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New Delhi, Dec. With the union budget-making process getting underway, <keyword id="7706673" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="finance-minister-nirmala-sitharaman">Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman</keyword> held her first pre-budget consultation with top industrialists on Monday. The meeting assumed importance as it would bring <keyword id="6354887" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Industry">industry</keyword> and government together to identify <keyword id="7848060" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Critical-Areas">critical areas</keyword> of <keyword id="6473198" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="reform">reform</keyword> that would pave the way for reinvigorating growth in the economy hit hard by the pandemic this year. The ideas from the industry would go as valuable inputs for government budgetary exercise for FY22. Sources said that the who's who of India Inc., including Uday Kotak from Kotak Mahindra Bank, Biocon's Kiran Majumdar Shaw attended the meeting organised through video conferencing. Along with Finance Minister, Finance Secretary A.B. Pandey, Secretary, DEA, Tarun Bajaj, Chief Economic Advisor K. Subramanian besides other senior officials were also present in the meeting. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/top-stocks-to-watch-future-retail-power-grid-cipla-delta-corp-yes-bank-adani-power-and-others/articleshow/79713824.cms">Top stocks to watch — Future Retail, Power Grid, Cipla, Delta Corp, Yes Bank, Adani Power and others</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/burger-king-india-shares-nearly-doubles-on-listing-debut-pushes-valuation-past-4000-crore/articleshow/79715269.cms">Burger King India shares nearly doubles on listing — debut pushes valuation past ₹4,000 crore</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/the-difference-between-doordash-zomato-and-swiggy-is-not-in-what-the-companies-do-its-where-they-do-it/articleshow/79715531.cms">The difference between DoorDash and Indian peers Zomato and Swiggy is not in what the companies do⁠ — it’s where they do it</a>

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman holds the first round of pre-budget talks with top industrialists

The Commerce Ministry today brought good news for reviving SEZs as it announced its plans to focus on six areas and according priority sector status to export credit, with a view to giving a boost to overseas shipments, which have been on a decline since December 2014.
 

	The other focus areas are MSMEs, promoting organic produce; involving missions and embassies to promote trade and removing issues of EXIM Bank and Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECGC). 
 

	These issues, among several others, were discussed during the first meeting of reconstituted 70-member Board of Trade. 
 Commerce and Industry Minister <keyword id="129243" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Nirmala-Sitharaman">Nirmala Sitharaman</keyword>, who chaired the meeting, said the government is committed to providing all the support to exporters to boost outbound shipments. "We are going to hand hold sectors that need help," she said, adding that "we will be working on these areas in the next few days". 

	On special economic zones (SEZs), she said the ministry would work on improving the potential of these zones as they are sitting on huge land bank. 
 "We will meet with different line ministries. We will call up a SEZ specific focus meeting with departments, including economic affairs and <keyword id="117272" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="CBEC">CBEC</keyword>, and industry experts," Sitharaman said. She said as suggested by <keyword id="6653" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="ICICI-bank">ICICI Bank</keyword> MD <keyword id="45875" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Chanda-Kochhar">Chanda Kochhar</keyword>, the ministry will take up the issue of according priority sector status to export credit with the <keyword id="47209" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Finance-Ministry">Finance Ministry</keyword> as it would help in promoting exports. 

	She said the ministry would also discuss with the RBI and the Finance Ministry about the issues being faced by EXIM Bank regarding more financial flexibilities. 
 

	"We will hold interactions with Indian High Commissions and Embassies along with their commercial and economic wings in order to make them more vibrant and understand requirements of exporters," she told reporters after the meeting. 
 

	The minister said that the government always give special attention to MSMEs as they contribute significantly in the exports besides the ministry will focus on promoting exports of organic produce. 
 

	During the meeting industry raised the issue of minimum alternate tax and dividend distribution tax on SEZs; problems in getting credit for MSMEs and extending line of credit to boost exports. 
 Industry leaders who attended the meeting include Kochhar, <keyword id="6358361" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Biocon">Biocon</keyword> MD Kiran Majumdar-Shaw, Dr Reddy's MD Satish Reddy and <keyword id="46156" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="TVS-Motor">TVS Motor</keyword> Company Chairman Venu Srinivasan. 

