‘K’House Food India Opens Japanese Restaurant 'Matsuri' in Kolkata

‘K’ House Food India, an extension of the food chain Kyoto Gin Yuba in Japan, has opened Matsuri a 60-seater Japanese restaurant and bar, their second outlet in Kolkata, at Forum Mall, Elgin Road. Japanese dishes like, Kaisen Yakitori (assorted seafood yakitori) Maguro Natto (tuna and fermented soyabean) Ika Natto, Shimi Saba Sashimi(mackerel sashimi) and Hotate will be available at the outlet. ‘AOI,' the first restaurant of K House Food India has now been renamed as ‘Fuji.’

Serving Japanese cuisine, the restaurant has a wall painted by a Japanese artist all the way from Japan, Koshi Chihiro from Nagano.

Speaking on the occasion, Takeshi Kogahara, Chairman, K House Food India, said: “ with Matsuri we hope to bring not just the Japanese Food in India but also the Japanese culture and, therefore, we got a Japanese artist to paint Zenkoji Shrine of Nagano on one of the walls.”

Palash Banerjee, Managing Director, Matsuri, said that he was confident about the new restaurant doing well after receiving an overwhelming response from the first outlet. "We try to connect both the countries via the medium of food and since all our ingredients are imported from Japan, we shall also have few ingredients at display to make people more aware of Japanese food,” he said.

From Bose to Maruti, a friendship fostered

● Japan has the third highest GDP in the world at about US $4.4 trillion. That’s four times more than India’s.

● It has a population of 128 million that enjoys a per capita income of $37,000. That’s 37 times more than India’s.

● It is pollution-free, chooses not to raise an army and has a delicate sense of design and aesthetics.

● It also has a brutal World War II history.

Cold statistics give a glimpse of the gap between India the elephant and Japan the winningest derby horse, but the odd couple had ticked despite occasional hiccups.

Aftab Seth, a retired diplomat and former ambassador to Japan, tried to explain the oddities of India-Japan relations at the Think series lecture, presented by The Bengal Chamber in association with The Telegraph, last week.

The Rhodes scholar with a PhD from Greece harked back to events that unfolded 1,500 years ago when Indian thoughts and Buddhism gained roots in Japan. Cutting back to modern times, he said: “Tagore visited the country five times and Swami Vivekananda travelled to Japan on his way to Chicago. Rashbehari Bose, accused of trying to kill Lord Hardinge, was given refuge in Japan and Subhas Chandra Bose’s INA was assisted by a group of young soldiers from Japan. At the International Military Tribunal, Justice Radhabinod Pal gave his dissenting judgment in favour of Japan. The Boses and Pal are revered at the Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo.”

Seth showed how the foundations were reinforced when India helped Japan with iron ore to rebuild its steel industry after the crippling World War. Japan returned the favour. India was the first country to receive the Japanese Overseas Development Aid (ODA) after the Korean conflict.

The cold war distanced the two friends for a while, but “during the worst forex crisis of India, Prime Minister Hashimoto bailed India out with a loan”, Seth said.

India’s May 1998 nuclear test at Pokhran ruffled Japanese feathers, though. “They felt we let them down and they cut all fresh ODA to us.”

When the boat was rocking post-Pokhran, a band of Indonesian pirates rubbed the frost off the Indo-Japan ties. Indian navy rescued the Japanese crew, left adrift in the high seas in a lifeboat without food or water, after the pirates hijacked their ship.

Soon after, then finance minister Jaswant Singh was invited to Japan in November 1999. “Close on the heels came (Bill) Clinton’s five-day love fest in India and four months later Yoshiro Mori came and announced global partnership for the 21st century with (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee. This was a comprehensive security dialogue between India and Japan,” Seth said.

“It was Osama Suzuki who came to India in the ’80s even before the economic liberalisation and, in a leap of faith, set up shop with a public sector company, thus forming the Maruti Suzuki India Ltd…. This was pioneering coming at a time when it did,” he added.

Seth hoped that the recent visits of Emperor Akihito and Queen Michiko and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe would bolster ties between the two countries. “Indo-Japan ties are like a kite’s string, invisible in the sky but visible on the finger,” he signed off.

Yokohama inaugurates tyre manufacturing plant at Bahadurgarh

Japan-based Yokohama Rubber today inaugurated its first manufacturing unit in India at Bahadurgarh, Haryana.

Built with an investment of over Rs 300 crore, the unit has a installed capacity of 2000 tyres per day, said its Indian subsidiary, Yokohama India Pvt Ltd said in a statement.

The unit was inaugurated by Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.

It would manufacture Yokohama Earth-1 tyres, especially designed for India keeping the diverse road conditions in mind and start commercial production in the second half this year.

Commenting on the development, Yokohama India MD Takeshi Fujino said: "The very plant can be scaled up to 8,000 tyres per day in the next phases of growth. Yokohama India will continue to import tyres other than being manufactured in India" said Takeshi Fujino, MD, Yokohama India.

The unit which is at trial stage presently employs more than 100 people and and would increase its head count three folds by the end of 2014, said Yokohama India which claimed to have 2 per cent of the total market share.

Yokohama India is 100 per cent subsidiary of Yokohama Rubber Company, which had forayed into the Indian market in 2007.

