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NEWSLETTER FROM DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, IIT ROORKEE

DOMINATION VOLUME-III ISSUE-06

Editorial ……………………………………………………….

02 | Domination, December 2012 Department of Management Studies, IIT Roorkee

Dear Readers,

It is December, a month

of Holidays and festivals!! As

we are gearing ourselves for X-

Mas and new year celebrations

(particularly when Mayans

were proved wrong), we are

also looking forward for a new

session with lot of curiosity.

Amidst all fun and excitement,

we present you another edition

of Domination. We hope you

would find it interesting.

This month’s edition fea-

tures a lot of articles from a di-

verse range of topics. The cov-

er story for this edition is a very

relevant topic “Industry Inter-

action in Educational institute”

by Mr. Rohan Krishnan. The au-

thor analyses the gaps in indus-

try-academia relationship in

Indian context and suggests

ways to improve the scenario.

We also have another topic

which is very close to India’s

vision 2020. “India – road to a

sustainable growth” is aptly

written article by Mr. Saurabh

Paul which talks about some

major challenges faced by India

and how Indian growth can be

sustainable.

Taxes are always an in-

teresting point of discussion.

Any new development related

to taxes generates a lot of curi-

osity. Mr. Abhay Kumar, pre-

sents another thought provok-

ing piece about Taxes & GAAR

and its possible impact. This

Domination edition also covers

an appealing piece from one of

our own alumni Mr. Amitesh

from 2002-04 batch. The au-

thor tries to highlight some of

the business situations in a new

fashion.

Domination has never

lacked creative side. And we

have lots of things to show off.

This edition has another round

of quiz section for quiz maniacs

and also a beautiful poem by

Mr. Ashish Aggrawal. On the

other hand, it contains inter-

view of the Mr. Jitendra

Solanki. Mr. Jitendra Solanki

belongs to the very first batch

of DoMS which came out in

2000. Additionally, we have

success story column with Mr.

Pradeep Baijal, one of the most

distinguished alumni of IIT

Roorkee.

We are constantly trying

to upgrade Domination. From

this month, we have added a

new section for current events

at DoMS, IIT Roorkee. We hope

this new change will be liked.

Your suggestions, reviews and

comments are always welcome

to improve our efforts.

With this hope we wish

you a very Happy Reading and

Merry Christmas ! ! !

………………………………………………………

Contents Editor

Anurag Agrawal

Team DoMination

Aditi Joshi

Manav Kaushik

Manoj Kumar

Pawan Upadhyay

Priyank Singhal

Rohan Krishnan

Ruchi Gupta

Saumya Dani

Saumya Verma

Saurabh Paul

Sharad Srivastava

Sushant Sachdeva

Shibi Singh

Designing Team

Ritesh Kumar

Sabhariswaran P

Saurabh Patel

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY ROORKEE

04

08

15 28

21

Industry Interaction GAAR

To do List 2013-I Sustainable Growth

Qutopia

DoMS da Evince

23

Department of Management Studies, IIT Roorkee

Success Story

26

03 | Domination, December 2012

Roorkee - 247 667, India Tel: +91-1332-285014, 285617 Fax: +91-1332-285565 Email: [email protected]

12

DoMS Spotlight

20

Smile

………………………………………………………

mailto:[email protected]?subject=Feedback

……………………………………………………….

……………………………………………………….

Educational institutions to-

day play the role of a factory

involved in the production of

highly skilled manpower for the

benefit of the industries. Aca-

demic institutions have con-

stantly adapted innovative

methodologies in education to

better equip their students.

Industries on the other

hand demand a great deal of

commitment and flexibility

from their new employees to

suit the global dynamics in

business. Academic qualifica-

tions are merely used as tools

to distinguish candidates' eligi-

bility at the entry level, while it

is the industrial proficiency and

soft skills of the candidates that

the companies actually look

for. Hence a symbiotic mar-

riage between the industry and

educational institutes has be-

come critical in modern times.

All educational institutes churn

out students with good grade

point averages. The question is

how many of these students

can adapt and apply all that the

knowledge they have absorbed

in pragmatic situations that

they would encounter on a dai-

ly basis in the industry.

The world has now be-

come a global village. The tech-

nological revolution has taken a

firm grip on every aspect of life.

With all these changes the de-

mands of industries today also

keep changing rapidly. In order

to meet these demands a regu-

lar, long term and concrete as-

sociation of industries with our

educational institutions is an

absolute must.

The question is why has

the need for this interaction

become so essential in modern

times? One of the prime rea-

sons for this would have to be

economic liberalization. Eco-

nomic liberalization has

brought about increased com-

petition with the entrance of

new private companies in the

market.

Cover Story

Perspective | Chlorophyll | Qutopia | DoMS da Evince | Success Story | Regardez I’economie | DoMS Spotlight


Industry Interaction


……………………………………………………….

………………………………………………………. It has become ‘The sur-

vival of the fittest’ where indus-

tries have to keep innovating in

order to stay ahead of the com-

petition. Thus industries need

quality and innovative man-

power who can think on their

feet and according to the given

situation. Thus it is very im-

portant for both technical and

management institutions to

produce graduates that the in-

dustry requires. This would be

possible only if the institutes

are well apprised of what the

industries require and this will

only happen through a continu-

ous interaction between the

two.

Goals of the Industry- Institute

Interaction.

The broad goals of this

interaction are stated below:

To improve on the ex-

isting educational programs

both at the under graduate and

post graduate level which

would help pass-outs cope with

professional tasks as they enter

the service without a need for

an elaborate on service training

programme.

Raise the level of com-

petence of both students and

faculty in educational institutes

through continuous activities

like Guest lectures, Industrial

visits, case studies borrowed

from actual industrial situa-

tions.

To provide Students

with facilities for industrial

training and the opportunity to

work on live projects being un-

dertaken by industries under

the supervision of faculty and

the professionals.

To provide an exchange

of personnel between the insti-

tute and user organizations. To

undertake joint projects on re-

search and development, using

resources from both sectors for

the benefit of society and the

indigenisation of national econ-

omy.

Everyone has heard of

the popular saying “It takes

two hands to clap”, it aptly fits

in here as well. A sincere and

consolidated effort is required

from both sectors to make the

III model a success.

Some of the activities

that would play a key role in

improving the interaction are

as follows.

1. Guest lectures by prominent

figures in the corporate sector

would create a general aware-

ness amongst students about

the latest in technology, expec-

tation from fresh graduates

and the various industrial pro-

cesses and safety measures

used. These could be done in-

termittently.

2. Seminars could be organized

on a regular basis which could

see active participation from

experts in the industry and fac-

ulty from institutions having

similar interests in the fields of

research and development.

This could expose all the activi-

ties carried out by both sectors

and may lead to a collaborative

effort in development work at

a later stage.

3. Experts should be involved

in the curriculum development

of institutes so that they can

emphasize the inclusion of top-

ics which will improve the qual-

ity of graduates and better

equip them for the challenges

they will face when they enter

the industry.

4. Finally it is important that

institutes involve experts from

the industry in the evaluation

of their students.

It is also important to

have internships organized by

institutes by various corporates





……………………………………………………….

……………………………………………………….




which would help them to get

the experience of working in a

firm and would also help them

apply what they learn to get

more out of their courses.

Most educational institutes in

the country have teaching staff

with little or no industry experi-

ence and exposure. It is im-

portant that the institutes in

collaboration with the industry

organize training sessions de-

pending on the seniority of fac-

ulty. This would enable to fac-

ulty to improvise on their

teaching techniques and make

it more pragmatic. This would

make the experience more en-

joyable for the students and

would help them relate and ap-

ply what they have learnt to

face corporate challenges.

Like every other model

there are some hindrances to

this model as well. These ob-

stacles often inhibit a linkage

between the industry and edu-

cational institutes. Curriculum

in most institutes is examina-

tion centric and often im-

portant concepts which would

prepare a student for the in-

dustry are left out. The attrac-

tion for teachers to join various

technical and management in-

stitutes has suffered a serious

setback due to the non-

acceptance of the status of

teachers prescribed by various

bodies. This has made the task

of motivating teachers towards

training programs and industry

experience a cumbersome one.

