A Favorable Forecast for the Next India

From left to right: panelist Mr. Sumir Chadha along with moderator Dr. Anjini Kochar, and fellow panelists Mr. Bakul Joshi, Mr. Raj Judge, and Mr. Naren Gupta. (Asia Society)

Dr. N. Bruce Pickering welcomes everyone to Forecast Asia: The Next India. (Asia Society)

Dr. Anjini Kochar (left), Director of the India Program at the Stanford Center for International Development (SCID), opens the panel discussion with some brief questions. (Asia Society)

Mr. Bakul Joshi (right), President of Multiple Access CA Corporation and Asia Society Northern California Advisory Board Member, responds to a question. (Asia Society)

Mr. Naren Gupta (right), Co-Founder and Managing Director of Nexus Venture Partners and Asia Society Northern California Advisory Board Member, offers his expertise. (Asia Society)

Audience members listen attentively to the live stream address of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's "Make-in-India" speech to Asia Society Policy Institute in New York. (Asia Society)

Mr. Raj Judge (second from the right), Corporate Partner at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, addresses an audience member's question. (Asia Society)

Mr. Sumir Chadha (center), Co-Founder and Managing Director of WestBridge Capital, actively engages the audience with his answer to a question. (Asia Society)

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On April 18, 2016, Asia Society Northern California (ASNC) presented Forecast Asia: The Next India. The event commenced with a live stream of India’s Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s “Make-in-India” address to the Asia Society Policy Institute in New York.

The ASNC event featured panelists Mr. Sumir Chadha, Co-Founder and Managing Director of WestBridge Capital; Mr. Naren Gupta, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Nexus Venture Partners; Mr. Bakul Joshi, President of Multiple Access CA Corporation; and Mr. Raj Judge, Corporate Partner at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. The discussion was moderated by Dr. Ajini Kochar, Director of the India Program at the Stanford Center for International Development (SCID).

After the livestream address, the panelists focused on recent changes in India sparked by Prime Minister Narendra Modi including the reform of India’s bureaucracy; increased market liberalization; the promotion of greater market inclusion; and improved ease-of-doing-business in India. The speakers also discussed efforts to grow the manufacturing sector, in part through the Make-In-India program as well as infrastructure development. The panelists offered an overall positive view of the reforms in India, and noted that though the reforms and policies might lack in certain areas, any step forward is positive. In fact, all the panelists agreed that these reforms have greatly aided India’s reputation in the global community as an investment destination and a place to do business.

The event was held in Palo Alto at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, a co-partner of the event; and was co-sponsored by The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE). For video of Minister Jaitley’s “Make-in-India” address to the Asia Society Policy Institute in New York, please click here.