Nissan Motor to discontinue sales of X-Trail, 370Z coupe

Nissan Motor India, a wholly owned subsidiary of Japan’s Nissan Motor Co, will discontinue the sales of the X-Trail SUV and 370Z coupe in India as the company intends to focus on its locally manufactured models.

The auto major, however, will continue to sell its luxury sedan Teana in the country, it said in a statement.

At present, Nissan sells Micra Active, Micra, Sunny, Evalia and Terrano in India, all of which are manufactured at the company’s manufacturing facility in Oragadam, Chennai. The company plans to concentrate on products tailored for India and delivering more value along with world class quality to its customers, it said in a statement.

Hitachi to acquire Prizm Payment Services for Rs.1,540 crore

Japan's engineering and electronics conglomerate Hitachi will acquire 100 percent stake in India's Prizm Payment Services for Rs.1,540 crore. The government Thursday approved the proposal. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh approved the proposal at a meeting here. Under the deal, the Tokyo headquartered Hitachi will acquire 100 percent equity stake of Prizm Payment Services Private Limited through its India unit Hitachi Consulting Software Services India Private Limited. The approval would result in foreign investment of approximately Rs.1,540 crore in the country, according to an official statement released after the cabinet meeting.

Workshop on forest management being held in Chennai

Forest officials and conservators came together for the 6th annual national workshop on Joint Forest Management (JFM) in Chennai on Monday.

The two-day workshop will have over fifty delegates from India and Japan deliberating ideas on sustaining forests and livelihood. Mohan Verghese Chunkath, additional chief secretary, environment and forest department, stressed the need for sustainability and the complex problems faced in achieving it, in his inaugural address.

He announced that the state government had funded Rs 158 crore for protection of forests and biodiversity apart from project assistance. He expected that the workshop would be a new milestone in ensuring sustainability.

Adding a global perspective, Tomohide Ichiguchi, deputy chief representative, Japan International Corporation Agency (JICA), New Delhi, outlined the policies that offer support to the forest sector.

Vineet Sarin, lead development specialist, JICA, said that they were presently supporting 13 states in India and outlined more of their support that has been offered to India's forest sector. He also spoke of the long association they have had with Tamil Nadu and said that the Tamil Nadu Afforestation Project (TAP) was very successful.

Japan's Shachihata to sell its stationery products in India

Japanese stationery major Shachihata Inc announced its foray into the Indian stationary market through its Artline India brand.

Shachihata is the second major stationary brand from Japan to enter India after Kokuyo S&T, which acquired a majority stake in Camlin in 2011.

Yasuji Mori, director, Shachihata Inc said that over the last 15 years the company has been focusing on exports, with a  plant near Chennai, and now has decided to focus on the domestic market.

The company however, has not disclosed the investment into the Indian venture.

Biju Oommen, general manager-sales, Artline (India) Pvt Ltd, said the domestic stationery market is estimated around Rs 7,000 crore and is expected to grow around 12 per cent.

“We have set a target to capture around 20 per cent market share in relevant categories (writing, scholastic and colouring) in next 3-4 years,” he said.

He added the company will manufacture products for the domestic market from the Chennai plant and would also look at outsourcing model for manufacturing them. The company will be launching pens, crayons, oil pastels, geometry boxes and others and they will be manufactured at this plant, which currently has a capacity to manufacture three million pieces of marker pens per month. These products will be launched during the first quarter of the next fiscal year.

To start with the company is targeting the top 30 cities in the country, with around 200 distributors and 50,000 stationery outlets and planning to expand it to 200 towns with 1.50 lakh outlets and 500 SKUs.

Founded in 1925, Shachihata Inc, is the inventor of Pre-Ink Stamp pads a leading Japanese brand offering  writing, marking and stamping products. Last year the company reported a global turnover of $170 million, with presence in around 75 countries.

Shachihata will be the second Japanese stationery brand to come to India in the last three years. In 2011, Kokuyo bought a majority stake in Camlin Ltd.

In Taj city Agra, a monument to India-Japan love

Just a few hundred metres from the Taj Mahal, there's another monument to love that few people know about or few tourists would care to visit. The Japanese-founded Jalma centre for leprosy treatment has completed more than four decades of service, treating thousands of ostracised patients, lepers, and has through research and investigations succeeded in bringing down the incidence of the debilitating disease.
Now run by the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), it stands as a monument to love between the two countries.
"The total number of leprosy cases in the country has declined. People come early for treatment and respond well to the drugs and disease-management programme. But the chief area of concern remains the rate of transmission reflected through the number of new cases, which should eventually fall," a Jalma official told IANS.
India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, laid the foundation stone of the Jalma centre near the Taj Mahal in December 1963. Japanese doctors ran the hospital till 1976, when ICMR took over and developed it as a key research centre.
Today, it is one of the most modern, hi-tech research centres focussing on leprosy and TB. It has successfully developed new generation immunological and molecular diagnostic tools and methods and evolved the mapping of TB through DNA printing which can deliver a test report in just one day against up to two weeks earlier.
The Jalma centre has built a formidable reputation through research and investigations in several critical areas like AIDS, drug metabolism, drug resistance and leprosy, to name just a few. The results would help contain the incidence of leprosy and other dreadful diseases.
It was renamed the National Jalma Institute of Leprosy and Mycobacterial Diseases in 2005 to reflect its broader research areas. The Institute has a major thrust on leprosy (40 percent), tuberculosis and other mycobacteriosis (40 percent), HIV (10 percent) and filariasis (10 percent).
Under ICMR the scientists of the Institute have continued to contribute on almost all aspects of leprosy, several cutting edge areas of tuberculosis ( DNA fingerprinting methods, drug resistance) and selected areas of HIV-AIDS and has now made forays into related problems like filariasis.
Alongside the modern Jalma hospital, there is a small village of lepers built by Gandhians in 1960 with 57 rooms where 120 victims of leprosy have been living in a world of their own.