Most diploma universities do

not encourage faculty towards

industry interaction. Continuing

education programs for work-

ing professionals and student

evaluation with the inclusion of

experts from the industry are

also largely missing. Many insti-

tutes do not have a deliberate

policy to encourage among

teachers the culture of innova-

tion, research and practical

problem solving. This noncha-

lant attitude invariably gets

passed down to the students of

the institutes as well. Senior

faculty at most institutions

does not appreciate the goals

of the system and of the insti-

tutions which prevent interac-

tion with the industry.

The question then arises

as to how institutes can over-

come such hindrances to make

the link stronger? It is im-

portant that all faculty mem-

bers put aside their personal

feeling and become one with

the goals of the institution.

They should work in unison to-

wards building a rapport with

the industry. This can be done

by responding holistically to

the needs of that particular in-

dustry. This is a gradual process

and cannot be done overnight.

It is important for everyone

from both sectors to be in-

volved right from the principal

and top management all the

way down to students and

shop floor workers. Only such a

gradual linkage would help

build a strong bond between

the two sectors.

On the other side of the

coin it is important for the in-

dustries to discard all precon-

ceived notions that they have

about the lesser known insti-

tutes and work with them on

improving their methodologies

and thus the quality of stu-

dents that they churn out. It is

imperative that both sectors

realize that a step from either

end towards this cause would

be largely beneficial to both

and to society.

Benefits to Faculty at the Insti-

tutes:

It would help teachers


……………………………………………………….

……………………………………………………….

Industry Interaction familiarize themselves with the

latest products manufactured

and processes used by the con-

cerned industry which would

help them prepare students

better for such industries.

It would help institutes

orient themselves with the new

and emerging areas of technol-

ogy in industries.

It would allow institutes

to relate theory to practical sit-

uations which would help them

deliver a better educational ex-

perience for students.

It would enable them to

be more aware of the job re-

sponsibilities of graduates in

the industry.

Benefits for the students:

The subjects would be

made a lot more practical

which would make them inter-

esting. Simultaneous applica-

tion of the concepts learnt to

actual industrial situation

would help them understand

the matter in a better way.

It would improve the

thinking capabilities of students

which would be especially help-

ful for budding entrepreneurs.

It would enable them to

assimilate real world problems

to different sectors and come

up with solutions for the same.

Fair insights into the working

environment of industry help

students in understanding the

relevant trade with all its com-

plexities and make better ca-

reer-related decisions.

Programs such as Indus-

try sponsored R&D and PG pro-

grams, Consultancy programs

in the industry, Training of fac-

ulty members in the industry

and continuing education pro-

grams for industrial personnel,

In plant training and industrial

projects to students, appren-

tice training and revamped

placement activities could all

help in making the bond

stronger.

Benefits to Industry personnel:

It would help enthusias-

tic personnel the opportunity

to have higher education in

their field of work which would

help them innovate and im-

prove on their productivity.

It would give them a

better understanding of im-

ported technology and ad-

vanced techniques which

would help them solve prob-

lems with greater efficiency.

It would show them new

ways to develop indigenous

technology.

They could benefit from inno-

vative research and develop-

ment work carried out by aca-

demic staff. This topic has been

given so much importance as it

is directly influential to the

overall economic development

of our country.

India has some of the

best educational institutes in

the world. However, year after

year these institutions keep

dropping in rank. One of the

main causes for this is the lack

of industrial interaction. As our

population increases so does

the competition. People today

only care about getting into the

best institutes and the best in-

stitutes only care about the

grades they dish out to stu-

dents. In this race the im-

portance and quality of educa-

tion is lost. Thus in India today

there is a sad irony which

stems from the fact that even

after graduating from the best

institutes in the country many

students find themselves strug-

gling to find employment.

It is interesting to see

where this link is heading. It is

important that institutions ca-

ter to the changing scenario of




……………………………………………………….

……………………………………………………….


the industry. Institutes should

work on producing engineers

and managers who are able to

efficiently at different levels in

the horizontal and vertical

bands of the manpower spec-

trum. The programs offered

should cater to all domains be

it technology, finance, commu-

nications, human resource, op-

erations etc. Higher level cours-

es like business programs and

engineering should allow en-

rollment of students from

different streams as this allows

students to share their experi-

ences and improves the quality

of education imparted as a

whole. This also increases the

interests of corporates from

different sectors which benefits

the institutes, students and the

corporates themselves.

Continuing education

would be another important

factor as has been mentioned

before. In today’s day and age

with policies of companies

changing rapidly it is very im-

portant for all employees and

technicians to constantly be

updated. This would be benefi-

cial to them and to the industry

they are a part of. It is im-

portant that institutions take

the initiative in organizing such

programs to help industry per-

sonnel.

It is also important that

diploma Institutions run jointly

in partnership with industries.

This does not necessarily imply

that funding should be from

the industry but more that the

industry plays the role of a

partner in determining policies,

course material and prescribing

the characteristics of teacher

appraisal and development,

admission of students and cer-

tifications etc.

Although this has been

undertaken on an experimental

basis in some states a major

breakthrough in actual imple-

mentation has not been made

due to government regulations.

This is likely to change due to

the effects of economic liberali-

zation.

So far all attempts to

make education relevant have

been aimed at treating the or-

ganized industry as the totality

of the world of work. We have

failed to recognize the needs of




……………………………………………………….

……………………………………………………….

Industry Interaction the unorganized sector which

provides livelihood for the ma-

jority of the country’s popula-

tion and has the potential of

opening avenues for employ-

ment and self-employment to

appropriately trained stu-

dents. This would also help in

the overall socioeconomic de-

velopment of the country.

It is very evident that in to-

day’s day and age industry in-

stitute interaction is of utmost

importance. In order for socio-

economic development to

take place in our country we

need to ensure that our insti-

tutes churn out quality gradu-

ates who would be able to ap-

ply the education that they

have received; to different

walks of life. According to sur-

veys India is one of the highest

producers of graduates in the

world. In spite of this achieve-

ment we are still known as a

developing nation. A change

must be brought about. It is

about time we take a more

pragmatic approach to this is-

sue and ensure that our future

graduates are of the highest

quality and that they retain

the same long after they enter

the industry.

It is high time that the gap be-

tween educational institutions

and the industry is bridged. A

little effort today will make for

a better India tomorrow.



By Rohan Krishnan DoMS, IIT Roorkee - Batch 2012-2014 [email protected]


mailto:[email protected]

……………………………………………………….

Perspective ………………………………………………………

The government is reviewing

the tax treaty with Mauritius

and this raises several ques-

tions. Why a small country

having a population of just

over 1.2 million have such an

impact on Indian policy. Inves-

tigating further I came to know

of an interesting fact that of

total $47 billion FDI in Indian

market in 2011-2012, Mauri-

tius alone contributed nearly

one third of total inflows!! Be-

low data from RBI shows the

FDI figures for various years.

Second statistics from the Min-

istry of Commerce & Industry

explains the share of different

countries and this confirms

Mauritius is leading by a huge

margin.

Most of the investment

includes round-tripping of

money through Mauritius and

other tax haven countries. Not

only those counties are used

by many multinational compa-

nies for Merger & Acquisitions

and financial transactions

(though tax saving seems to be

prime objective) but they also

bypass complicated adminis-

trative system by doing all the

transactions in foreign coun-

tries. This somehow explains

why Mauritius is such a domi-

nant player.

One must note that Tax

avoidance is not an illegal ac-

tion. It is a taxpayer action by

which they have to pay least

possible tax without violating

any existing law. The most

common way of tax avoidance

is treaty shopping in which or-

ganization uses the tax treaty

between the two counties for

tax avoidance. On the other

hand, Tax evasion is an unlaw-

ful act and is the result of ille-

gality, suppression, misrepre-

sentation and fraud. To pre-

vent such episodes in the fu-

ture, Indian government resp-



GAAR


……………………………………………………….

GAAR ………………………………………………………

-onded with GAAR – the Gen-

eral Anti-Avoidance Rules

which gives authorizes the In-

come Tax Authorities of a

country to invalidate any busi-

ness deal or agreement which

do not have any commercial

interest other than achieving

the tax benefit. Vodafone is

not the lone example. There

are many M&A in litigation

such as GE & Genpact, Idea

Cellular & AT&T, SABMiller &

Foster, and Mitsui & Vedanta

etc.

