Release of India Venture Capital and Equity Report 2011

This edition of MBA Invitation Lecture Series(MILS) saw the release of “India Venture Capital and Equity Report 2011” authored by Assistant Professor Thillai Rajan A. and Maulik Doshi, co-authored by Josephine Gemson, on 15^th November 2011. The release of 2011 India Venture Capital and Private Equity Report, follows the successful release in 2009 and 2010. This report concentrates on Private Equity (PE) in the Real Estate and Infrastructure Sectors and presents the most comprehensive analysis till date. Specifically, it addresses important questions like: What has been the impact of PE investments in these sectors? What types of projects are being funded? Has PE involvement in these sectors been beneficial? How?

The report was released by Prof. Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Director IIT Madras in the presence of Chief  Guest Mr. J.P. Nayak(Chairman, SumInfra 2011, Advisor to Chairman, Larsen & Toubro, former President Larsen & Toubro), guest of honor Mr. A. Ramakrishna(Director International Infrastructure Consultants and former President and MD Larsen & Toubro), special guest Mr. S. Prakash(Chief Operating Officer, IL & FS Water Group) and Prof. G. Srinivasan, Head of the Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras.

The event was inaugurated with a speech by Prof. G. Srinivasan who highlighted the progress of Department of Management Studies since its inception. His enlightening speech was followed by a short talk by Mr. A. Ramakrishna. He emphasized on the success of Public Private Partnership(PPP) in the infrastructure sector. He also stressed on the importance of improvement in infrastructure for catching up with countries like China. After Mr. A. Ramakrishna’s informative dialogue, Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi took over and shared a few insights. He said that there is a lot to fix in spheres like land transactions, infrastructure, etc. and that it is important to develop advanced techniques to bring about a change.

Following the speech by Prof. Ramamurthi, Assistant Professor Thillai Rajan A. presented the significant findings of the report. During the period 2006-2010 (which happens to be the study period of the report), the investment has increased in galloping numbers both in real estate and infrastructure sectors. Also, two-thirds of overall private equity goes into these two sectors. The impact of these investments has been humungous. This was elucidated by quoting figures of land development, constructed space, roads built, etc. He summarized by saying that if capital goes far, private equity goes further.

Chief Guest Mr. J.P. Nayak also shared a few thoughts. He said that the government has to take initiatives for developing infrastructure, which can be done by implementing effective policies. There is a huge interest among investors to invest in this sector which has to be capitalized. Growth in infrastructure sector is important to sustain the large growth that India is experiencing now, he said. Following his address, was a speech by our special guest Mr. S. Prakash. He compared India with China in terms of Infrastructure and shed some light on the positives that India has over China. He said that the biggest edge that India has, is a robust contractual framework. On the flip side, when it comes to the cost factor, delivery cost of Infrastructure in China is lesser than India. While concluding, he highlighted certain key points that can help India develop in this sector in the future, most important ones being educating the masses about Infrastructure, and developing institutional capacity.

After the discussion, Prof L.S. Ganesh, Dean(Students), IIT Madras presented mementos to the guests and spoke a few words. He advised the young generation to be serious for their purpose, and to be disciplined, energetic and enthusiastic. The session was concluded by a vote of thanks by Mr. Maulik Doshi. The MILS team congratulates Asst. Prof. Thillai Rajan A., Maulik Doshi and Josephine Gemson for the successful release of the report.

By

Aditya Ghai

MILS

Batch of 2013