Investing in Resilience – Bringing Together CSR Leaders to Address Long Term Impact of COVID-19 – 28th April 2020

AMCHAM’s Karnataka Chapter, in association with ChildFund India and KPMG in India, organized a webinar on April 28th. With India reeling under the grip of COVID-19, millions of lives have been affected. Everyone can only make assumptions of what the world will look like when it emerges from isolation and the brutal reality of COVID-19. For those in leadership positions it is important that companies step up deliberations and responsibility to contribute towards rebuilding India, help in restoring lives and livelihoods.

The session addressed issues which continue to plague the poor in India, the channels that are available to leverage and possible approaches. The speakers were Ms. Neelam Makhijani, Country Director and CEO, ChildFund India and Mr. Santhosh Jayaram, Partner and Head – Sustainability, Climate Change and CSR Advisory, KPMG in India. The webinar was attended by companies like SannamS4, Grant Thornton, IBM, State Street and others.

COVID-19 CSR and Relief Grants – Fraud Prevention to Increase Effectiveness – 28th April 2020

On April 28th, AMCHAM, in collaboration with KPMG in India organized a webinar on ‘COVID-19 CSR and Relief Grants – Fraud Prevention to Increase Effectiveness.’ The session commenced with welcome remarks by Ms. Surabhi Wahal, Regional Director – Western Region, AMCHAM. This was followed by Mr. Jagvinder Singh Brar, Partner and Co-Head Forensic Services, KPMG in India, who set the stage through his opening remarks.

The panellists for the session included Mr. Steve Burgess, Senior Operations Officer, The World Bank Group, Washington, DC and Mr. Bert Denolf, Senior Investigator, The World Bank Group, Washington, DC, began by sharing a brief overview about the World Bank Group and its objectives. They then shed their expert insights on how to prevent fraud, collusion and corruption during COVID-19 and the World Bank Group’s COVID-19 emergency program. The session also touched upon risk management, warning signs of fraud or corruption and mitigation measures. A Q&A session followed. The webinar concluded with closing remarks and vote of thanks by Mr. Jagvinder Singh Brar.

Regulatory Compliance Framework and Changes in Light of COVID-19 – 27th April 2020

AMCHAM’s Karnataka Chapter, with support from PwC, hosted a webinar on April 27th on ‘Regulatory Compliance Framework and Changes in Light of COVID-19.’ Organizations have been grappling with uncertainties and the impact of the pandemic has had on business operations, workforce, liquidity and other areas. The Government of India and various ministries, including statutory bodies and institutions like the Reserve Bank of India, have announced several measures to ease the regulatory environment and help organizations deal with the adverse impact on their business. The webinar focussed on understanding the compliance framework and the changes. The speaker was Mr. Anshul Jain, Partner, PwC. The session was attended by companies like MOOG, IBM, Aryaka Networks, Grant Thornton and others.

Interaction with Mr. Gaurav Gupta, IAS, Principal Secretary, Government of Karnataka – 24th April 2020

AMCHAM’s Karnataka Chapter hosted a webinar on April 24th in which Mr. Gaurav Gupta, IAS, Principal Secretary, Government of Karnataka, addressed members on the impact of COVID-19 on industry in Karnataka and the efforts taken by the state government to mitigate the challenges posed by the pandemic as well as the outlook for industry as the lockdown begins to be lifted in the state. Mr. Gupta mentioned that the government was grappling with new issues to enable companies to go live and to see how economic activity could recommence. Their objective was to see how the investment is protected to the extent possible. Lots of countries are looking to pivot their investment from China to India and the state governments are looking forward to moving more business into Bengaluru. The state government would support that, as far as the Industries Department was concerned and from IT and bio tech their role would be to facilitate trade and business.