GAAR is not at all a new

found concept. It was very

much in place in developed

countries. Australia was the

first country to introduce

GAAR in 1981. Canada, New

Zealand, Germany, France,

USA, China all has GAAR in

place in different form. India is

a developing economy where

getting foreign investment is a

big deal. For years, tax avoid-

ance was never an issue here.

However with the emergence

of India in the world economy,

the number of cross border

transactions having underlying

asset in India has really in-

creased. India had an age old

tax treaty with many coun-

tries. Leveraging on those tax

treaties most of the foreign

investors intentionally invest

through tax haven countries

(e.g. Mauritius and Singapore).

The government is reviewing

the tax treaty with Mauritius

or it is thought to put a provi-

sion in GAAR which covers all

the tax haven countries. In In-

dia, General Anti-Avoidance

Rules (GAAR) was introduced

first time in the draft Direct

Taxes Code in 2009. There-

after, a modified version

formed part of the Direct Tax-

es Code Bill, 2010. GAAR was

finally introduced by the Fi-

nance Act 2012 and it is to be

effective from April 1, 2013.

Salient features/provisions of

GAAR in INDIA

GARR can be invoked in

the following conditions:

1. If the agreement results in

direct or indirect misuse of the

tax code.

2. If the agreement lacks com-

mercial interest or substance

either wholly or partly.

3. If the agreement is entered

or carried out in a manner

which would not be used for

bona-fide purposes.

If the revenue authority

finds any agreement impecca-

ble they have the power to in-

validate any agreement and

determine the consequences.

1. They can disregard or set

aside any such agreement.

2. They can derecognize one or

two parties in the agreement.




……………………………………………………….

………………………………………………………. 3.They can disregard any ac-

commodating party or treating

many accommodating parties

as one and the same person.

4.They can reallocate income,

expense or reduction between

the parties.

5.They can consider or look

through an arrangement by

disregarding any corporate

structure.

Is GAAR required in India?

One of the preliminary

request of the Committee has

been to defer GAAR for 3

years, but the big question be-

ing, should any policy or law

which hampers foreign invest-

ment and development is re-

quired in developing country

like India be implemented at

all. GAAR was implemented

mostly in developed countries

that too with great caution.

India growth is very phenome-

nal in the last decade but we

still rank 134 on the human

development index. We are

far behind in development

compared to the developed

countries or even China and

we are dependent a lot on

FDI. According to planning

commission vision statement

2020, the current percentage

of FDI in gross capital for-

mation should be increased

from 2.1 % to 24.5%. In order

to attract more investment we

have to substantially improve

our infrastructure and elimi-

nate the bureaucratic barriers,

not the other way around. In-

dia requires huge investment

in power generation, telecom-

munications and other physi-

cal and social infrastructure if

we have to fulfil the vision

statement. Perception and

sentiments play a key role in

attracting FDI. Vodafone Case

and cancellation of Spectrum

license has already affected

the India’s image as an invest-

ment destination.

The way forward is not

to hand over all powers to au-

thorities otherwise this could

result in a large number of le-

gal battles or worse decline of

India as an investment desti-

nation. One way to incorpo-

rate the checks by segmenting

the amount of investment

therefore high amounts

should be separately looked

to ensure any foul play. Even a

pilot level study is doable be-

fore implementing such thing.

When the government itself is

putting all efforts to attract

FDI by increasing the FDI limit

in many sectors (Retail, Avia-

tion, and Insurance), GAAR

should not be seen as an act

to restrict or discourage inves-

tors. Any guard should only be

seen as a saviour not the de-

vourer.

GAAR


By Abhay Kumar DoMS, IIT Roorkee - Batch 2012-2014 [email protected]




……………………………………………………….

Perspective ……………………………………………………….

Let me dispel any confu-

sion right away. This is not a

piece of motivational literature.

In the spirit of honesty and un-

derstatement, let me confess

right away that my motivation-

al skills are rather pedestrian

and I could never be so heart-

less as to disturb those smugly

ensconced in their own bub-

bles with the figments of my

imagination. What I do love to

share with others, nonetheless,

is the honest, brutal picture of

life peppered with a feeling of

schadenfreude. What follows is

a list of things I want to do

right in the year 2013. I know if

I call them resolutions, the

odds of my accomplishing them

would go down to that of a po-

lar bear showing up at my

doorsteps in pink slippers. So, I

have decided to call it my to-do

list for 2013. Down to the brass

-tacks now :

Learn to become a Recession-

monger. Yes, Sir. You got that

right! One buzzword that stub-

bornly sticks with us for the last

four years and is refusing to die

away is Recession. Ever since

those morons at Bear Sterns

and Goldman Sachs decided to

play Russian roulette with their

clients, this world was not the

same. However, their blunder

could be a boon for the belea-

guered employees. Imagine

when your Boss is humiliating

you in a Monday morning

round-up and you drop the

‘recession’ bomb on him.

Boss: I am the green jelly mon-

ster. You want to keep your

job, get me the bloody reve-

nue. Are you listening, you

dumb ****?

You (interrupting): Boss, you

know ABC Corporation are

downsizing. They are doing it

top-down. Fired the Sales head,

for starters.

Boss (after a pensive pause):

Ehhh...What’s that new Job

portal you were mentioning

the other day?

It could work - much to

your amusement and to others’

annoyance - on everyone.



My To-do List for 2013 - I


……………………………………………………….

My To-do List for 2013 - I ………………………………………………………


In a moment, your boss could

transform from a roaring goril-

la into a farm animal that

knows it’s next to the anvil.

Imagine the damn feeling,

even Marques de Sade would

feel proud. As a result, I have

imbibed so much about reces-

sion that I now am a de-facto

expert on it. Not only can I

blabber on about recession for

hours but I can also draw

those gee-whiz charts and line

graphs, depicting 12.12.12

could actually mean a world

without jobs.

Won’t buy an iPhone5. My

sincere apologies to you Late

Mr. Jobs, but this is true. iPh-

one - the ultimate epitome of

sophistication and elegance; a

device that can shoot your so-

cial currency to stratospheric

heights overnight doesn’t fea-

ture on my shopping list. I

have decided to put a self-

approved embargo on the pur-

chase of this device. Reason is

simple. I can pretty much fore-

see umpteen attention-crazy

maniacs in my office waylay

this beauty. So, the exclusivity

and the attention-span from

my envious colleagues that I

was counting on so badly are

now bound to dilute and so is

my interest.

Be the loudest of the employ-

ees at work. Trust me, this

works. I have seen it work.

One of my now ‘formerized’

colleagues used to pull it off in

a fashion that could put the

likes of Dilbert and co. to

shame. See, the point here is

to get attention and impart a

serious reflection of your pen-

chant towards your work.

After all, failure to achieve the

ends should not prohibit us

from highlighting the means.

See, no matter how petty your

monthly sales generation is, if

you talk it up in the right man-

ner, you can actually avoid

many a crucial confrontation

with your boss. Every bit of

business should be a moment

of elation for you. Just prance

around, let everyone know

what a hard-nut the client

was, and how you used your

persuasion skills and charm to

coax him into buying your

stuff. If you are a cubicle

mouse, then make friends

with the people who sit right

across the rear corner of the

hall. No, still didn’t get the pic-

ture? It’s simple. You don’t

have to go to everyone, just

shout your point across to

your corner-buddy. Tops. I

know some people are inher-

ently brilliant at this while oth-

ers like me need to put in a lot

of practice. And the practice

may include checking my voice

inflexion every day, eating a

lot of vitamins, doing a few

mock-ups etc. Always remem-

ber, relegating yourself into a

shell only makes matters

worse. Arise!

Plug my ears while watching

CNBC. Yes, I am a great fan of

style and charisma. CNBC an-

chors and their sophisticated,

intellectual guests have loads

of it. However, I have pledged

not to lend my ears to any of

the million-dollar advice those

TV Einstein(s) have to dish

out! Why? It’s not that I ever

buy or sell my stocks on their

recommendations. Candidly, I

am sick and tired of the B.S.

garbed in the attire of sound

advice. See, a majority of

these stock analysts desper-

ately loves being on TV week

in week out. You’d never see

these geeks recommending

the audience to hold on to

good stocks for the next 3-5



……………………………………………………….