Ethnic Indian fabrics get Japanese touch

Offering Delhiites a new range of clothing line is ‘Sind Haath Heart’, an exhibition of textiles, fabric and costumes that employs traditional Japanese techniques with Indian dyeing and stitchwork to enhance the ethnic look. The exhibition is on display at Kamala Gallery 1, Rajiv Gandhi Handicrafts Bhawan till February 15.

Says Ryoko Haraguchi,designer of this collection, “The concept of the exhibition is to highlight the important relation between the Japanese and Indian sensitivities in the world of textiles. We have been working closely together with Indian crafts people for more than 20 years now, this is our fifth exhibition in India showcasing the new products which we have made together.”

Japanese techniques, such as persimmon tannin overdye, and Itajime dyeing process in harmony with Indian dyeing and stitchwork are featured in this exhibition.
Sind – the brand is showcasing its new garments which are the collaborative works of crafts people in Jaipur and New Delhi. “In Jaipur we worked with the traditional master dyers and here in Delhi we created new, vibrant and contemporary garments,” Ryoko added.

Enthusiastic about this collaboration, she says, “We are sure that this spring exhibition will clearly showcase the creativity and the unique common heritage of the work between the two countries and further enhance the ‘textile culture’ of India and Japan.”

The collection has an array of Indian jackets, pants, blouse – all inspired by Japanese traditional wear. There is a colourful range of clothes made from tie and dye which liberally employs natural dying process, free-hand dying, Indigo dying, compressor dying as also stone wash.

The collection is colourful and trendy. And, if you enjoy experimenting with your looks and clothes, then this exhibition is a must visit.

Japan wants India as economic power, Delhi should be happy

The nub is whether India has the wherewithal to match the expectations of Japan and especially those of its prime minister, Shinzo Abe. Mr Abe’s presence at the Republic Day parade this year will cause some angst in Beijing.
However, the bedrock of the India-Japan relationship is economic. But it is an economic blueprint so large that it will have strategic consequences.
At the heart of it is Tokyo’s interest in using the mammoth cross-border capital flows of its corporations and financial institutions to recreate the circumstances that led Japan to transform Southeast Asia and China into export-based, manufacturing dynamos. While there are many missing links in the Indian economy among the most important is its narrow manufacturing base.
Among all emerging economies, India has the smallest manufacturing base as a percentage of GDP. This has plenty of fallout. As millions of Indians move from their ever-shrinking farms to the cities, they are not finding factory jobs to accommodate them. India must import billions in arms, electronic products and struggles to compete against ‘made in Bangladesh’ products because it lacks the world-class infrastructure to compete globally.
The cost of this in terms of jobs, finance and keeping India mired in poverty is incalculable.
Which is why Japan is so important. Unlike most other governments who have focussed on selling one or two billion more widgets to India, Tokyo has sought to push India to the next quantum level economically.
Unable to find the right infrastructure, for example, Japan has sought to make this infrastructure on behalf of India.
The Delhi Metro was the first experiment. The massive Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor is the centrepiece of Japan’s vision. When completed it will catapult India into the top rungs of the international trading system. If thousands of Japanese firms move here afterwards, the days of India being a manufacturing wannabe will be over.
The Japanese themselves would profit from this. But there is no hiding the fact that, especially under Mr Abe, Tokyo has also come to see India in a strategic light. New Delhi should not shirk from embracing Japan. It is in India’s interest to, one, have an ally committed to making India something greater than it is and, two, to have multiple centres of power in Asia.
- See more at: http://www.hindustantimes.com/comment/the-rising-sun-on-india-s-horizon/article1-1176487.aspx#sthash.e1u9iK2f.dpuf

There is a strong case for saying that the expanding engagement with Japan is the most important bilateral relationship in India’s global grab-bag. The potential is enormous. If Tokyo is able to accomplish its core objectives with regard to India, the result would be this country’s economic
transformation.
The nub is whether India has the wherewithal to match the expectations of Japan and especially those of its prime minister, Shinzo Abe. Mr Abe’s presence at the Republic Day parade this year will cause some angst in Beijing.
However, the bedrock of the India-Japan relationship is economic. But it is an economic blueprint so large that it will have strategic consequences.
At the heart of it is Tokyo’s interest in using the mammoth cross-border capital flows of its corporations and financial institutions to recreate the circumstances that led Japan to transform Southeast Asia and China into export-based, manufacturing dynamos. While there are many missing links in the Indian economy among the most important is its narrow manufacturing base.
Among all emerging economies, India has the smallest manufacturing base as a percentage of GDP. This has plenty of fallout. As millions of Indians move from their ever-shrinking farms to the cities, they are not finding factory jobs to accommodate them. India must import billions in arms, electronic products and struggles to compete against ‘made in Bangladesh’ products because it lacks the world-class infrastructure to compete globally.
The cost of this in terms of jobs, finance and keeping India mired in poverty is incalculable.
Which is why Japan is so important. Unlike most other governments who have focussed on selling one or two billion more widgets to India, Tokyo has sought to push India to the next quantum level economically.
Unable to find the right infrastructure, for example, Japan has sought to make this infrastructure on behalf of India.
The Delhi Metro was the first experiment. The massive Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor is the centrepiece of Japan’s vision. When completed it will catapult India into the top rungs of the international trading system. If thousands of Japanese firms move here afterwards, the days of India being a manufacturing wannabe will be over.
The Japanese themselves would profit from this. But there is no hiding the fact that, especially under Mr Abe, Tokyo has also come to see India in a strategic light. New Delhi should not shirk from embracing Japan. It is in India’s interest to, one, have an ally committed to making India something greater than it is and, two, to have multiple centres of power in Asia.

