Make in India fighter jets? Tata, Lockheed join hands to build F-16s

Will compete for contract with Gripen E, built by Saab-Adani combine

 US defence giant Lockheed Martin and India’s Tata group signed an agreement on Monday to jointly build the F-16 Block 70 fighter in Make in India, should New Delhi opt for the American aircraft in the procurement of single-engine fighters for its air force.

Highlighting the importance of this contract for the Tata group’s aerospace and defence aspirations, Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata attended the signing ceremony at the ongoing Paris Air Show in France.

The Tata group has earmarked Tata Advanced Systems Ltd (TASL) to build the F-16 in India with technology and manufacturing facilities transferred from Lockheed Martin.

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Coming ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States this month, Lockheed Martin’s inking of this joint venture (JV) – which would have required formal clearance from Washington – indicates that, despite President Donald Trump’s promises to keep skilled jobs in the US, his administration is willing to transfer the ageing F-16 production line from Texas to India.

TASL and Lockheed Martin already have a joint venture (JV) that manufactures airframe components in Hyderabad, including for the C-130J Super Hercules airlifter and the Sikorsky S-92 helicopter.

However, the manufacture of F-16 Block 70 would be a far more ambitious project. This would first require the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to select the Tata group as an Indian “strategic partner” for aircraft production. Next, the IAF and the MoD would have to choose the F-16 Block 70 as the air force’s single-engine fighter aircraft. That multi-billion dollar procurement has already kicked off with the issue of a global request for information (RFI) by the IAF.

MoD and IAF sources confirm aviation market intelligence that the IAF’s chosen fighter is likely to be either the F-16 Block 70, or the Gripen E fighter that Swedish company, Saab, has offered to India...(read more...)

The Rs 35,000-cr business of making India GST-ready

Some of the players in the GST race are Payworld, Dell, Tally Solutions

 

 

The past few days have been ‘taxing’ for Pawan Kumar Gupta, in a race against time to become compliant with the requirement for the coming national goods and services tax (GST).

A hardware and bathroom fittings supplier, he’s been zeroing on GST-ready commercial computers and hiring three new accountants, adept with the new intricacies, among other things. A checklist in hand, Gupta is making notes on the things that have to be done before July 1, when GST becomes a reality. Till now, he has spent around Rs 2 lakh in equipping himself for the transition.

National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) data from 2013 say there are around 57.7 million registered small and medium traders. Beside, at least 15 million retailers and hundreds of thousands of offline and online ventures would all come under the new tax net. The money they’d spend for this over the next two years would be over Rs 35,000 crore, say experts.

 

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In the past eight months, the huge spending potential has created a new sector, of GST enablers. These include providers of computer hardware and software. And, legal, technical and personnel support and services. Every small entity is investing its money to comply with the new regime.

Unlike the value added tax (VAT), say experts, GST is fully computerised, with many layers only professional accountants can understand. So, the demand for computers and skilled personnel will rise.

 

Competition is already on between hardware companies. “We are eyeing the lion’s share of the market and are prepared with our solutions. We have an outreach programme for traders. We believe we would see immediate returns for the next six months to one year,” said Pankaj Harjai, director of the small and medium business at (read more...)

 

 

 

 

Make in India: Ashok Leyland launches India's 1st electric bus

Commercial vehicle major Ashok Leyland on Monday launched India’s first Made-in-India electric bus. The company has invested Rs 150-200 crore to develop this.

Ashok Leyland owns an UK firm, Optare, which is a leading alternate technology player, especially in electric bus manufacturer.

“This new series is developed in India and is the next generation technology,” said Vinod K Dasari, managing director.

The vehicle would cost around Rs 1.5-3 crore, depending on the batteries and seats, says company officials. Upfront cost is high, but it can deliver payback to the customer in about four-five years, says Dasari.

Dasari is also hopeful that the government would give subsidy for the vehicle

“The Circuit series of buses is another testament to Ashok Leyland’s commitment to leverage India’s technological innovation to deliver relevant and best-in-class solutions for India and the world,” said Dasari.

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India has lost 550 jobs a day in last 4 years: Study

As many as 550 jobs have disappeared every day in last four years and if this trend continues, employment would shrink by 7 million by 2050 in the country, a study has claimed.

Farmers, petty retail vendors, contract labourers and construction workers are the most vulnerable sections facing never before livelihood threats in India today, the study by Delhi-based civil society group PRAHAR has said.

According to the data released by Labour Bureau early 2016, India created only 1.35 lakh jobs in 2015 in comparison to 4.19 lakh in 2013 and 9 lakh in 2011, the group said in a statement.

Related: There will be no job losses, Finance Ministry assures CBEC officers

"A deeper analysis of the data reveals a rather scary picture. Instead of growing, livelihoods are being lost in India on a daily basis. As many as 550 jobs are lost in India every day (in last four year as per Labour Bureau data) which means that by 2050, jobs in India would have got reduced by 7 million, while population would have grown by 600 million," the statement said.

The data clearly points to the fact that job creation in India is successively slowing down, which is very alarming, it pointed out.

"This (rise in unemployment) is because sectors which are the largest contributor of jobs are worst-affected. Agriculture contributes to 50 per cent of employment in India followed by SME sector which employs 40 per cent of the workforce of the country," the statement said.

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