My To-do List for 2013 - I ………………………………………………………


years, let alone for longer peri-

ods. How could they? Doing so

could seriously curtail their

chances of getting crucial air-

time every week, thus, jeopard-

izing their rise to financial star-

dom.

To be fair, one huge

drawback of being on a finan-

cial news channel is in shape of

fan-following. There may not

be too many female fans to

brag about, seriously. But then,

not everyone gets a chance to

be on ‘Big Boss’, ‘Jeremy Kyle

Show’ or ‘Jersey Shore’. Never-

theless, it is one aspiration I

have held for long and it’s on

my to-do list, too


By Amitesh Jasrotia DoMS, IIT Roorkee - Batch 2002-04 [email protected]



……………………………………………………….

Chlorophyll ……………………………………………………….

Its wise to learn, its GOD like to create



By Ashish Aggarwal DoMS, IIT Roorkee - Batch 2012-2014 [email protected]

Take away my sun and my moon Take away all the glory and my silver spoon

but leave me with your smile because its the only thing that is mine

You are in Spain, you are in Brazil

I see u in sunrise and its beautiful blessing u seems to live in dark or may be real

just talk to me because I have been calling

Let the world live its life, till its ending leave the kids till its upbringing please don’t walk away with me

as everything is dwindling

People may come, people may go nobody knows where they are

as they live in shadow I write this letter and will let you know everything has a meaning and a reason

only when you glow

Now you know my feeling and all my fear take your time till you are absolutely clear

just say the nicest thing and I am ready to hear….

Smile



……………………………………………………….

Qutopia ………………………………………………………

It’s Exquizite, Kills your Quriosity and adds to your Quizdom. Need we say more? ‘Qutopia’ – A Utopia of the best Biz Quiz Tidbits to wreck your brains! Rush in your answers to [email protected] before 31st Decemeber, 2012. The winner will have their names published in the next issue. Also, person getting the highest score in the current quarter (Jul-Dec 2012) will get a gift voucher. Answers in the next issue of DoMi-nation.

Section A (1 Point for each correct answer)


1) “Bringing Energy to Life “is related to which company?

2) The ……………of an asset based on its original purchase cost, minus depreciation, amortiza-

tion and other similar devaluing costs.

3) Mckinsey coined the term …………….firms in the year 1993.

4) Caparo Group owned by ……………

5) Amartya sen is famous for his studies in ………….

6) What is a unique service offered by Bank of Baroda at Tirupati?




……………………………………………………….

Qutopia ……………………………………………………….

Winner of Qutopia (October 2012)

Kamal Deep, DoMS IIT Roorkee– Batch 2012-2014

Answers to Oct’12 Qutopia

Section A: -

1) Sothampton.

2) Mini marque which is at present owned by BMW.

3) Iran

4) Wangari Maathai in 2004 for for her ‘contribution to sustainable development,

democracy and peace’.

5) Is a collective name for World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

6) Poster by a Canadian activist group, ‘abdusters’ to protest movement that began on Sep-

tember 17, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City’s Wall Street Financial district

against issues like social and economic inequality, greed, corruption and the perceived undue

influence of corporations on government- particularly from the financial services sector.

Section B: - A) Phillips B) Lamborghini C) Walmart D) Rolex


Section B (2 Point for each correct answer)

ID the Logos

A) B)

C) D)



……………………………………………………….

DoMS-da-Evince

Mr. Jitendra P. Solanki is Founder of JS Financial Advisors, a Financial Plan-ning firm based at Delhi.He passed out from the first batch of DOMS, UOR (IIT-Roorkee) in 2000 and since has spent 12 years of in financial services industry. After becoming a Certified Financial Planner in 2010 he started his financial planning practice. We are fortunate to hear his views and ex-periences.

1. Could you elaborate on your

career path and the reason be-

hind this choice?

Response: I have spent 10

years in Financial Services in-

dustry working as an Invest-

ment Advisor. I have been as-

sociated with various Banks,

Wealth Management Compa-

nies and few stock broking

firms. My last assignment was

with a stock broking house in

Delhi where I helped the com-

pany in setting up their finan-

cial product distribution.

During my career as an employ-

ee, I realized that there was al-

ways a need for the right ad-

vice to consumers but no one

was offering it. Most of the fi-

nancial institutions were heavi-

ly focused on their earnings ra-

ther than being customer cen-

tric. This was a huge dissatis-

faction and which lead me to

look opportunities to do Com-

prehensive Financial Planning.

It was in early 2000 that Finan-

cial Planning profession came

in India and I decided to move

my career in the right direction.

In 2010 I finally got my CFP cer-

tification. Even then there was

a dearth of companies who

were hand holding their clients

as a Financial Planner. So I pre-

ferred to work on my own and

launched my financial planning

services. I am moving forward

now to establish myself as

Practicing Financial Planner as-

sisting families and coaching

them to take the right financial

decisions for their future.

2. Could you give us a brief de-

scription of your company?

Response: JS Financial Advi-

sors specializes in fee based

comprehensive financial plan-

ning services to people across

the globe. For meeting needs

of various individuals it also

offers services on various ele-

ments of financial planning like

Retirement, Insurance, Invest-

ment, Portfolio Review and

Consulting. One of the niche

services we have added recent-

ly is Financial Planning for Fam-

ilies of Special Children in asso-

ciation with other professionals

in the concerned area.

3. Could you elaborate on

some of the training programs

offered by your company? Al-

so could you elaborate on the

niche service started by your

company for families with spe-

cial children?

Response: We offer trainings

on personal finance aspects to

almost all sections of society

via students, corporate em-

ployees, professionals, and

even financial advisors. These

training programs focus on un-

derstanding issues related to

money management and what

is the process one should fol-

low while managing their fi-

nances. We also conduct one




………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………….

………………………………………………………. individuals/families addressing

their concern related to money

matters planning.

Niche Services: Families with

Special Children’s find it diffi-

cult to manage their finances

since they have to plan for two

generations- Special child and

rest of the family. Also the spe-

cial child's future is a grave

concern considering he/she

may be life- long dependent

and there are hardly any bene-

fits from the government. Since

I had a family member who has

been working with these fami-

lies for last 10 years, it helped

me in understanding their

needs. With her expertise I

have started Financial Planning

Services to assist these families

in in planning their financial

well-being. Going forward I will

be extending my services to

other areas like Creation of

Trust and Wills, Estate Planning

for the benefit of such families.

4. What are some of the char-

acteristics required for a pro-

file in financial advisory? Any

courses in particular which are

important for this purpose?

Response: To become a suc-

cessful financial advisor one

should have a good knowledge

of the concept and should be

willing to put client’s interest

first. Since your advisory be-

comes the base of your clients’

future, your ethics and profes-

sionalism will ensure you deliv-

er the right services.

CFP or Certified Financial Plan-

ner is the highest professional

course in Financial Planning.

Although there are more ad-

vanced courses too in countries

like US, India has just seen the

entry of CFPs. There are indi-

vidual courses too respectively

for various financial products,

but for a complete comprehen-

sive financial planning, CFP is

the right course to pursue.

5. What are some of the chal-

lenges faces in your field and

the best ways to overcome

them?

Response: The biggest chal-

lenge in financial planning pro-

fession is low awareness. In our

country we are not used to pay

for advice and have been mak-

ing ad hoc financial decision.

This has been prevalent for

long and so there are lots of

misconceptions about financial

planning. Also, with the misuse

of this concept by companies

and agents, there is also confu-

sion in the minds of people and

they are finding it difficult to

make the right choice.

As a financial planner you have

to create lots of awareness to

make people understand the

concept of financial planning

and its benefits. By doing vari-

ous activities like corporate

presentation, meetings, semi-

nars, writing etc… you can help

people letting know that you

are the person who expertise in

creating a roadmap for their

future.

In India, as the awareness is

increasing, people are coming

forward to plan their future.

6. What according to you are

some of the factors that indi-

viduals and companies need to

take care of while designing

their financial plans, Invest-

ment and insurance?

Response: When it comes to

managing personal finance,

most individuals make common

mistakes like no track of their

finances, adhoc investment,

higher liabilities, choosing

wrong asset class, short term

view on investments etc. Also,

financial planning is misunder-

stood as either an investment

advice or a one time exercise.