	Falling for the 15th month in a row, exports dipped 5.66 per cent in February to USD 20.73 billion due to contraction in shipments of petroleum and engineering goods amid tepid global demand.

	 
	 
	(Image credits: indiatimes)

Commerce Ministry will have a more focused approach to revive exports

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, the Chairman and Managing Director of India's biggest biotech company <keyword id="6358361" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Biocon">Biocon</keyword>, has expressed disappointment over the government policies, saying that it is paying mere "lip service" to the manufacturing sector. She also said that there have been no improvements in doing business in India, because of lack of consistency in policies. 
 
"According to me, right now, the government needs to only focus on ease of doing business and it should also focus on consistent policies, where there is no ambiguity and flip-flopping," she said. 
 
"I have not seen any improvement in ease of doing business. It is as complex, and I think the policies are as ambiguous and there is no consistency. That's all the government has to ensure," Mazumdar-Shaw said. 
 
She also stressed on the importance of government support to jobs in the manufacturing sector. 
 
"Apart from saying Make in India, there is no policy supporting manufacturing jobs. Government is going on focusing on service sector and only paying lip service to manufacturing sector. The government should stop paying lip service to manufacturing and do something if they are serious about it," said Mazumdar-Shaw. 
 
Talking of the upcoming budget and her expectations, she said that the government should focus on socio-economic development and increase investment on education, healthcare, jobs, low- cost housing and infrastructure areas. 
 
She, however, was appreciative of some industrial corridors having being taken off. 
 
"As long as infrastructure keeps happening in a big way, then we can say that yes the government is beginning to deliver on its promise," she said, declining to comment on whether the Modi government has delivered on its pre-election promises. 
 
<a href="https://www.infosys.com/SiteCollectionImages/responsive/media/kiran-mazumdar-shaw.jpg">Image source</a>

Government needs to make doing business easier with consistent policies, says Biocon chief Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw

Two books that I read recently gave me insights into the experiences of two powerful women who have carved their place in male dominated workplaces. One of them was Justice (retd) <keyword id="138835" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Leila-Seth">Leila Seth</keyword>’s autobiography, On Balance and the other one was Lean In, the book on the experiences of Facebook chief operating officer,<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/How-Sheryl-Sandbergs-grandmother-taught-her-it-was-okay-to-lean-on-other-women-for-support/articleshow/52909071.cms"> Sheryl Sandberg</a>. 
 
In her book On Balance, Justice Seth recounts her initial days at after being elevated as judge in the Delhi High Court. She says that people used to address her as the “new lady judge” and she had to frequently correct them, “I am not the new lady judge, but the new judge.” In her own words, she had to be “equal-plus” in order to be taken seriously. On a similar note, <keyword id="611995" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sheryl-Sandberg">Sheryl Sandberg</keyword>, in her book describes the gender stereotypes that have existed since her childhood and were even visible in her workplace environment. These books give a glimpse of the conscious and inadvertent biases that exist around us. They also bring out the physiological impact of <keyword id="3590826" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="gender-disparity-in-employment">gender disparity in employment</keyword> and what women go through in such situations. As most of the top level positions are held by men, it is assumed to be natural that women cannot break the glass ceiling. Unfortunately, many educated and working women have also started believing in this theory. Being a woman in a corporate set-up, I could relate to their accounts. 
 Amidst a raging debate around <keyword id="499855" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Gender-diversity">gender diversity</keyword>, a recent ASSOCHAM-Thought Arbitrage Research report indicates that there was a spurt in the number of working women in India during 2000-2005. It jumped from 34 percent to 37 percent. However, the female labor force participation rate has reduced continuously thereafter and reached 27 percent in 2014. 
 
It is ironical that this downward trend was more pronounced during the period when economy was experiencing unprecedented growth and less and less women were contributing of this boom period. This was a loss for not just India Inc. but for the entire country. We lost on the prospects of nurturing women leaders’ bridge the gender gap. 
 