Key takeaways from the session included:

Hardware Support: AMCHAM to send a representation to the Industries Department about the need for industry to import hardware like laptops and ancillary products for companies to work from home as well as enablement of servicing requirements
Passes: Too many people out on the street has resulted in resurgence of the virus. Passes would continue to be there for the foreseeable future. 50% was permitted in the MHA order issued from Delhi. Keeping the unique position of Bengaluru in the tech sector. 50% is too large for any government to handle.

If AMCHAM can take the initiative to adopt standard protocols taken up by member companies, the Department would like to hear from companies on these measures. In so far as how many people can function – IT enabled services with barest minimum staff 1,3,5% is the discretion of the company. Definition is up to the company to decide how many people need to work. If companies approach the state government for help, IT companies are being co-ordinated by IT Chief Sec and other industries by Mr. Gaurav Gupta.

Industry Support: There have been issues on financial contributions, medical supplies, food supplies they will regulate and let companies know what can be done. Contribution in kind (testing machines, test kits), the state government would hand hold companies. There is no crisis on food supplies as lot of issues have been sorted out regarding interstate movement of food grains and food material. Things are moving silently behind the scenes so people are able to see basic provisions. The issue is loss of revenue and revenue credit to the government so for that economic activities need to start in a phased and calibrated manner.

Transport: Would the borders open post the lockdown being lifted? The government would look at imposing a lockdown when the situation lifts. Public transport is intended to start from May 3rd – buses (scheduled and on company charter on intra city), intercity and interstate there would be some limitations on the days to come. Interstate would be the last one to be lifted. First intercity, second inter district and third interstate. If workers are willing to travel the state government would enable travel within the state if there is sanitized way of travel from Bengaluru to other parts of Karnataka, companies need to make requisitions from which point to which point, employees need to be transferred within the state.

Physical Movement of Essential Supplies: The state government has tried to keep all lines of physical movement of goods open. There have been bottlenecks as the lowest level of police have not envisaged activity and that has posed challenges. There has not been any kind of scarcity across the country.
Rapid Testing Protocols: On the issue of rapid tests, while it is good as a surveillance tool it is not good as a diagnostic tool. The ICMR has asked to put rapid testing on hold. This is evolving and Mr. Gupta offered no further comment.

The webinar was very well received by attending member companies of AMCHAM. Some of the companies represented were TIMKEN, Saggezza, Goldman Sachs, MOOG, First American, PwC, KPMG, Collins Aerospace, IBM and others.

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Anti-Corruption & FCPA Compliance Core Committee Meeting – 24th April 2020

On April 24th, AMCHAM’s Anti-Corruption & FCPA Compliance Core Committee organized the first meeting for the year 2020-2021 over a video call. Ms. Tanya Paul, Communication Director, AMCHAM and Ms. Komple Sharma, Manager, AMCHAM, welcomed participants. Mr. Gaurav Ajmani, Chairman – Anti-Corruption & FCPA Compliance Committee, AMCHAM and Associate General Counsel: Business Conduct & Ethics, Amazon Seller Services (P) Ltd and Ms. Bhawna A. Ranganadhan, Co- Chairperson – Anti-Corruption & FCPA Compliance Committee, AMCHAM and Vice President, Legal and Compliance, Genpact moderated the meeting.

The committee discussed the impact of COVID-19 on compliance processes and procedures and their best practices during these stressing times. They also discussed the way ahead and expectations in the coming months. The committee noted that the environment has become more dynamic and interaction with government authorities has increased manifold particularly in operational issues and manpower management. The committee also decided upon having a virtual Anti-Corruption & FCPA Compliance Masterclass this year. The meeting concluded with closing remarks from AMCHAM thanking members for their valuable inputs.

Hyderabad Chapter Executive Committee Meeting – 24th April 2020

On April 24th, AMCHAM’s Hyderabad Chapter Executive Committee members met over Microsoft Teams to discuss the way forward for the Hyderabad Chapter. Members spoke about IT4TS which supports the Government of Telangana through United Way for buying equipment for COVID-19. A session on a topic would be finalized shortly and organized. Members also shared best practices of their companies during this time.