DoMS-da-Evince




……………………………………………………….

………………………………………………………. If you are creating a compre-

hensive financial plan you cov-

er all elements of your personal

finance. It starts with analyzing

your financial health and iden-

tifying your exact requirement.

This gives you a clear picture

about your existing situation-

Your cash flows, liquidity prob-

lems, debt payoff situation in

an emergency etc. and what

are the gaps in reaching the

goals you have listed. Then you

analyze the options or alterna-

tives to bridge the gap. Based

on your financial situation, you

design a financial planning

strategy to implement the cho-

sen alternatives. This whole

process covers insurance and

investment planning in detail

along with other elements.

Thus, a financial plan covers all

aspects of personal finance and

if you follow it you do not have

to plan each element individu-

ally.

However, the most im-

portant factor in a financial

planning is periodic review. You

have to go through changes in

lifestyle like getting married,

birth of a child, retirement etc.

which impact your finances.

Through a review process, you

are able to easily accommo-

date these changes and plan

accordingly.

Thus, a comprehensive

financial planning process is a

detailed roadmap you draw by

addressing concerns of your life

which eventually takes care of

avoiding common mistakes in

investments or insurance plan-

ning.

7. For students like us or gen-

erally people in the age group

20-30 looking to start a family,

what things should be kept in

mind while going for an insur-

ance cover for self and family?

Response: When you are

young you are at the right

stage to plan for your future

primarily because your risk ap-

petite is high and you develop

your spending habit. You have

a good time horizon for most of

your goals which helps you in

optimum utilization of your re-

sources. The priority in finan-

cial planning approach is plan-

ning for contingencies. Job

Loss, emergency hospitaliza-

tion, accident etc. are risks

which may arise in the future

and without informing you. The

probability of some of these

risks may vary depending on

the nature of work. Hence, it’s

necessary that you do a detail

insurance planning to avoid any

dissatisfaction. The biggest ad-

vantage at a young age is that

you are able to avail high insur-

ance coverage with minimum

outages.

DoMS-da-Evince




Success Story ………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………….

It is not often that an institu-

tion is graced with the pres-

ence of an eminent person

from the industry like Mr. Pra-

dipBaijal. The Department of

Management Studies recently

had one such opportunity. We

were lucky to have had the op-

portunity to interview him and

gain valuable insights into the

various sectors he was a part

of. It was indeed a one of a

kind experience as he tapped

into almost every sector of the

country, sharing his views on

their current situation and how

they can be redeemed from

the same. A retired officer

from the Indian Administrative

Services, Mr. Baijal has served

as the chairman of the Telecom

Regulatory Authority of India

(TRAI) for three years. He has

also been an important part of

the Power and Steel sectors

where he has had a hand in

writing the regulations for the

same. He has also served as a

visiting fellow at Oxford Univer-

sity for a year on privatizations

and reforms. Prior to being ap-

pointed as the Chairman of

TRAI he worked as a Secretary

in the Disinvestment Ministry

for the Government of India for

almost three years.

After retirement, he

started a strategic consulting

company. His clients included

the two biggest corporates in

India, the Tata’s and RIL, be-

sides many MNCs, Indian com-

panies, multilateral institutions

like the World Bank, Interna-

tional Telecommunication Un-

ion (for restructuring telecom

sector in many developing

countries). He was on the

Boards of Nestle, GVK and Pat-

ni Computers and advisory

boards of IOC and IDFC. He also

served as the Chairman of an

Advisory Committee to the Pe-

troleum and Natural Gas Regu-

latory Board in India. He has

been giving lectures on Indian

regulation, restructuring, busi-

ness environment etc. to man-

agement schools, International

Financial Institutions in USA,

UK, Singapur, Hongkong and

India. He was also a member of

the Indo-American think-tank

Aspen. Currently, he has left all

assignments, and is concen-

trating on writing a book on

the fascinating ‘India Unwired’,

with a Professor in USA..

It was indeed a pleasure

interacting with him as it vastly

enhanced our knowledge. He

shared some of his experiences

in the various sectors he was a

part of and gave us some valu-

able advice as to how a career




Mr. Pradeep Baijal completed his engineering from IIT Roorkee (then the University of Roorkee) and then joined Indian Administrative Services. He also took part in a one year visiting fellowship at Oxford University. He worked as various key positions and handled several crucial reforms. After his retirement as a chairman of TRAI, he started a strategic consulting com-pany. Below is the summary of the encounter we had with him.

Success Story

……………………………………………………….

………………………………………………………path is to be planned. He also

shared his views on the future

of the Telecom industry.

He stressed on how im-

portant it is for business

schools to work in collabora-

tion with universities in the

west or in Europe. Mutual ben-

efits could be obtained from

this venture according to him.

Such an interaction is always

beneficial for the Indian coun-

terpart. He cited the example

of IIM Ahmedabad and now

the institution has benefited

from its interactions with vari-

ous universities from the Unit-

ed States. As a country he also

stated that instead of continu-

ously trying to emulate practic-

es in the west or in Europe we

could start looking towards a

country like China and learn

heaps from them. China is a

country with a similar make up

as that of India. It is multi-

cultural and populous just like

India is. The problems faced in

both countries are similar. He

stressed on the importance of

generating power by con-

structing more dams. Accord-

ing to Mr. Baijal India has a cor-

nucopia of untapped locations

where dams could be erected.

The north & northeastern part

of our country is full of such

locations that could be capable

of generating high volumes of

useful power.

Some specific questions

from the newsletter team fol-

lowed this session.

1. Among all the positions you

have held during your illustri-

ous career which has been the

most challenging of them all?

Response: Among all the posi-

tions Mr. Baijal has held, his

tenure as District Magistrate of

the undivided Bastar in Madh-

ya Pradesh (an area larger than

the state of Kerala) was the

most challenging. This was at a

very young age of around 30,

where he encountered the

emergence of Naxalism. Ac-

cording to Mr. Baijal, Naxalism

is caused more by the Govern-

ment than the Naxals them-

selves. He always believed that

such problems should be

solved in an amicable manner.

Meetings with the Naxals

would sometimes go on till

around 11 pm with no solution

in sight. He adopted the policy

of understanding things from

their perspective and then try-

ing to come up with a solution

which would benefit both the

administration and the Naxals,

rather than go for a high hand-

ed approach.

2. What is your view on the

Government policy on

‘Operation Green Hunt’?

Response: According to Mr.

Baijal, the Naxals are one of us.

All the problems have arisen

due to the unequal distribution

of wealth i.e. inefficiency of the

state in providing assistance to

people living in the hinterland.

According to him, the Naxals

are in dire need of cordial solu-

tions and hence he feels the

success of ‘Operation Green

Hunt’ is highly improbable.

3. With corruption on the rise

in almost every sphere of the

Government, How do you

foresee the future? Will India

have its own jasmine revolu-

tion?


Baijal, the situation in India is

very grim. He expects a radical

change but says that it is diffi-

cult to pinpoint the course In-

dia would take, at the mo-

ment. He further stated that

the Government is run not only

by politicians but also by bu-

reaucrats who are some of the




Success Story

……………………………………………………….

………………………………………………………the brightest minds in the

country. Yet the country suffers

from problems like inadequate

power supply. It is only when

these basic concerns are ad-

dressed that India will have a

brighter future. According to

him, even the brightest minds

are mostly in need of direc-

tion, which sometimes the poli-

ticians do provide.

4. How do you view the disin-

vestment of public sector com-

panies in the post liberalized

economy?


Baijal, the disinvestment of

public sector firms, and re-

forms, are a boon for the econ-

omy as privatization is the best

way forward to improve

productivity of industry and

economy. The most apt exam-

ple that he cited was that of

the telecom sector. The explo-

sive growth of telecom density

after the entry of the private

players shows that a higher

amount of efficiency and effec-

tiveness can be achieved

by private players competing in

a free market economy. The

role of Government should be

limited to regulating the sector,

in a transparent manner and

encouraging competition.

5. What according to you Sir,

lies in the future of the power

sector in our country?