The nub is whether India has the wherewithal to match the expectations of Japan and especially those of its prime minister, Shinzo Abe. Mr Abe’s presence at the Republic Day parade this year will cause some angst in Beijing.
However, the bedrock of the India-Japan relationship is economic. But it is an economic blueprint so large that it will have strategic consequences.
At the heart of it is Tokyo’s interest in using the mammoth cross-border capital flows of its corporations and financial institutions to recreate the circumstances that led Japan to transform Southeast Asia and China into export-based, manufacturing dynamos. While there are many missing links in the Indian economy among the most important is its narrow manufacturing base.
Among all emerging economies, India has the smallest manufacturing base as a percentage of GDP. This has plenty of fallout. As millions of Indians move from their ever-shrinking farms to the cities, they are not finding factory jobs to accommodate them. India must import billions in arms, electronic products and struggles to compete against ‘made in Bangladesh’ products because it lacks the world-class infrastructure to compete globally.
The cost of this in terms of jobs, finance and keeping India mired in poverty is incalculable.
Which is why Japan is so important. Unlike most other governments who have focussed on selling one or two billion more widgets to India, Tokyo has sought to push India to the next quantum level economically.
Unable to find the right infrastructure, for example, Japan has sought to make this infrastructure on behalf of India.
The Delhi Metro was the first experiment. The massive Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor is the centrepiece of Japan’s vision. When completed it will catapult India into the top rungs of the international trading system. If thousands of Japanese firms move here afterwards, the days of India being a manufacturing wannabe will be over.
The Japanese themselves would profit from this. But there is no hiding the fact that, especially under Mr Abe, Tokyo has also come to see India in a strategic light. New Delhi should not shirk from embracing Japan. It is in India’s interest to, one, have an ally committed to making India something greater than it is and, two, to have multiple centres of power in Asia.
- See more at: http://www.hindustantimes.com/comment/the-rising-sun-on-india-s-horizon/article1-1176487.aspx#sthash.e1u9iK2f.dpuf

The nub is whether India has the wherewithal to match the expectations of Japan and especially those of its prime minister, Shinzo Abe. Mr Abe’s presence at the Republic Day parade this year will cause some angst in Beijing.
However, the bedrock of the India-Japan relationship is economic. But it is an economic blueprint so large that it will have strategic consequences.
At the heart of it is Tokyo’s interest in using the mammoth cross-border capital flows of its corporations and financial institutions to recreate the circumstances that led Japan to transform Southeast Asia and China into export-based, manufacturing dynamos. While there are many missing links in the Indian economy among the most important is its narrow manufacturing base.
Among all emerging economies, India has the smallest manufacturing base as a percentage of GDP. This has plenty of fallout. As millions of Indians move from their ever-shrinking farms to the cities, they are not finding factory jobs to accommodate them. India must import billions in arms, electronic products and struggles to compete against ‘made in Bangladesh’ products because it lacks the world-class infrastructure to compete globally.
The cost of this in terms of jobs, finance and keeping India mired in poverty is incalculable.
Which is why Japan is so important. Unlike most other governments who have focussed on selling one or two billion more widgets to India, Tokyo has sought to push India to the next quantum level economically.
Unable to find the right infrastructure, for example, Japan has sought to make this infrastructure on behalf of India.
The Delhi Metro was the first experiment. The massive Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor is the centrepiece of Japan’s vision. When completed it will catapult India into the top rungs of the international trading system. If thousands of Japanese firms move here afterwards, the days of India being a manufacturing wannabe will be over.
The Japanese themselves would profit from this. But there is no hiding the fact that, especially under Mr Abe, Tokyo has also come to see India in a strategic light. New Delhi should not shirk from embracing Japan. It is in India’s interest to, one, have an ally committed to making India something greater than it is and, two, to have multiple centres of power in Asia.
- See more at: http://www.hindustantimes.com/comment/the-rising-sun-on-india-s-horizon/article1-1176487.aspx#sthash.e1u9iK2f.dpuf

Central banks of India, Japan tie up

The central banks of India and Japan have concluded an agreement that expands the maximum amount of the Bilateral Swap Arrangement (BSA) between Japan and India to $50 billion.

With this agreement, the current BSA, effective for 3 years from 2012 to 2015, is expanded from the original size of $15 billion, the RBI said in a statement.

The BSA will now enable both countries to swap their local currencies (i.e., either Japanese yen or Indian rupee) against the dollar for an amount up to $50 billion

The BSA was signed by Governor Haruhiko Kuroda of the Bank Of Japan and Governor Raghuram G. Rajan of the Reserve Bank of India and has become effective from January 10.

