Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07NEWDELHI5068
2007-11-23 10:37:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy New Delhi
Cable title:
NEW DELHI WEEKLY ECON OFFICE HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF
how-toVZCZCXRO3740 RR RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHPW DE RUEHNE #5068/01 3271037 ZNR UUUUU ZZH R 231037Z NOV 07 FM AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9396 INFO RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI 1952 RUEHCI/AMCONSUL KOLKATA 1272 RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE 4209 RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 1048 RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR 4690 RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 4207 RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC RULSDMK/DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHDC RHMFIUU/FAA NATIONAL HQ WASHINGTON DC RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHDC RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 005068
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
USDOC FOR ITA/MAC/OSA/LDROKER/ASTERN/KRUDD
DEPT OF ENERGY FOR A/S KHARBERT, TCUTLER, CZAMUDA, RLUHAR
DEPT PASS TO USTR CLILIENFELD/AADLER
DEPT PASS TO TREASURY FOR OFFICE OF SOUTH ASIA ABAUKOL
TREASURY PASS TO FRB SAN FRANCISCO/TERESA CURRAN
STATE FOR SCA/INS AND EB/TRA JEFFREY HORWITZ AND TOM ENGLE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EFIN EINV EPET ETRD SENV IN
SUBJECT: NEW DELHI WEEKLY ECON OFFICE HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF
NOVEMBER 19-23, 2007
NEW DELHI 00005068 001.2 OF 002
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 005068
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
USDOC FOR ITA/MAC/OSA/LDROKER/ASTERN/KRUDD
DEPT OF ENERGY FOR A/S KHARBERT, TCUTLER, CZAMUDA, RLUHAR
DEPT PASS TO USTR CLILIENFELD/AADLER
DEPT PASS TO TREASURY FOR OFFICE OF SOUTH ASIA ABAUKOL
TREASURY PASS TO FRB SAN FRANCISCO/TERESA CURRAN
STATE FOR SCA/INS AND EB/TRA JEFFREY HORWITZ AND TOM ENGLE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EFIN EINV EPET ETRD SENV IN
SUBJECT: NEW DELHI WEEKLY ECON OFFICE HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF
NOVEMBER 19-23, 2007
NEW DELHI 00005068 001.2 OF 002
1. (U) Below is a compilation of Economic highlights from Embassy
New Delhi for the week of November 19-23, 2007.
INDIAN PATENT FILINGS TO BE
AVAILABLE ON-LINE
--------------
2. (U) Business daily The Mint reported Wednesday that the
Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion has decided to make
patent filings available on-line, free of cost. Digitized versions
of these filings should be available on-line some time next year.
This comes on the heels of a move by the GOI in July to allow
on-line patent applications.
FURTHER PROTESTS AGAINST ORGANIZED
RETAIL IN JANUARY
--------------
3. (U) India FDI Watch, an NGO that helped orchestrate the August 9
"Quit Retail" protests and the large protest on October 10 in
Mumbai, is planning coordinated protests in most of India's major
cities in January. The NGO will set a date in December, but their
representatives said it will likely be January 10, 12, or 26. FDI
Watch also plans a nationwide trader strike for February. The
professed objective of both these actions would to demonstrate that
there is a structured, nationwide movement against organized retail
and that not all protests are simply spontaneous, according to FDI
Watch campaign coordinator Dharmendra Kumar.
KINGFISHER PLANS BANGALORE-SAN FRANCISCO
DIRECT FLIGHT
--------------
4. (SBU) Kingfisher Airlines announced on November 19 that it plans
to fly direct daily flights from Bangalore to San Francisco starting
April 2008. The airline will use its Airbus A340 aircraft for the
route. Kingfisher's Network Planning Manager told Consulate Chennai
that the airline has also applied to the U.S. Department of
Transportation for permission to fly into New York's JFK airport.
She also said that Kingfisher plans to use Bangalore as its southern
hub, using it to connect its domestic routes with its international
flights.
REALITY BITES REALTY
IN BANGALORE
--------------
5. (SBU) Realty markets in Bangalore are showing signs of a
slowdown, with appreciation in capital values down to 1.8 percent in
January-October 2007, compared with 4.7 percent during the same
period in 2006. The chief at one prominent realty firm told
Consulate Chennai that the city's central business district and
newly constituted industrial areas, which saw a 42 percent price
spike in 2006, saw average prices increase by 12 percent this year.
A Bangalore Chamber of Commerce and Industry told the Consulate that
the city's crumbling infrastructure and an unstable political
situation was deterring investments into Bangalore. He estimates
that these factors led the city to lose more than USD 1 billion in
potential investments over the past year, as potential investors
opted for other cities in India or elsewhere.