Baijal, India is severely short on

its energy needs. The way for-

ward is utilizing hydro energy

and nuclear power. We have a

cornucopia of Thorium depos-

its in Kerala and Uranium de-

posits in North East India. This

ought to be utilized. We are

moving towards the third stage

of nuclear technology in which

thorium would be an essential

element. The environmental

problems caused by the gener-

ation of hydroelectric power

should be compared with the

disadvantages of generating

power from other sources.

Even though we have abundant

sources of Hydel power, we do

not develop them due to mis-

guided environment bottle-

necks. Lack of adequate and

reliable power supply leads to

poor productivity which in turn

affects the economy which

leads to increased unemploy-

ment and poverty. If this prob-

lem is to be eradicated we

must first start hydel sources of

energy.

6. India is a country where

sunlight is freely and abun-

dantly available. Why is solar

energy not widely used as a

source of power?


Baijal, solar energy though

abundantly available is a very

expensive. May be it would de-

velop as a viable source in

some years.

7. Could you tell us a bit more

about the book you are cur-

rently working on?

Response: It is called “India un-

wired” but that’s all I will say

about it. To find out more you

will just have to read it. This is

about the new model of te-

lephony and broadband, devel-

oping in India.

8. What kind of advice would

you give students and teachers

from B-schools all over India

with regards to what is ex-

pected from the corporates?


Baijal, Even though most insti-

tutions today are well endowed

with the requisites for carrying

out day to day businesses, it is

the extra steps that the insti-

tute takes which separates a

good B-school from an average

one. This requires collaboration




Success Story

……………………………………………………….

………………………………………………………from both the instructors and

the students. The best way for

a B-school to get itself recog-

nized is to establish links with

prominent institutes in the de-

veloped world. This kind of in-

teraction promotes the right

kind of learning among stu-

dents which enables them to

be more pragmatic in their ap-

proach. These are the kind of

students that the industry

looks for.

9. What do you see in India’s

future?

Response: After Web 1.0 and

Web 2.0, the age of Web 3.0 is

fast approaching. The introduc-

tion of Web 3.0 will create a

tectonic shift of sorts. Research

methodologies would be trans-

formed completely. This would

be a lot more interactive and

online businesses would pick

up to a great extent. This tech-

nology would make its appear-

ance somewhere around 2015.

“Be ready to be amazed”, he

added. The telecom sector

would also move towards 4G

and eventually towards 5G

which would entail a band-

width much higher. Speeds

would be phenomenal. The

little vexing circle that appears

in the middle of your screen

would be no more. However, a

lot of structural changes are

required in the telecom net-

work, mostly moving towards

unified and converged licensing

ensuring much better utilisa-

tion of scarce resources in

these networks, particularly

spectrum, and giving the free-

dom to operators to innovate

at a much higher plane, rather

than the Government micro-

managing inefficiently. As far

as the power sector is con-

cerned prepaid contracted

power delivered on open ac-

cess, already provided in the

Electricity Act/rules/

regulations/government poli-

cies, yet very inefficiently im-

plemented, will be the next big

thing. This would ensure that

power is delivered efficiently,

and used judicially. IT would

also minimize the power cuts

that most people in our coun-

try face. This has already been

adopted in Germany and will

soon make its presence felt in

our country.

These were some of the

brilliant insights that Mr. Baijal

shared with the ever so grate-

ful students from the Depart-

ment of Management Studies

at IIT, Roorkee. After this inter-

action the only thought in my

mind was that I wish we had

more time.




……………………………………………………….

Regardez I’economie ………………………………………………………

Often said as an economic

powerhouse, India has sus-

tained a rapid growth in the

last two decades. During finan-

cial crises in 2009, many stock

markets collapsed and even the

wealthiest of the world nation

could not rescue their econo-

my. India, though affected, re-

covered quickly and impact of

the crisis was short lived.

There are many factors

which depict how India tackled

global recession in spite of seri-

ous damages suffered by other

nations. This was due to vari-

ous policies implemented by

the Reserve Bank of India. Indi-

an economy is primarily driven

by domestic sources unlike oth-

er nation.

Since Independence, In-

dian economy has been a pro-

tectionist and regulated econo-

my. In 1990, liberalisation was

introduced in India which

changed the face of Indian

economy. India has made its

own path since then. India be-

lieved in not only implementing

new ideas from the present

scenario but also retain their

old notion of orthodoxy. Indian

economy varied as the people

had diverse occupations, right

from traditional farming to

modern industry.

But; has environment

been created to bring these

economic and social benefits to

all the populations? Today, In-

dia on one hand is succeeding

brilliantly while on the other is

failing miserably. Many Indians

are entering the world’s top

richest pool. On the contrary,

drive through any city or side,

poverty still exists. India has

one of the biggest slums in the

world. The country accounts

for one third of the world’s



Sustainable Growth


……………………………………………………….

Sustainable Growth ………………………………………………………poor people whose counting

reaches whooping 400 million.

Rich is becoming richer and

poor is becoming poorer.

Is India’s economic

growth sustainable? High eco-

nomic and social imbalances,

including illiteracy divide rural

and urban India. India’s success

on the global platform of eco-

nomic competitiveness is dete-

riorated by a wealth gap and

slow progress in primary edu-

cation and health.

Imbalance in road, elec-

tricity and transportation also

exists. Infrastructure has be-

come Achilles heel. Poor infra-

structure hinders basic invest-

ments - the road network, the

distribution networks, the

ports and in particular, the

power supply. For a new plant,

generating its own power is

very expensive thus resulting in

lesser number of plants set up.


In the agricultural sector, India

suffers the food grain and agri-

culture production loss of

around Rs 50,000 crore every

year due to lack of adequate

post harvest infrastructure and

inefficient supply chain man-

agement by the country's farm-

ers. India lacks efficient cold

storage and food packaging fa-

cilities as well as safe and effi-

cient rural transport system.

This results in one of the

world's highest food spoilage

rates, mainly during season of

monsoons and other adverse

weather conditions. Food

reaches Indian consumers

through a slow and inefficient

group of traders.

India is facing a grave

energy shortage. Of the three

major energy sources, coal, oil

and gas, India’s major source of

energy is coal. But despite be-

ing in abundance, it is unable

to meet country’s energy

needs. Imported oil, which met

60-70% of India‘s oil needs in

2006 is expected to provide

90% by 2025. In their pursuit to

grow rapidly, most of the Indi-

an States seem to have ne-

glected key environmental and

natural resource concerns,

which has resulted in large-

scale depletion of natural re-

sources and rapid degradation

of the environment.



……………………………………………………….

Sustainable Growth ………………………………………………………

Sustainability is more

than a fashion word for good

times. It acts as the building

block for cohesive societies. It

is needed now more than ever.

There is a reason for hope.

India is developing its

infrastructures rapidly, but in-

adequately. Due to involve-

ment of private sector, various

landmarks have been built like

Buddha International circuit,

the first Indian motor racing

circuit. But still, more concert-

ed government efforts are re-

quired to balance the infra-

structure.

The Indian government

is focused on eradicating illiter-

acy. In 1901, India had an abys-

mally low literacy rate of 5.35

percent. Literacy rate rose to

18.33 percent at the time of

Independence but in 2011, the

literacy rate had risen substan-

tially to 74.04 percent. India

has excellent universities which

have produced excellent scien-

tific scholars. Over the last 5

years, the number of Indian In-

stitutes of Technology (IIT) has

doubled, increasing from 7 to

15. Indian Institutes of Science

Education and Research has

increased from 1 to 6.

The Indian economy has

grown because of innovations,

especially in the new economy

sectors. Green Technologies

development could also create

new growth industries. Sustain-

able growth, for its part, re-

quires the creation production

of innovative assets that con-

serve non-renewable resources

such as land, water and the at-

mosphere and minimizes envi-

ronmental damage.




……………………………………………………….

Sustainable Growth ………………………………………………………. Sustainable development is a

vision and a way of thinking

and acting so that we can se-

cure the resources and envi-

ronment for our future genera-

tion. It is not any one individu-

al’s task; it must be taken up by

society at large. It should act as

a principle which guides the

choices each citizen makes eve-

ry day, as well as guiding the

big political and economic deci-

sions that affect many of us.

Future generation depends on

us, but they can inherit an im-

poverished quality of life, may

share a condition of structural

weakness because of having no

voice and representation

among the present generation.