The BSA aims at addressing possible short-term liquidity difficulties and supplementing the existing international financial arrangements, as one of the efforts in strengthening mutual cooperation between Japan and India.

This expansion of the BSA will contribute to the stability of global financial markets including emerging economies, the RBI said.

India-Japan ties similar to India's ties with ASEAN

With Prime Minister Shinzo Abe the guest of honor on the Republic Day last month in New Delhi, India has clearly and carefully chosen Japan to form an active strategic partner. It might sound a bit passe these days to refer to such diplomatic jargon as something extraordinary. However, for India, the rising global power, this is a respectable gesture given to the world's third economic power that also shares so many liberal values of democracy, freedom and rule of law.

One frequently asked question is: Can India and Japan form their own pivots that would provide security and stability for the Indo-Pacific region? To answer this question, one has to return to the big airplane metaphor advanced by former prime minister of Singapore, Goh Chok Tong, back in 2003 when the region was relatively peaceful with major Asian economies — China, Japan, South Korea — working together to build up East Asian community and its economic dynamic. There was no serious threat environment.
Goh likened ASEAN as the airplane's fuselage being lift by two powerful wings—China and India. As such, ASEAN's economic well being would hinge on these two countries comprising two huge markets and workforces. ASEAN was also confident that as the in-between region linking East Asia and South Asia, it would be able to synergize both regions. Now with Japan joining India on the same wing. Can ASEAN keep the balance?
At the time, nobody would have thought that the tension in East Asia could reach such an intractable stage as we are witnessing today, considering the region's increased volatility as key contesting powers become more assertive every day. At this juncture, relations among the three Asian dialogue partners are not as accommodating as before. For instance, China and South Korea are not on talking terms with Japan because of their historical legacies and overlapping territorial claims. The future of the East Asian Century is now in jeopardy.
Fears are widespread that the bold vision for East Asia could break into smithereens as the three Asian economic giants fail to work in tandem any more. If the enmity does not change in the foreseeable future, it will impact the region's economic well-being.

Three dead, 500 injured as heavy snow hits Japan

The heaviest snow in two decades struck Tokyo and other areas across Japan on Saturday, leaving three dead and nearly 500 others injured, reports said.

More than 740 flights were grounded as the weather agency issued a severe storm warning for the capital, while more than 40,000 households lost power. As much as 22 centimetres (8.7 inches) of snow was recorded today in Tokyo, topping 20 centimetres for the first time since 1994, the meteorological agency and news reports said. Two female passengers, aged 88 and 90, died today in a car accident on their way to a nursing home in Ishikawa, central Japan, NHK said. Police suspect one of the cars skidded on the icy road and caused the head-on clash. A man was also killed in Nagano as a train smashed into his car at a railroad crossing, the broadcaster said, adding that 3,200 other accidents occurred across the nation caused by vehicles skidding in the icy conditions. Public broadcaster NHK said at least 494 people were injured in snow-related accidents across the nation. Further snowfall is expected Saturday night and early Sunday in Tokyo, the weather agency said. The agency issued a heavy snow warning for the capital, the first such warning for the capital in 13 years, calling on residents not to go out unless necessary. The agency also warned of strong winds and high waves in eastern Japan as a rapidly developing low pressure front was heading toward eastern Japan, it said. Japanese airline companies have cancelled 742 flights on Saturday due to heavy snow, NHK said, adding that more cancellations are expected on Sunday. Airports in the western cities of Hiroshima and Kagawa were temporarily closed as operators were removing snow from the runways. Television footage showed hundreds of passengers queueing for reimbursement or a change of flights at Tokyo's Haneda airport with departure boards indicating the cancellation of many flights. Employees were hurriedly removing snow from the pavement in front of their shops and restaurants in Tokyo's bustling Ginza district. Railway operators temporarily suspended services of Shinkansen bullet trains in western Japan, affecting more than 100,000 passengers, news reports said.

Indian-origin adviser of Japan’s Hiroshima Prefecture keen to enhance business ties with India

