COVID 19 Government Interactions

GI 2, 24 April 2020 http://www.ciicovid19update.in

CII is continuously engaging with the Government at the highest levels and presenting its recommendations for diverse sectors in this crisis.

Interaction with Mr , Minister for Railways and Commerce & Industry CII interacted with Mr Piyush Goyal, Minister for Railways and Commerce & Industry on April 16, 2020 on the following sub-sectors: Capital Goods (Electrical Equipment and Transmission Lines), Metals (Aluminium) and Steel, Agro-Chemicals, Agro-Products (Food Processing and Marine) and Auto-Parts. The meeting also saw participation of Secretaries/Additional Secretaries of line ministries. Interaction with Mr Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Shipping and Minister of State for Chemicals & Fertilizers CII organized a closed-door interaction with Mr Mansukh Mandaviya and other senior Ministry officials on 16 April 2020 to discuss key issues along with recommendations for the maritime sector to chart the way forward for the industry during lockdown 2.0. Over 50 CEOs from the public sector and private sector companies representing sectors such as Pharma, Manufacturing and Power participated.

Meeting with Home Secretary and Secretary, DPIIT CII presented inputs from industry on the issues being faced post the exit from the lockdown. Key issues were actioned by MHA the same day.

Manufacturing Sector Interactions with the Government Mr Sudhanshu Pandey, AS, Ministry of Commerce & Industry interacted with industry on 14 and 15 April on the following sub-sectors: Capital Goods (Electric Equipment and Transmission Lines), Metals (Copper and Aluminium) and Steel, Agro-Chemicals, APIs and Agro-Products and Auto-Parts.

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On 15 April, members of the CII National Committee on Steel also interacted with Mr Binoy Kumar, Secretary, Ministry of Steel.

Interaction with key State Government officials of Telangana, and on Renewable Energy CII organized a digital interaction on 17 April 2020 with key State Government officials of Telangana, Karnataka and Gujarat to discuss issues that the Renewable industry is facing and to suggest the way forward for the industry. The key officials were Mr Ajay Misra, Special Chief Secretary, Government of Telangana; Mr Mahendra Jain, Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Karnataka and Ms Sunaina Tomar, Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Gujarat. The officials were receptive to CII’s views and assured support for industry.

Eastern and North Eastern Region Odisha Interaction with Minister of Industries, MSME, Energy and Home, Government of Odisha Captain Dibya Shankar Mishra with Mr Reghu G, Director of Industries, Government of Odisha spoke to CII Odisha Members on 17 April 2020 and brainstormed with them to chalk out a robust business continuity plan for the state.

Chhattisgarh Interaction with Mr Kawasi Lakhma, Minister of Commerce & Industries, Government of The CII Chhattisgarh State Council interacted with Mr Kawasi Lakhma on 7 April 2020. Issues like waiving of all fixed demand charges across all industries & commerce in terms of electricity charges were discussed, among other issues.

Assam Webinar with the Chief Secretary of Government of CII Assam organized a webinar with Mr Sanjay Kumar Krishna who emphasized on social distancing and added that apart from the industries of essential commodities, industries dealing in non-essential commodities would

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also be opened with strict norms and regulations in the next phase of the lockdown.

Northern Region Meeting with Chief Secretary, Government of Rajasthan A CII Rajasthan Industry delegation met Mr D B Gupta to discuss industry preparedness in view of the gradual lifting of the lockdown after 20th April. Mr Vishal Baid, Chairman, CII Rajasthan and Mr Rohit Saboo, Past Chairman, CII and CEO & President, NBC Bearings also donated face shields and committed to provide 10,000 face shields within a week to the State Government.

Uttar Pradesh Interaction of Industry Members with Mr Siddharth Nath Singh, Minister, MSME & Export Promotion At the interaction, deliberations centred around SOPs for approval of units which can operate, transportation of employees and vehicular movement, amongst others. The MSME Minister assured that the State Government is committed to supporting industries and enhancing ease of doing business. Mr Navneet Sehgal, Principal Secretary, MSME & Export Promotion, Government of also participated.

Delhi Interaction with Mr Satyendra Jain, Minister of Health, Home, Power, PWD, Industries, Urban Development & Flood and Irrigation and Water, Government of In an interactive session on 14 April 2020 with a senior industry delegation from CII Delhi, Mr Satyendra Jain said that if the Coronavirus cases reduce drastically in the next one week, the State Government will take steps to allow operations of some industrial units in Delhi.

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Southern Region Meeting with Mr V Vijayasai Reddy, Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha), Visakhapatnam An interactive meeting with Mr V Vijayasai Reddy was organized on 16 April 2020 in Visakhapatnam to discuss key initiatives taken by the Government of Andhra Pradesh to combat COVID-19.