ISRO TESTS OPERATIONAL
CRYOGENIC ENGINE
--------------
6. (SBU) The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) announced the
successful testing of an operational cryogenic engine on November
17. ISRO's Director of International Cooperation told Consulate
Chennai that ISRO would use the engine on a Geostationary Satellite
Launch Vehicle (GSLV) slated for blastoff in August 2008. He also
said that the successful development of the engine was a personal
triumph for ISRO's chairman, who was involved in the early stages of
NEW DELHI 00005068 002.2 OF 002
its development.
7. (U) Visit New Delhi's Classified Website:
http://www.state.sgov/p/sa/newdelhi
MULFORD
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
USDOC FOR ITA/MAC/OSA/LDROKER/ASTERN/KRUDD
DEPT OF ENERGY FOR A/S KHARBERT, TCUTLER, CZAMUDA, RLUHAR
DEPT PASS TO USTR CLILIENFELD/AADLER
DEPT PASS TO TREASURY FOR OFFICE OF SOUTH ASIA ABAUKOL
TREASURY PASS TO FRB SAN FRANCISCO/TERESA CURRAN
STATE FOR SCA/INS AND EB/TRA JEFFREY HORWITZ AND TOM ENGLE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EFIN EINV EPET ETRD SENV IN
SUBJECT: NEW DELHI WEEKLY ECON OFFICE HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF
NOVEMBER 19-23, 2007
NEW DELHI 00005068 001.2 OF 002
1. (U) Below is a compilation of Economic highlights from Embassy
New Delhi for the week of November 19-23, 2007.
INDIAN PATENT FILINGS TO BE
AVAILABLE ON-LINE
--------------
2. (U) Business daily The Mint reported Wednesday that the
Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion has decided to make
patent filings available on-line, free of cost. Digitized versions
of these filings should be available on-line some time next year.
This comes on the heels of a move by the GOI in July to allow
on-line patent applications.
FURTHER PROTESTS AGAINST ORGANIZED
RETAIL IN JANUARY
--------------
3. (U) India FDI Watch, an NGO that helped orchestrate the August 9
"Quit Retail" protests and the large protest on October 10 in
Mumbai, is planning coordinated protests in most of India's major
cities in January. The NGO will set a date in December, but their
representatives said it will likely be January 10, 12, or 26. FDI
Watch also plans a nationwide trader strike for February. The
professed objective of both these actions would to demonstrate that
there is a structured, nationwide movement against organized retail
and that not all protests are simply spontaneous, according to FDI
Watch campaign coordinator Dharmendra Kumar.
KINGFISHER PLANS BANGALORE-SAN FRANCISCO
DIRECT FLIGHT
--------------
4. (SBU) Kingfisher Airlines announced on November 19 that it plans
to fly direct daily flights from Bangalore to San Francisco starting
April 2008. The airline will use its Airbus A340 aircraft for the
route. Kingfisher's Network Planning Manager told Consulate Chennai
that the airline has also applied to the U.S. Department of
Transportation for permission to fly into New York's JFK airport.
She also said that Kingfisher plans to use Bangalore as its southern
hub, using it to connect its domestic routes with its international
flights.
REALITY BITES REALTY
IN BANGALORE
--------------
5. (SBU) Realty markets in Bangalore are showing signs of a
slowdown, with appreciation in capital values down to 1.8 percent in
January-October 2007, compared with 4.7 percent during the same
period in 2006. The chief at one prominent realty firm told
Consulate Chennai that the city's central business district and
newly constituted industrial areas, which saw a 42 percent price
spike in 2006, saw average prices increase by 12 percent this year.
A Bangalore Chamber of Commerce and Industry told the Consulate that
the city's crumbling infrastructure and an unstable political
situation was deterring investments into Bangalore. He estimates
that these factors led the city to lose more than USD 1 billion in
potential investments over the past year, as potential investors
opted for other cities in India or elsewhere.
ISRO TESTS OPERATIONAL
CRYOGENIC ENGINE
--------------
6. (SBU) The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) announced the
successful testing of an operational cryogenic engine on November
17. ISRO's Director of International Cooperation told Consulate
Chennai that ISRO would use the engine on a Geostationary Satellite
Launch Vehicle (GSLV) slated for blastoff in August 2008. He also
said that the successful development of the engine was a personal
triumph for ISRO's chairman, who was involved in the early stages of
NEW DELHI 00005068 002.2 OF 002
its development.
7. (U) Visit New Delhi's Classified Website:
http://www.state.sgov/p/sa/newdelhi
MULFORD