Recently appointed Foreign Business Adviser for Japan’s Hiroshima Prefecture, Neerendra Upadhyaya, has said he would be keen on promoting business to business (B2B) contacts between India and Hiroshima.
Upadhyaya has highlighted three main areas that would create the much needed impetus to enhance business ties between India and Hiroshima.
“First is business in-bound and out-bound. I am not just targeting Hiroshima companies coming to India and doing business, it should be the other way also,” Upadhyaya said. ”So, Indian IT companies should plan to go to Hiroshima to set up their offices there. Even Hiroshima companies, especially their small scale companies, should come to India. They have excellent technologies but not explored yet in India at all,” he added.
Upadhyaya said that being an investment banker in Japan, he would work towards enhancing associations between Indian and Hiroshima companies. ”I will try to take the government’s help for Hiroshima, and being an investment banker in Japan, I am supporting them financially also to set up their business in India, and have collaborations with more Indian companies,” he said.
He added that there is a need to focus on training, education, and tourism between the two sides.
“Second area would be training and education. There should be skill development on both sides,” he said. ”Third area would be tourism and culture. Hiroshima is very popular in tourism, and across the world people are going. But unfortunately, Indians are less in number. If people go there, they will understand more about Hiroshima.
Also promoting Indian culture in Hiroshima and vice versa maybe through Indian movies or any possible expression from both cultures.”
On the India-Hiroshima tie up in the automobile sector, Upadhyaya said his target is to make this collaboration global. ”Hiroshima is a hub for the automobile sector. In fact it has one of the biggest car companies — Mazda Motors. There are number of auto part makers. But this is still not explored in India. There are very few tie ups in India,” he said.
 ”It is just not about Indian companies working with them, but how they can go with the Hiroshima companies to the rest of the world. That is also one of the areas I think needs to be worked on.”
Describing his new assignment as a big responsibility, Upadhyaya said he wanted to focus more on India, and added that nothing much has been done on the business side. ”This is a big responsibility being the first person appointed by the Governor of Hiroshima as a Foreign Business Adviser for their policies. And, I want to focus more on India.
Till now, nothing much has been done on the business side. I think I have to take a lot of responsibility between the Hiroshima Prefecture and India,” he said.
The Governor of Hiroshima, Hidehiko Yuzaki, appointed Upadhyaya to the high-profile post, hoping that he would assist them in promoting the prefecture’s foreign business initiatives and policies.
A Japan-based Indian business executive, Upadhyaya is the first foreign lawyer from India awarded by Ministry of Justice, Japan. He is a leading investment adviser to important firms in Japan for business between the two countries. He has played a key role as merger and acquisition adviser to major Japanese banks and financial institutions like Sumitomo Trust, SMBC NIKKO Securities. He has also been a member of high profile business delegations from Japan to other Asian countries.

The trilateral puzzle

As expected, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s India visit late last month was a reassertion of the bonhomie between the two countries. Both Abe and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held talks on a number crucial issues, including financial cooperation, economic development and nuclear energy. While the Japanese leader announced a loan of 200 billion yen ($2 billion) for infrastructure projects in India, Singh described Japan as the “heart” of India’s look-east policy.

However, the most important message both leaders sent to the outside world was perhaps India was ready to back Japan in its territorial disputes with China. The joint statement issued on Saturday said the “two prime ministers underscored the importance of freedom of overflight and civil aviation safety in accordance with the recognised principles of international law…” In plain language it doesn’t offer any clue. A look at the recent tensions between Japan and China would put it in perspective.

Both nations claim the islands in East China Sea known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China. Tensions rose to a new high in November last year, when China declared a new air-defence identification zone, demanding that all aircraft flying in the region obey its rules. Japan reacted by framing a national security doctrine which signalled a deviation from its post-war pacifist security approach. Moreover, Abe raised many eyebrows last week in Davos, Switzerland, when he compared relations between China and Japan today with those between Britain and Germany before World War I.

Japan’s strategy to counter the rising Chinese influence in the region is to form a broader united front against China. And it expects India to play a crucial role in this front. America, which is now “pivoting” its focus to Asia from West Asia, is backing this plan. The recent strengthening of military cooperation between India and Japan should be seen in this context. Both nations conducted their first bilateral naval exercise in the waters off Chennai in December. Earlier this month, the two countries' coast guards staged joint drills in the Arabian Sea.

To be sure, India has its own set of problems with China, but it was so far treading cautiously in its engagement with the giant neighbour. Though the China-Japan tensions were rising in the recent past, India had not taken any public position one the matter, which gave it enough room for diplomatic manoeuvring with both countries. India could have pitched for higher economic cooperation, even stronger defence ties, with Japan without joining issue with it in its territorial disputes with another country. But that caution seems to be missing in the joint statement.

Japan keen to invest in building roads, infrastructure in northeast

In what could cause China some heartburn, Japan has offered to invest majorly in building roads and infrastructure in India's landlocked northeast, including in Arunachal Pradesh that Beijing considers part of its territory.
As Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe left here after a three-day visit, after talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during which both sides agreed to boost bilateral defence and security cooperation in a major way, a crucial part of their future cooperation was outlined with Japan evincing keenness to invest in the northeast.
India's landlocked northeast is a key part of its Look East policy and a bridge to connect with the economically buoyant southeast Asia, known as the tiger economies.
Building roads and infrastructure, like power plants, industries and telecommunication hubs in the northeast, would be a major contributor to connect the key region with southeast Asia. India has been keen to develop infrastructure and looking for foreign investors.
Japan's offer to invest in building roads and infrastructure has been welcomed by India.
Japan would do a feasibility study on the northeast region, on all the states, including Arunachal Pradesh, said newly-appointed Secretary (East) in the external affairs ministry Anil Wadhwa.
Japan's offer to develop the northeast, especially Arunachal Pradesh, could irk China, but India is not unduly bothered, said sources.
"That is their (China's) problem," said the source, adding if India gets some friendly country to invest in infrastructure in the northeast, it is welcome.
Abe was in India from Jan 25-27. He was the chief guest at India's Republic Day parade. India and Japan inked eight agreements during the visit.

Honda showcases India-made motorcycle concept

Honda has a India-based R&D centre, and it seems it is even more secretive than its counterpart in Japan. The CX-01 CROSS concept is one of the first complete prototypes to emerge from this decade-old Honda department, and it looks like it is heading in the right direction.