Karnataka Meeting with Mr B S Yediyurappa, , Karnataka Mr Sandeep Singh, Chairman, CII Karnataka and Mr Ramesh Ramadurai, Vice Chairman, CII Karnataka, called on Mr B S Yediyurappa on 12 April 2020 to update him on various activities CII is undertaking to support various stakeholders during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Kerala Members Interaction with Mr Vijayan, Chief Minister of CII Kerala held an interactive session with the Chief Minister, Mr and Industry Minister, 0n 14 April 2020. Senior industry leaders from 180 companies participated and presented their views and suggestions to the government. Interaction with Dr K Ellangovan, Principal Secretary, Industries & Commerce, Government of Kerala CII Kerala office bearers interacted with Dr Ellangovan on 13 April 2020 about creating the State Disaster Finance Corporation. Members apprised Dr Ellangovan about the need for setting up an independent body and the working of it. Dr Ellangovan requested CII to support a discussion paper which can be taken up with the government. Interaction with Mr Sivasankar, Secretary, Information Technology, Government of Kerala A meeting was organised with Mr Sivasankar on 15 April 2020. The discussions focussed on waiving off the rent for IT companies classified as MSME category operating in Government IT Parks for a period of 3 months. The Secretary has accepted the request and said the needful will be done.

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Puducherry Meetings with Mr V Narayanasamy, Chief Minister of Puducherry CII Puducherry Members called upon Mr V Narayanasamy on 13 April 2020 to discuss relief activities and issues anticipated in restarting industrial activity. Also present in the meeting were Mr Malladi Krishna Rao, Minister of Health and Mr M Kandasamy, Minister of Welfare, . A stakeholders Meeting with Mr V Narayanasamy, along with Industry Minister and Health Minister to discuss the guidelines for operationalisation of industries was again held on 15 April 2020. Interaction with Mr M O H F Shajahan, Minister of Revenue, Industries & Commerce and Transport of Puducherry A meeting with the Industries and Commerce Minister, Government of Puducherry and District Collector to discuss the guidelines to operate industry was held on 17 April 2020.

Telangana Meeting with Mr K Chandrashekar Rao, Chief Minister, Telangana CII office bearers called on Mr K Chandrashekar Rao on 14 April 2020 to discuss relief measures undertaken in response to COVID-19 and industry preparedness to address issues and challenges. Meeting with Mr K T Rama Rao, Minister for Industries, IT & MAUD, Government of Telangana CII recommendations were presented to Mr K T Rama Rao on Covid Operation Procedures. Called T-COPS, the recommendations were accepted and launched on 16 April 2020.

Western Region Meetings with Dr , Chief Minister of Goa CII Goa office bearers and member representatives called on Dr Pramod Sawant and suggested amendments in the notifications issued for compliance by the industry in the light of COVID-19 which affected the industry as a whole. The CM welcomed the suggestions and assured CII that a fresh notification would be issued with suggested inputs and amendments.

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At a special meeting of CII with Dr Pramod Sawant, on 15 April 2020, the CII Office bearers Mr Blaise Costabir, Chairman, and Mr Atul Jadhav, Vice Chairman, CII Goa State Council, presented recommendations towards an Organised, Safe & Sustainable Economic Re-start for the State of Goa and to kick-start industrial activity in a phased manner with a 100-day plan for industry in Goa post April 20, 2020. Interaction with Mr Vishwajit Rane, Minister, Industries, CII Goa State Council and industry members of CII Goa interacted with Mr Vishwajit Rane over Zoom and discussed issues faced by the industry. Assuring support to CII Members, the Minister stated that issues faced by the industry would be taken up on priority and resolved in the interest of all stakeholders.

Madhya Pradesh Interactive session with Mr , Chief Minister, An online interactive session with Mr Shivraj Singh Chouhan was organized on Saturday, on 18 April with industry members, where the Chief Minister assured all possible support and said that the state government would soon notify the list of sectors that can be permitted to operate in the state from 20 April onwards, and requested industries to adhere the norms set by MHA.

Maharashtra Interaction with Mr Subhash Desai, Minister for Industries and Mining, Government of An online interaction was organized with the Industries Department, Government of Maharashtra on 09 April 2020 to discuss concerns. Mr Subhash Desai, Minister for Industries and Mining, Government of Maharashtra sought the support of the industry in containing the spread of the virus and promised that the authorities would accommodate the views of the industry while taking major decisions. Interaction with Principal Secretary, Chief Minister Office, Government of Maharashtra CII Maharashtra organized an interaction of representatives of the packaging industry with Mr Ashish Kumar Singh on 18 April 2020. Mr Singh stated that the entire supply chain supporting essential goods and services could be opened after taking relevant approvals.

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