We can improve sustainable

development only when we

will involve citizens and stake-

holders. Finally, the vision will

become reality only when eve-

rybody contributes to a world

where social justice, economic

freedom and environmental

protection would go along with

each other, making our own

and future generations better

off than today.



By Saurabh Paul & Varun Goel DoMS, IIT Roorkee– Batch 2012-2014


……………………………………………………….

DoMS Spotlight ………………………………………………………

It was not an ordinary day for

Dept of management Studies,

IIT Roorkee. This was the day

when DoMS conducted two na-

tional level competitions, Vicis-

situde and Evangelist. There

was an aura of excitement in

the department and the stu-

dents were even more enthusi-

astic and thrilled about the oc-

casion. The event saw a large

number of participation from

colleges across the nation for

both contests. Everyone was

equally good and it was a chal-

lenging job for the judges to

choose the best among the

best.

Finally the date arrived.

It was 19th Nov 2012 when the

finals of these two events were

scheduled. There was so much

excitement in the air that stu-

dents reached the department

before the time!! However

apart from the events sched-

uled, something else was also

in store. We were fortunate to

listen to Mr. Devesh Singh, an

eminent lawyer and a professor

in IIFT Delhi. He walked us

through the constitution of In-

dia, gave an insight of the judi-

cial system of our country and

also explained some well-

known cases. He also talked

about some of the contempo-

rary issues. For management

students it was indeed an inter-

esting and satisfying experi-

ence to learn about something

which is not our domain. The

interaction was well received

by the students and faculties

alike.

The judges had arrived

by then and it was the time to

begin the show. First our de-

partment was introduced to

the guests. Jury members were

impressed by the diversity, the

calibre and strength of our de-

partments and student’s po-

tential.




……………………………………………………….

Vyan ………………………………………………………The panel consisted of distin-

guished experts from industry

and academia. All guests were

welcomed by our Head of De-

partment Dr. Rangnekar. After

that each expert shared their

journey and experiences with

us. We were benefitted from

knowing how these people

thought and planned; what

challenges they faced and how

they overcame them. We also

came to know about some of

the major challenges faced

while starting up a new ven-

ture. These suggestions and

learning would surely increase

our understanding and

knowledge. Students were par-

ticipative in the discussion and

posed different set of ques-

tions which was answered skil-

fully by these experts.

After the sessions, the

competition began. Vicissitude

was scheduled first and then it

was the turn for Evangelist. The

stage was set and everyone

was prepared to see the battle

of the brains.

Vicissitude: Don’t Fear Predica-

ment, Plan It

Vicissitude is a national

level business plan competi-

tion, organized by DoMS, IIT

Roorkee. It tests not only busi-

ness skills but also the vision to

see the future. The event saw

national level participation and

was a huge success. Entries

were received from all India

colleges. Finally a total of six

teams were selected and called

on for the final round of

presentation. These six teams

are listed below:

FMS_Jeevan

DoMS IIT Roorkee_Shabd

Shiksha Sansthan

IIM Lucknow_Samaksh

Kisaan

IIM Calcutta_Paradigm

Great Lakes_Enerture

IMI_Tilzmatic

Each team was allocated

20 minutes for presenting their

entrepreneurial idea, showing

their business acumen and

queries & answers. As teams

started coming and started giv-

ing their presentations, the ex-

citement level begin to rise.

Each was better than the rest

and people were indecisive

about a particular choice. The

eureka moment came when

our home team was called for

showcasing their idea. There

was huge appreciation and sup-

port all around and people

were cheering up the teams.

This presentation went off very

well and even earned positive

comments from judges. After

all teams finished with their

presentation, the lunch break

was announced.

Evangelist: More than Just a

Fairytale

After lunch it was the

turn for another show Evange-

list. It is a national level engi-

neering project competition. It

gives us a platform to mix tech-

nology with business i.e. how

technology can be converted

into a profitable venture. Like

Vicissitude, this event also saw

a huge participation across the

nation. This event saw five fi-

nalists as mentioned below:

IITM Gwalior_XTECH

IIT Roorkee_Team Value

Dales Stream Mapping

Ansal Institute_ Piezoelec-

tric Roads

Ansal Institute_ Team Halo

Aviators

Team Selcoth

Every team had 15 minutes for

presenting their ideas along

with question answer session.

The teams were well prepared

and it became really tough for

the judges to decide.




……………………………………………………….

Vyan ……………………………………………………… After both events were

over and it was the moment to

announce the result. Not only

participants but audiences

were also having a sense of an-

ticipation. Finally the envelopes

were submitted after some half

an hour discussion among judg-

es. There was a pin drop si-

lence and everybody was pray-

ing for his team.

First it was the turn of

Vicissitude participants. The

envelopes started to be

opened and names begin to

pour in. The atmosphere be-

came electrifying when home

team Shabd Shikha Sansthan

was declared winner. It was an-

other feather in the cap of

DoMS cap and there was a

sense of pride among the stu-

dents. A huge round of ap-

plause was served for first and

second runners which were

Tilzmatic and Paradigm respec-

tively.

After Vicissitude it was

the time for Evangelist winner’s

pronouncement and again si-

lence crept into the atmos-

phere. It was an even more in-

tense competition and no one

was in a position to predict an-

ything. The host started to

name the winners. And again it

was IIT Roorkee team which

won the competition!! IITR has

won both events and there was

nothing more one could have

asked for. It re-established the

brand IITR in not only business

but also in technology. Appreci-

ation was given to the first run-

ner up, Team halo Aviators.

There was a tie between XTECH

and Piezoelectric Roads for se-

cond runners up position.

However all teams were

equally good and admired by

the audiences. The event end-

ed with congratulating all win-

ners and a note of thanks deliv-

ered by our HoD Dr. Rangne-

kar. The judges again showed

their admiration of DoMS stu-

dent’s energy and participa-

tion. All of us were happy and

feeling fortunate to be a part of

this. The VYAN was over but

the memory will always be

there.




……………………………………………………….

DoMS Spotlight ………………………………………………………

It is always an emotional sub-

ject for anyone to be back to

the roots. And it becomes even

more touching when it hap-

pens after a long time. DoMS,

IIT Roorkee also witnessed it on

24th and 25th November 2012.

The occasion was silver jubilee

alumni meet, a chance for for-

mer students and now industry

stalwarts to return to Roorkee

after a gap of 25 years. The

alumni as well as the institute

both were equally jubilant for

the moment. Not only these

two days gave us a chance to

meet them but it also provided

an opportunity to listen and

learn from these experts. A to-

tal of eight eminent personali-

ties gave their views, opinions

and thoughts on the topic

“Shaping the Future” which has

now achieved relevance as nev-

er before. The event went on

for two days and proved im-

mensely helpful for students to

get an insight and understand-

ing of real world business.

Day One: 24-Nov-2012

It was a fine day and the

students were eagerly waiting

for the occasion. Four distin-

guished people from industry

put forward their vision. Their

brief introduction is mentioned

below:

Mr. Arvind Mohan Mathur

(AM): Mr. Arvind got his engi-

neering degree from IIT Roor-

kee in 1987. He then joined IIT

Delhi and completed his mas-

ters in 1990. He earned his doc-

torate from Michigan State

University in 1996. He also

holds an MBA degree from

New York University - Leonard

N. Stern School of Business. He

has over 12 yrs of experience in

the Pharmaceutical Industry.

Currently he is the Head, Hospi-

tal/Specialty Business at Novar-

tis.




……………………………………………………….

Shaping the Future ………………………………………………………Mr. Gaurav Saxena (GS): Mr.

Gaurav has also passed out

from IIT Roorkee in 1987 with a

degree in chemical engineer-

ing. He has around 25 years of

industry experience and cur-

rently serving as an AVP at Reli-

ance Industries Limited.

Mr. Siddhartha Guharay (SG):

Mr. Siddhartha obtained his

chemical engineering degree

from IIT Roorkee in 1987. He

then joined the University of

Missouri-Rolla and completed

his masters in 1991. He is hav-

ing more than 30 years of in-

dustry exposure. Currently he

is working as Chief Engineer-

Process at MottMacDonald Pvt

Ltd.

Mr. Mayank Sharma (MS): Mr.