The bike is supposed to have the ability to juggle between being capable both on-road and off it. The ground clearance is raised substantially, while the top half is very conventional and modern-looking. While no powerplant has been finalised, its designers say it will have to be reasonably powerful. Of course, it's not just about capacity because weight has to be kept in check.

The CX-01 seems to have borrowed styling cues from a lot of other Honda bikes. The front fairing, for example, looks like an extension of the Twister and Trigger designs. So does the fuel tank. Chunky tyres may not be ideal for off-roading but will make the bike less cumbersome on roads. While it is still a concept, CX-01 designers did admit that a running prototype can easily be made from the existing unit with very minimal changes.

India and Japan ink MoU to promote tourism

India and Japan have inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for strengthening cooperation in the field of tourism.

Parvez Dewan, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism and Shigeto Kubo, Commissioner, Japan Tourism Agency signed the agreement on January 22nd, 2014 in New Delhi. The memorandum aims to exchange information and data related to tourism; encourage cooperation between Tour Operators and tourism stakeholders including Hotel owners; exchange visits of Tour Operators / Media / Opinion Makers for promotion of two-way tourism; exchange experience in the areas of promotion, marketing, destination development and management; participate in travel fairs/exhibitions in both the countries; and promote sustainable tourism. During 2013, India received 2.20 lakh tourists from Japan.

In Taj city Agra, a monument to India-Japan love

Just a few hundred metres from the Taj Mahal, there's another monument to love that few people know about or few tourists would care to visit. The Japanese-founded Jalma centre for leprosy treatment has completed more than four decades of service, treating thousands of ostracised patients, lepers, and has through research and investigations succeeded in bringing down the incidence of the debilitating disease.
Now run by the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), it stands as a monument to love between the two countries.
"The total number of leprosy cases in the country has declined. People come early for treatment and respond well to the drugs and disease-management programme. But the chief area of concern remains the rate of transmission reflected through the number of new cases, which should eventually fall," a Jalma official told IANS.
India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, laid the foundation stone of the Jalma centre near the Taj Mahal in December 1963. Japanese doctors ran the hospital till 1976, when ICMR took over and developed it as a key research centre.
Today, it is one of the most modern, hi-tech research centres focussing on leprosy and TB. It has successfully developed new generation immunological and molecular diagnostic tools and methods and evolved the mapping of TB through DNA printing which can deliver a test report in just one day against up to two weeks earlier.
The Jalma centre has built a formidable reputation through research and investigations in several critical areas like AIDS, drug metabolism, drug resistance and leprosy, to name just a few. The results would help contain the incidence of leprosy and other dreadful diseases.
It was renamed the National Jalma Institute of Leprosy and Mycobacterial Diseases in 2005 to reflect its broader research areas. The Institute has a major thrust on leprosy (40 percent), tuberculosis and other mycobacteriosis (40 percent), HIV (10 percent) and filariasis (10 percent).
Under ICMR the scientists of the Institute have continued to contribute on almost all aspects of leprosy, several cutting edge areas of tuberculosis ( DNA fingerprinting methods, drug resistance) and selected areas of HIV-AIDS and has now made forays into related problems like filariasis.
Alongside the modern Jalma hospital, there is a small village of lepers built by Gandhians in 1960 with 57 rooms where 120 victims of leprosy have been living in a world of their own.

Japanese investors flocking to Indian shores to invest in early stage technology ventures

Netprice .com, one of Japan's largest investor firms and consumer internet-focused incubators, is scouting for opportunities in India, highlighting the increasing interest of Japanese investors in the country's early-stage technology ventures.

The announcement comes barely a month after the Japanese investor closed its second deal in India, when it jointly invested about $5.5 million (Rs 34.2 crore) in Mumbai-based mobile payments solutions provider CitrusPay - along with online payments company econtext Asia - through its wholly-owned , Singapore-based subsidiary Beenos Asia.

It has also invested Gurgaon-based e-commerce venture ShopClues.
"We are looking at investing in about two to three ventures in India in 2014, given the growing population of the country, along with increased internet penetration, which we feel are critical factors for the growth of e-commerce ventures," said Teruhide Sato, president and CEO of Netprice.
Over the past five years, a number of Japanese investors , such as telecom and internet conglomerate SoftBank and venture capital firm SBI Holdings, have set up shop in the country, and have made marquee investments in a number of early-stage ventures.
"The Indian internet market is very promising, and a lot of it is coming together now, which is playing a big role in a number of domestic ventures being seen as attractive assets for global investors," said Alok Mittal, managing partner, Canaan Partners.
In 2011, telecom major SoftBank invested $200 million (Rs 1,242.4 crore) in mobile advertising venture InMobi, which, at the time, was the largest venture capital round raised by a startup globally.
The telecom major has also set up a joint venture with Bharti Airtel and Yahoo! Japan - Bharti SoftBank - that focuses on the mobile internet space.
Separately, SBI Holdings, which manages assets exceeding $3 billion (Rs 18,636 crore), also invested $3 million (Rs 18.6 crore) in education services company LIQVID e-Learning in 2012.
Other strategic investments include engineering and electronics conglomerate Hitachi's buyout of Sequoia Capital-backed payment solutions firm Prizm Payments for an undisclosed amount in November last year.
"Japan's been slower than most in capturing opportunities in India. They've seen what the Koreans have been able to do," said Mohan Kumar, partner at Norwest Venture Partners.

