PM Modi’s ‘Panch Pran’ is our roadmap towards Bharat@100: Shri Goyal

India must become a developed nation on the back of sustainability: Shri Goyal
The Government is willing to earmark areas to MSMEs in the 20 townships being built across the nation. MSMEs are integral to large businesses and industrial growth. This was stated by Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal during his address at Assocham: Bharat @100 Summit in New Delhi today.

Stating that MSMEs are pivotal to supporting large industries in their ecosystem, the Minister noted that he would speak to States to look at providing areas to MSMEs for developing their businesses in townships and industrial parks. He also added that MSMEs can be provided land at concessional rates to develop their businesses in the townships.

Speaking on the theme of the Summit, “Fuelling Bharat’s Global Rise”, the Minister reminded the participants of the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s clarion call of ‘Panch Pran’ – Developed India, Removing Colonial Mindset, Taking Pride in Our Heritage, Unity and Integrity, and Collective Duty Towards the Nation. Alluding to the passing of the Boilers Bill, 2024 in Rajya Sabha yesterday by repealing the colonial-era Act, Shri Goyal noted that under the current Government swift action is being to taken to promote Ease of Doing Business by simplifying processes, reducing compliance burden and decriminalising laws helping the MSMEs of the country.

On rising consumption patterns of the country, the Minister highlighted that India must become a developed nation on the back of sustainability. We can’t encourage waste, he said. Reiterating his stand, Shri Goyal said that emerging and developing countries have to bear the brunt of the environmental degradation due to the developed countries who have been outsourcing their production to other nations. Rather than blaming the manufacturer for the carbon emission, it is directly related to consumption. Countries with the ‘developed’ tag attained that status on the back of low-cost energy supplied by coal-based powerplants for over 100 years as they industrialised their economies, he added. Shri Goyal emphasised that India, whereas, has revered nature over the decades and has realised a circular economy far before than the developed countries.

Speaking about Government’s welfare schemes on food security, water, electricity and digital connectivity, Shri Goyal noted that these programmes are provided to the citizens without any discrimination on the basis of religion, caste and creed. He further stressed that caste census and demanding reservation on the basis of religion has outlived its shelf life. Motivation to make India a great nation should encourage every service provider to do jobs more efficiently, he pointed out, noting that citizens have to speak up against corruption and delays in processes.

The Government is willing to support skill development, Shri Goyal highlighted, adding that already an outlay of Rs 2 lakh crore has been announced, the initiative needs to be driven in an Public-Private-Academia partnership. He urged academic institutions to take up entrepreneurship as a part of the course curriculum.

Shri Goyal, during his address, urged the members of the apex chamber to instill the entrepreneurial bug among the youth and get them out of the job-seeking mode. One of your focus areas should be on getting the youth to make bolder decisions and willing to take risks, he said.

NEWS : On December 6, Minsk will host a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State
On December 6, Minsk will host a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State, which will be attended by President of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko. The meeting is timed to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the Treaty Establishing the Union State.
The meeting will focus on the Union State’s development and prospects for the further integration cooperation. It is planned to approve a number of specific decisions on creating a common electricity market, combatting illegal imports, and introducing uniform rules to protect consumer rights and reasonable tariffs for communications services. Special attention will be paid to strengthening the common defence space of Russia and Belarus.
Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko will also hold a separate meeting.

CMA clears Vodafone / Three merger, subject to legally binding commitments

Proposed commitments would ensure the merger boosts competition in UK telecoms with rollout of 5G connectivity

Ofcom and CMA would oversee commitments from Vodafone and Three to implement, in full, the merged company’s network plan
Certain mobile tariffs to be capped for three years whilst virtual mobile providers will have access to pre-set wholesale prices and contract terms
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has decided Vodafone’s merger with Three should be allowed to proceed if both companies sign binding commitments to invest billions to roll out a combined 5G network across the UK. The network commitment would be supported by shorter term customer protections which would require the merged company to cap certain mobile tariffs and offer preset contractual terms to mobile virtual network operators, for a period of 3 years.

In September, the independent inquiry group leading the in-depth Phase 2 investigation of the merger provisionally found it could lead to higher prices for customers and less advantageous terms for virtual network providers (which depend on networks like those provided by Vodafone and Three to supply their own retail customers).

Since publishing those findings, the group has explored how its concerns might be resolved and in November published a remedies working paper which included a range of potential remedy options. The group has since analysed responses to the working paper and closely engaged with respondents. The group has also sought further input from Ofcom, the communications regulator.

In its final decision, published today, the group has confirmed it is now satisfied that the proposed network commitment, supported by shorter term protections for both retail and wholesale customers, resolve its competition concerns.

The merger will therefore be allowed to proceed subject to the following legally binding commitments which require:

Delivery of the joint network plan, which sets out the network upgrade, integration and improvements Vodafone and Three will make to their combined network across the UK over the next 8 years. The group has concluded that by significantly improving the quality of the combined network, the full implementation of this plan would boost competition between the mobile network operators in the long term, benefiting millions of people who rely on mobile services.
Capping selected mobile tariffs and data plans for 3 years, directly protecting large numbers of Vodafone / Three customers from short-term price rises in the early years of the network plan.
Offering pre-set prices and contract terms for wholesale services (again for 3 years) to ensure that virtual network providers can obtain competitive terms and conditions as the network plan is rolled out.
The network commitment would be overseen by both Ofcom and the CMA, with the merged company also required to publish an annual report setting out its progress on the implementation of the network plan. The CMA would have responsibility for monitoring and enforcing the protections relating to consumer tariffs and wholesale terms.

Stuart McIntosh, chair of the independent inquiry group leading the investigation, said:

It’s crucial this merger doesn’t harm competition, which is why we’ve spent time considering how it could impact the telecoms market.

Having carefully considered the evidence, as well as the extensive feedback we have received, we believe the merger is likely to boost competition in the UK mobile sector and should be allowed to proceed – but only if Vodafone and Three agree to implement our proposed measures.

Both Ofcom and the CMA would oversee the implementation of these legally binding commitments, which would help enhance the UK’s 5G capability whilst preserving effective competition in the sector.

More information can be found on the Vodafone / CK Hutchison JV case page and on the detailed guidance page.

Notes to editors
The publication of the final report by the group marks the end of the CMA’s Phase 2 merger investigation. If Vodafone and Three agree to the commitments, the CMA will now work to implement them, otherwise the CMA will block the deal.
Vodafone UK (which is owned by Vodafone Group Plc) and Three UK (which is owned by CK Hutchison Holdings Limited) are 2 major providers of mobile telecommunication services in the UK. Last year both businesses announced a joint venture agreement which would bring tens of millions of customers – representing 27 million subscriptions – under a new, single network operator.
The 4 mobile network operators in the UK are Vodafone UK, Three UK, BTEE and Virgin Media O2.