Washington: Top CEOs representing diverse sectors of India and US and senior Government officials from both sides deliberated at length issues of common interest and concern, and recommended a number of steps to further strengthen and deepen the bilateral business relationship between the two countries, at the US-India CEO Forum meeting held yesterday at the US Department of State in Washington DC.
The meeting opened with remarks from Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram, and US Treasury Secretary, Jacob Lew; Union Minister of Commerce & Industry Anand Sharma and US Commerce Secretary, Ms Penny Pritzker and US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns.
The CEO Forum Meeting was co-chaired on the Government side by Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission of India and US Trade Representative Michael Froman; and by Mr Ratan Tata and Mr David Cote, CEO, Honeywell, from the CEOs side.
The Indian Ambassador to the US, Ms NirupamaRao was present in the meeting. US Deputy National Security Advisor Caroline Atkinson delivered the closing remarks and outlined the future agenda for the Forum.
The sectors discussed in the meeting included agriculture, agriculture value chains, water management, health and life sciences, energy, defense and homeland security.
Recognising the vital role that bilateral trade and investment plays in this global strategic partnership, the US-India CEO Forum was created in 2005 to provide a platform for the Indian and US CEOs to discuss issues of mutual interest and suggest action-oriented recommendations to both governments for consideration.
Anand Sharma yesterday met Ms Penny Pritzker, the US Commerce Secretary in Washington. Shri Sharma congratulated Ms. Pritzker on her appointment as the new Commerce Secretary.
During the meeting Shri Sharma conveyed Ms. Pritzker that the movement of highly trained professionals delivering technology services should not be mistaken with the immigrants. He shared the concerns of Indian IT industry with regard to inclusion of restrictive provisions on mobility of skilled professionals in the US Immigration legislation currently under consideration in the US Congress.
Shri Sharma also briefed Ms. Pritzker on India’s patent regime which is based on law; is fully TRIPS compliant and is backed by strong enforcement mechanisms.
Commerce & Industry Minister Sharma underscored the need for a frank exchange of views on various bilateral issues. He also emphasised the importance of approaching these issues from the perspective of enhancing India-US trade and economic engagement.
Sharma highlighted the opportunities for the US businesses in India’s National Manufacturing Policy. He informed Ms. Pritzker that India has approved setting up of 13 National Investment and Manufacturing Zones of which eight have been approved along Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor.
Shri Sharma and Commerce Secretary Ms. Pritzker also agreed to maintain high level communication between them and strengthen functional dialogue mechanisms between the officials on both sides.
US Commerce Secretary Ms. Pritzker accepted Shri Sharma’s invitation to visit India on mutually convenient dates.
Shri Sharma met the President and CEO of Walmart Asia, Mr. Scott Price to discuss issues related to multi-brand retail trading. He also met Amazon.com's Vice President for Global Public Policy, Mr. Paul Misener to discuss issues pertaining to e-commerce.