As the Assocham study shows women are usually seen leaving their jobs when they get married or plan their families. In fact, it is the single largest cause of females leaving their careers mid-way. They are expected to handle domestic responsibilities around children and elders. 
Then there are issues such as gender biases, extreme work conditions and the lack of learning and development opportunities – all these make women quit their jobs. It glaring that despite having good academic qualifications, there are very few women who actually attain leadership roles. We can think of role models like <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Kiran-Mazumdar-Shaw-says-Government-should-make-consistent-policies/articleshow/51124909.cms">Kiran Majumdar Shaw</a>, <keyword id="68907" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indira-Nooyi">Indira Nooyi</keyword>, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/SBI-Chairman-blames-stalled-projects-for-Indian-banking-sector-stress/articleshow/53080413.cms">Arundhati Bhattacharya</a> and <keyword id="225262" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Chanda-Kochchar">Chanda Kochchar</keyword>. They have been the epitome of success through hard work and persistence. But we need to create more such role models for young girls to believe in themselves and repeat the success. 
 
Move the needle on gender diversity 
 
Irrespective of the sector, organisations need to make women centric agenda a company priority. Clear targets need to be defined to promote diversity at workplace and obstacles that stifle women talent and empowerment have to be removed. If marriage or maternity are the prime reasons for attrition of women employees, companies should have policies to offer continuity of career if they return, and even incentivise top talent to come back. Earlier this year, Telenor Group took a lead and declared a mandatory 6 month <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Maternity-Bill-passed-in-Rajya-Sabha-26-weeks-of-paid-leave-for-working-women/articleshow/53666268.cms">maternity leave policy</a>. More organisations have followed and even the Indian government is seeking an amendment in the Maternity Benefit Act to provide 26-week maternity leave to all working mothers. Initiatives such as giving flexi working hours or having a crèche or day care centres in the office premises has helped new mothers strike a good work-life balance. 
 
However, to build a pipeline of women leaders we also need create a career roadmap for them. Education, training and professional development modules have to be designed to bring them on a par with their male counterparts. Additionally, companies can focus on setting targets for women representation across all levels of the organization – including senior leadership and develop action plans to achieve these targets. Last year, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) came up with directions for listed firms to appoint at least one woman director on their boards with this objective and was stringent enough to get it implemented. Clearly apart from internal plans, a regulatory push always helps. 
 
But policies are not the only intervention required. The work culture and the mind set needs to change. Time and resources have to be invested towards women oriented initiatives. Taking cognizance of this important topic and to promote women leaders, Telenor Group has started an initiative known as Women Inspirational Network (WIN) across all its 13 business units. WIN will provide focused leadership development to women leaders at CXO-1 and CXO-2 levels – ensuring gender balance in the organization’s overall leadership planning. 
Companies need to consciously and cognitively take such steps for inclusive growth at workplace. Studies have shown that by meaningfully engaging with the women employees improves the overall functionality of the organization. The 18th Annual Global CEO Survey by Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) had recently reported that 85% of CEOs whose companies have an inclusiveness strategy said it improved their bottom-line. 
 
Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Apple-says-it-pays-women-the-same-as-men/articleshow/53530954.cms">Apple says it pays women the same as men</a> 
 
With <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/What-India-Inc-leaders-love-to-do-when-out-of-their-Boardrooms/articleshow/52779268.cms">India Inc.</a> getting noticed keenly globally for their business acumen, the world will be keenly scrutinizing the diversity agenda being pursued by these companies. The new age companies and start-ups are throwing up innumerable opportunities for career oriented women to come forward with their own set-ups. The journey has begun, how long it will take for us to reach the destination only time will tell. 
 
About the author: Pooja Thakran is the Chief Communication Officer &amp; Head of Social Responsibility at Telenor India Communications 
 
<a href="http://stg.businessfirstmagazine.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Depositphotos_49517177_m.jpg">Image source</a>

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman holds the first round of pre-budget talks with top industrialists

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Commerce Ministry will have a more focused approach to revive exports

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Government needs to make doing business easier with consistent policies, says Biocon chief Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw

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Winning by promoting gender diversity at workplace

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