Mihir's Impressions - FDI in retail gets parliamentary nod

51% FDI in multi-brand retail sector and 100% FDI in single brand has been legalised after government victory in the parliament today. Now it’s up to the states to implement FDI, as for the first time States have the controlling for its implementation. Most of the opposition controlled states are expected to shy away from implementing FDI.

The packaging industry in India will mostly likely be one of the biggest gainers due to FDI in multi-brand retail and the expansion of organised retail in the country will drive up the packaging industry’s growth by an impressive 25% a year from the current 18%, according to senior industry and government officials.

The Indian packaging industry has immense potential when compared to the size of its western counterparts. The Indian label industry is about 15% of its American counterpart and consider India’s 1.2 billion strong consumers and their increasing income level and the possibilities are proverbially endless.

There is no doubt that with the entry of foreign retailers, demand for packaging would go up. The growth potential of the industry is yet to be tapped properly,” said RK Jain, group president (corporate finance and accounts), Uflex.

The Russian way of expansion 
During PrintWeek India's visit to the Bobst India plant in Pirangut, Pune, we met Alexey Filatov, general director, St. Petersburg Exemplary Printing House, one of the biggest packaging converters in Russia. St. Petersburg Exemplary Printing House is one of the few packaging firms in Russia which has been able to post profits during the tough financial situation which continues to plague Russia since the global economic crisis of 2008.

Filatov, while explaining his success, said, “We have a very different approach of attracting business. We avoid the rat-race and take up unique and challenging print jobs which require impeccable technical knowledge and pin-point execution. Our aim is to be so good at our
work and provide unmatched quality to our clients, that our competitors would find difficult to attain. We constantly look to sideline all our competitors by providing unmatched quality rather
than engage them in price war.” 

Filatov has six Heidelbergs, two Bobst Expertcuts and a battery of Bobst Expertfold. “These high quality machines enable us to produce quality jobs. And the difficulty and highly technical nature of our jobs also keeps our operators on their toes and thus avoiding complacency,” added Filatov.

St. Petersburg Exemplary Printing House’s unique approach is very commendable and their success is a reflection of their commitment to impeccable quality.

Counterfeit currency circulation on the rise
According to the Reserve Bank of India, there has been a surge in the amount of counterfeit currency in circulation within the Indian banking system. As per available inputs from central intelligence and investigation agencies, consignments of high quality Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) have been directly or indirectly sourced from Pakistan.

India's National Investigation Agency (NIA) estimates that over Rs 16,000 crore worth of fake Indian currency is in circulation. Such notes, believed to have been routed from Pakistan, have been seized not only from India but also from Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Holland. The Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB) says that the NIA, the CBI, the DRI and police have detected only 28 to 30 per cent of fake currency actually circulating in the market.

India has sought the help of the United States of America to tackle the menace of fake currency notes. According to Indo-US homeland security dialogue, counterfeit currency is one of the aspects for cooperation, covering exchange of knowledge, skill and intelligence.

Mihir Joshi, besides being a PrintWeek India scribe, is a central defender and supporter of AC Milan. In his weekly column he immortalises the power of print with the same passion with which he gets excited about the world's greatest game.