, Managaluru, and Tumkuru cluster. Source: Hindu Business Line In Detail: Karnataka Aerospace Policy 2013-2023

Karnataka is organizing a conference, ThinkBig 2016, exclusively for women entrepreneurs. Participants will be able to meet new partners, corporate buyers and government officials. Source: Business Standard

The central government has announced that the position of governor of Madhya Pradesh, previously held by Ram Naresh Yadav, will be held by Om Prakash Kohli, who previously served as the governor of Gujarat. Source: India Today

Returning from a trip to the U.S., chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced that American companies have promised to invest over $360 million in Madhya Pradesh, including $150 million in the IT sector. Source: Indian Express

Maharashtra has issued a new housing policy that proposes the redevelopment of buildings on 7,000 lots in Greater Mumbai. Developers will be able to use a floor space index (FSI) of three, or four if they pay a premium. Source: Business Standard

The Maharashtra government amended the state’s criminal code to deny parole to convicts sentenced for serious crimes such as murder, kidnapping for ransom, sexual offences and trafficking of minor children. Source: Indian Express

Maharashtra topped a new ease of doing business index created by the Asian Competitiveness Institute at Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. Maharashtra was followed by Gujarat, Delhi, Goa, and Andhra Pradesh. The ranking was based on business friendliness, attractiveness to investors, and state’s adoption of competitive policies, among 79 other indicators. Source: The Hindu

Maharashtra will set up a new port, named Vadhavan, as a joint venture between the government-owned Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and Maharashtra Maritime Board. The port is hoped to be operation by 2021-22. Source: Times of India

Rajasthan has launched e-stamping facilities at Jodhpur and Jaipur to allow more convenient stamp tax payment. Source: Business Standard

Cisco is partnering with the Rajasthan government to promote digital learning at 12 centers of the State Institute for Education Management and Training in order to enhance the quality of education across the state by making it easier to connect, collaborate on, create and share content. Source: Economic Times

Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa has announced that maternity leave for government employees will be increased from six months to nine months. Jayalalithaa included the announcement in a broader package of health-care proposals, including hospital equipment. Source: Economic Times

The Tamil Nadu government has passed a bill to allow for indirect election of chairpersons of urban local bodies. Chairpersons were previously elected directly. Source: News Today

Chennamaneni Vidyasagar Rao, the governor of Maharashtra, has assumed the role of acting governor of Tamil Nadu. Source: The Hindu

The Supreme Court directed the Karnataka government to release 15,000 cubic feet per second of water from the Cauvery River to Tamil Nadu for the next ten days. Source: India Today

Chinese technology company Lenovo is in discussion with the governments of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry to set up a manufacturing unit in the region. Lenovo may take over Motorola’s existing unit in Tamil Nadu or build a new facility in Puducherry. Source: Business Standard


The Telangana state government raised employees’ dearness allowance (DA) by 3.14 percent. The increase will benefit about 350,000 employees and 200,000 pensioners in the state and will cost the state approximately $15 million per month. Source: Deccan Chronicle

Hyderabad’s T-Hub incubator will open an outpost in Silicon Valley in November. The new unit will help Indian start-ups to travel and meet with investment firms and mentors in California. Source: Hindu Business Line

Uber will collaborate with the Backward Classes Welfare Corporation, Tribal Welfare Corporation, and the government of Telangana to provide training in commercial driving to members of the backward classes and scheduled tribes. The government will also work with Uber’s “Own Your Car” initiative to provide members of these community 60 percent subsidies towards purchase of commercial cars. Source: NDTV


The Associated Chambers of Commerce estimates that the gross state domestic product of Uttar Pradesh will grow 12 percent in the current fiscal year, up from the previous year’s 10 percent growth, thanks to a strong monsoon. Source: Hindu Business Line


State-run Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd has commissioned the fourth and last unit of the 4×40 MW Teesta Low Dam Hydro Electric Project in West Bengal. Source: Hindu Business Line

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee visited Rome to attend Mother Teresa’s canonization ceremony. She will then lead a delegation of state officials and industrialists to Germany to meet with potential investors, including leadership at BMW. Source: Financial Express

The Supreme Court has announced that West Bengal’s 2006 acquisition of 1000 acres of land in Singur for Tata Motor’s manufacturing plant is illegal and void. The state’s survey settlement department has been directed to identify portions of the land to be returned to the rightful landowners. Source: Livemint

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