According to Sato, Netprice will look at opportunities that cater to the growing consumer demands in India, which he feels, is a market comparable to its bigger peer China.

"We are seeing innovation here, and want to bring in the expertise that we're seeing in Tokyo," Sato said, adding that the company will look to invest in ventures, operating across web and mobile platforms.
Average investment ticket size will range between $5,00,000 (Rs 3.1 crore) and $4 million (Rs 24.9 crore) per transaction for Netprice.
Japan, the world's third-largest economy, has been gradually emerging out of a protracted economic slump, brought about by the global financial crisis and then exacerbated by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011.
"The business environment in Japan has improved a fair bit over the last 18 to 24 months, and India could reap the rewards," pointed out Mittal.
The changing geo-political situation between Japan and China, a country in which the former has invested heavily - has also played a role in the decision of Japanese investors to look further east to India, as they look to diversify their portfolio, and de-risk their exposure to China.
"It's been a factor. But Japanese and Indians can be considered natural allies as well, given that Japan's strength has always been consumer electronics, and India, through its massive domestic consumer demand, offers a market, as well as great tech ventures," said NVP's Kumar said.

India-Japan summit: Infra clearly a growing story

Much before Japanese premier Shinzo Abe's visit to India, Japanese investment into India was on a steady rise, especially in the infrastructure sector. The growing India-Japan economic cooperation, in fact, is increasingly been seen as a strategic alternative to Chinese influence in the South Asian region.

Of the 51-paragraph joint statement issued on the first day of Abe’s three-day visit, some half a dozen were devoted to cooperation in energy and infrastructure. These and defence cooperation were the most important plank of bilateral talks.

"If one takes a close look at the statement, this one is much more explicit with several hints at the China factor, compared to what it was in 2007 (when Abe earlier came to India). The very fact that the statement emphasized on ‘taking into consideration the strategic environment’ is proof that the China factor loomed large on the visit,” said Srikanth Kondapalli, chairperson, Centre for East Asian Studies (School of International Studies) in Jawaharlal Nehru University.

On economic relations, though the highlight was expansion of  bilateral currency swap arrangement from $15 billion to $50 bn that came into effect from this month, Japanese official development assistance (ODA) of a little over ¥200 billion was also negotiated. The two sides agreed all instruments of funding of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), including the Special Term for Economic Partnership, should be explored.

According to JICA, the Japanese cumulative commitment of ODA loans to India stood at ¥3,781 bn (Rs 229,100 crore) as of March 2013. JICA has signed around 230 ODA loan agreements with India in various fields -- roads, metro projects, water supply and sanitation, environment conservation, power and several other infrastructure sectors.

Kondapalli said in infrastructure development, while the Japanese have been making bold announcements, actual work and progress on the ground has to be seen. “While the intention is there, India has to put its own house into order -- we have to tackle our environment laws, labour laws, etc. We are very slow. Also, their assistance for developing the northeast region cannot be delinked from the strategic moves they are taking. Abe came here just before the Diet (Japanese legislature) session. This is enough proof for anyone to understand that Japan is serious about India."

After the Delhi Metro rail, the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor is an important part of the cooperation. The start of Phase-1 construction of the corridor in August 2013, which utilises Japanese technologies, was reviewed during the talks. Nine projects financed by the DMIC trust have already been approved.

Progress on the western corridor, however, has been slow to start with, compared to the World Bank-funded eastern corridor. But JICA does not agree. “We don’t think Japanese-funded projects are slower in implementation. Many of the projects being implemented with JICA’s assistance have also been completed ahead of the time schedule,” said Shinya Ejima, JICA chief in India. He cited the first phase of the Delhi Metro, covering 65 km, completed in 2005, two years and nine months ahead of schedule. The second phase, too, was completed within the estimated cost and well within the scheduled time, adding another 125 km, in 2011. “This has been viewed as a miraculous milestone achievement,” he said.

In the railway sector, another major achievement is the commencement of a joint feasibility study and issuance of the inception report for a high speed railway system on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad route. They agreed the joint study should be completed by July 2015.

In energy, government-controlled NTPC, the country’s largest power generator, signed an agreement for two loans totalling $430 million (Rs 2,650 crore) for its Kudgi and Auraiya projects. Besides, the Japanese are financing a scheme for two smart community projects, a model project for a micro-grid system using large scale photo-voltaic power generation at Neemrana and a seawate desalination project at Dahej.

India is the biggest receiver of Japanese ODA and Indian companies the second biggest receiver of assistance from JBIC after China’s. Overall Indo-Jap cooperation is heavily directed towards long-term participation in infrastructure, much of which comes from the enormous demand. Japanese investment is geared to tap this.

INDO-JAPANESE INFRA DEALS

* Delhi mass rapid transport system project (Phase 3 (II)): ¥148.887 billion (At current exchange rate ¥1 = Rs 0.61)

* New and renewable energy development project (Phase 2): ¥30 billion

* Micro, small and medium enterprises energy saving project (Phase 3): ¥30 billion

* Western dedicated freight corridor (DFC):  Smart community projects

* Model project for micro-grid system using large scale PV power generation at Neemrana

* Joint feasibility study for High Speed Railway

* Enhancing connectivity and regional integration between India and its neighboring countries

* Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC)

* Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC)

* Supply and service to NTPC's Kudgi power plant $350 million

* Modernisation of Auraiya plant ¥8 billion