India will add about 150 million workers over the next 10 years.
India will add about 150 million workers over the next 10 years.

India to approve industrial corridor



The Indian government this week is set to approve the long-proposed US$90 billion (Dh330.57bn) Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor - an ambitious infrastructure project on the long stretch connecting two of India's fastest-growing cities.

Conceived five years ago, the corridor will be comprised of seven new cities, nine industrial parks, three ports, six airports and a 1,483km high-speed rail and road line will be developed as a trading hub.

The project, spanning six states, will create a "business model out of urbanisation", India's department of industrial policy and promotion says.

It is expected to breathe new life into the country's flailing industrial sector, which fell to a 20-month low last month to 53.6 from 55.3 in June, according to the HSBC Market Business Activity Index.

The government owns a 49 per cent stake in the Delhi-Mumbai corridor project, while Infrastructure Leasing and Financial services owns 41 per cent, and Infrastructure Development Finance Company owns 10 per cent.

The project, observers say, underscores the boom in India's infrastructure sector, currently expanding at a frenetic pace. India suffers from an "infrastructure deficit", says Kamal Nath, the urban development minister. The government is aggressively pursuing multibillion-dollar investments to overhaul the country's crumbling ports, choked airports, and pothole-ridden roads straining economic growth - shaving between 1 and 2 per cent from India's GDP.

In June, Manmohan Singh, the prime minister, approved a new draft policy to create dedicated mass manufacturing and investment zones equipped with world-class infrastructure.

The policy is geared towards raising the share of manufacturing in the country's GDP to 25 per cent from the current share of 15 per cent. The policy, if it takes off, is expected to generate 100 million jobs in the manufacturing sector by 2025.

At present, the services sector is the main driver of India's economic resurgence - accounting for 55 per cent of the GDP, and only for 25 per cent of the jobs.

Analysts say India needs not just software parks but also a large number of factory floors - like its Asian rival China - to absorb the millions entering its workforce each year.

India will add about 150 million workers over the next 10 years, says Sonal Varma, an economist with Nomura Financial advisory and securities.

"The employment elasticity offered by the services sector is not substantial enough to absorb them," she says. "India relies heavily on the manufacturing sector to absorb them."

"If the manufacturing sector doesn't take off, it is hard to see India sustaining a growth rate of 9 or 10 per cent," says Jahangir Aziz, the chief India economist at the investment bank JPMorgan.

But about 70 per cent of industrial projects in India are in limbo because of land disputes with farmers, according to a report titled "India Infrastructure - Paving the Way for India's growth", released jointly last year by Ernst & Young and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

"Every company I talk to tells me land titles and land records present some of the thorniest problems they face as they contemplate investing here in India," Jose Fernandez, the US assistant secretary of state for economic, energy and business affairs, told the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce in March.

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Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Artist: Linkin Park

Label: Warner Records

Number of tracks: 11

Rating: 4/5

Business Insights
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Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone

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From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines

Arrived in the UAE: 2007

Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus

Favourite photography style: Street photography

Favourite book: Harry Potter

Company profile

Name: Steppi

Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic

Launched: February 2020

Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year

Employees: Five

Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai

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Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year

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The chef's advice

Troy Payne, head chef at Abu Dhabi’s newest healthy eatery Sanderson’s in Al Seef Resort & Spa, says singles need to change their mindset about how they approach the supermarket.

“They feel like they can’t buy one cucumber,” he says. “But I can walk into a shop – I feed two people at home – and I’ll walk into a shop and I buy one cucumber, I’ll buy one onion.”

Mr Payne asks for the sticker to be placed directly on each item, rather than face the temptation of filling one of the two-kilogram capacity plastic bags on offer.

The chef also advises singletons not get too hung up on “organic”, particularly high-priced varieties that have been flown in from far-flung locales. Local produce is often grown sustainably, and far cheaper, he says.

Key products and UAE prices

iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available.
Price: Dh4,229

iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus.
Price: Dh4,649

iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel.
Price: Dh3,179

Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.

Company%20Profile
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Our legal advisor

Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.

Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation. 

Education: Sagesse University, Beirut, Lebanon, in 2005.

MATCH INFO

Fixture: Thailand v UAE, Tuesday, 4pm (UAE)

TV: Abu Dhabi Sports

How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

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Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
On sale: Later this year
Company%20Profile
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THE SPECS

Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder

Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)

Power: 141bhp 

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Price: Dh64,500

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COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

Andor
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FIXTURES

December 28
Stan Wawrinka v Pablo Carreno Busta, 5pm
Milos Raonic v Dominic Thiem, no earlier then 7pm

December 29 - semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Stan Wawrinka / Pablo Carreno Busta, 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Milos Raonic / Dominic Thiem, no earlier then 7pm

December 30
3rd/4th place play-off, 5pm
Final, 7pm

Look north

BBC business reporters, like a new raft of government officials, are being removed from the national and international hub of London and surely the quality of their work must suffer.