Mayank completed his gradua-

tion in electronics and commu-

nication engineering from IIT

Roorkee in1987. He has over 9

years of working experience.

Currently he is the VP and Head

- Africa Market Unit at Comvi-

va.

As evident, the profiles

of the guests were very impres-

sive and everyone was ex-

pecting an intellectually satisfy-

ing session. The event started

with welcoming the alumni by

Dr. Rangnekar, our head of de-

partment. Then a brief profile

of our department was pre-

sented to the guests. Then the

discussion started in the form

of question and answers. And

the summary is given below:

Q: How do you see IIT Roorkee

ten years down the line?

SG: Always draw your lesson

from the past. Adapt according

to the outside world. Visualiza-

tion of the future plan is very

important.

AM: Future is uncertain and it

is difficult to see it. However

trend is visible for us to see. IIT

Roorkee has definitely grown

on its reputation. To shape the

future, we must have to shape

ourselves first. We should also

prepare for the change. One

should need to focus on learn-

ing new things. Based on that

capability, future can be

shaped. Another key aspect is

innovation and this is where we

should concentrate and con-

tribute.

GS: Study of the engineering

sciences gives us certain tools.

But this does not alone guaran-

tee success. One important

characteristic is the spirituality

quotient. Mr. Gaurav men-

tioned the Deepak Chopra’s

book “The Seven Spiritual Laws

of Success”.

MS: One must keep the pas-

sion for excellence. If the pas-

sion is not present, future can’t

be held. The example of the

Ganga Canal was cited by Mr.

Mayank to show how this pas-

sion resulted in an engineering

marvel.

Q: What is your idea about en-

trepreneurship and how one

should approach for starting a

new business?

AM: Being entrepreneur is the

coolest thing. One does not

need to get permissions from

others to do anything. But en-

trepreneurship also carries a

certain amount of risk and this

should not be avoided. There-

fore the here comes the Pas-

sion, the first ‘P’ of entrepre-

neurship. Without passion, one

can’t get success in anything.

One must also focus on the ini-

tial five to ten years of the busi-

ness as they are the most chal-

lenging ones.

MS: For every success story,

there are hundreds of untold

failures. We should still re-

member the success. Every fail-

ure brings more possibility for




……………………………………………………….

Shaping the Future ………………………………………………………



success. Failure as popularly

believed, may not be dramatic.

We should be ready for failure

and recover from it. Entrepre-

neurship is deemed to be work-

ing independently which on the

other hand, is actually working

according to many stakehold-

ers like consumers, partners,

employee etc.

SG: In an entrepreneurial ven-

ture, trust between partners is

extremely important factor.

Hence the selection of the part-

ner is very important in entre-

preneurship. The example of

Dhirubai Ambani was quoted to

suggest that we should not get

too upset by failures. At the

end it is the belief which works.

Additionally, attitude is a vital

factor. Knowledge can be gath-

ered, skills can be developed

but attitude one carries with

oneself. And that decides the

success or failure. Lastly, there

is need of the value based edu-

cation system.

GS: the primary purpose of en-

trepreneurship is “how to serve

better than others”. This is the

theme of any business. One

should learn about the need,

explicit and implicit and act ac-

cordingly.

The generic discussion was

concluded with it and now it

was the time for questions

from the audience.

Q: How conducive is environ-

ment for entrepreneurship

when compared to 25 years

ago?

MS: It is certainly much better.

There was no concept of ven-

ture capital then. Now a days

funding is very easy and envi-

ronment is positive. One

should note that first group

most often comes from a near

circle such as family, friends

etc. Even the big business en-

terprise capital is actually small

funding from some very rich

people. The share is low as it

carries great risk.

Q: Please tell us about your

journey.

AM: After my graduation, I

worked for BPCL at Bombay for

one year. Then I joined IIT Delhi

to pursue my master degree.

After my masters, I went on to

join Michigan State University

for my PhD. I have also got two

patents in my name. I also for

around 7-8 papers published

including one of them in the

“Nature”. Later I completed my

MBA from New Jersey. One

should plan according to the

goal. The sooner you know

what you want to do, the

better focused you are.

SG: After graduation, I worked

in Haldia Petrochemicals Lim-

ited which has government has

stakeholder as well. One

should not overlook the status

and contribution of PSUs.

These PSUs have actually built

our nation. There is no dearth

of talent either. The fault lies

somewhere else. Another point

was, an engineer should ac-

quire the hand-on experience.

This is required in case of

better management even.

These were the questions in

front of the guests which were

aptly responded. Then a note

of thanks was delivered to all

our esteemed guests and it

marked the end of the day. It

was truly an enriching experi-

ence for all of us and we were

eagerly waiting for the next

day.


……………………………………………………….

Shaping the Future ………………………………………………………Day Two: 25-Nov-2012

It was the second and

last day of the alumni meet and

discussion on the subject line

“Shaping the Future”. People

were again excited to learn

new things. This day again saw

four eminent personalities

from industry. Their brief intro-

ductions are as follows:

Mr. Anupam Singh (AS): Mr.

Anupam got his engineering

degree from IIT Roorkee in

computer science in 1987. He

completed his masters from

PHTO Utrecht, Netherlands in

1991 and also holds an MBA

degree from IIT Delhi in 2000.

He has more than 20 years of

experience in building engi-

neering teams from scratch,

leading start-ups as well as

large product teams. He is the

Co-founder at SharedReach.

Mr. Amit Dayal (AD): Mr. Amit

completed his graduation in

computer science from IIT

Roorkee in 1987. He then

joined the University of Califor-

nia and completed his masters

in 1989. He has also done MBA

from University of California in

2000. He is having more than

20 years of experience and cur-

rently working as Vice Presi-

dent Engineering, Yahoo.

Mrs. Shivani Arora (SA): Mrs.

Shivani did his graduation in

computer science & technology

from IIT Roorkee in 1987. She

completed his master from IIT

Delhi in 1989. She is also an ac-

complished badminton player.

She has over 20 years of expe-

rience and is currently working

as technical manager at Alcatel

Lucent India Ltd.

Mr. Vineet Shukla (VS): Mr.

Vineet got his engineering de-

gree in industrial engineering

from IIT Roorkee in 1987. He

completed his masters from IIT

Delhi in 1988. He is having

more than 25 years of experi-

ence and is currently working

as a Program Manager at Tata

Technologies Ltd.

Again, the profiles of the

guests were very extraordinary.

The event started with wel-

coming the alumni by Dr.

Rangnekar, our head of depart-

ment. Then these guests were

introduced to our department

through a presentation. After-

wards the discussion began.

Q: How do we shape the fu-

ture?

AS: Future is actually in our

hands. My belief is, the way

you can shape the future is by

acquiring the entrepreneurial

spirit. Passion is a very im-

portant factor for the success.

Another factor is persistence

which is also essential for suc-

cess. The next factor is owner-

ship. One should remember

that ownership is never as-

signed, it is always acquired.

SA: Basics of communication

are very important. Another

thing is that we desperately

lack planning. We might be

good in execution but we must

focus on planning part.

VS: We are deciders of our

own futures. Vision is really a

big thing for shaping the fu-

ture. Also consistent teamwork

is the key for the success. Con-

viction is significant for success

as well. Lastly, knowledge is

something which can be ac-

quired but wisdom can’t be.

AD: Technology is the new

mantra. Whatever you do,

technology will be a part of it.

Therefore we should embrace,

not go away from technology

advantage. Future of technolo-

gy is around products, not the

services. So we have a mind-set

that we have to build great

products.




…………………………………………………….

Shaping the Future ………………………………………………………



Q: With respect to IIT Roorkee,

how do we go about i.e., what

is the road ahead?

SA: IIT Roorkee has lots more

potential than it has today. The

major area of focus is planning.

People in other countries put a

lot of efforts in planning which

is not happening in India. Also,

a lot of people want to do

things for IIT Roorkee but they

have time constraints. IIT Roor-

kee should produce a game

plan to go about how to get

best results from people who

do not have enough time but

have the will to contribute.

Q: Apart from passion and per-

sistence, how important is the

idea?

AS: Ideas are necessary but

converting them into tangible

thing is the key. It is therefore

more important to spend time

thinking. Ideas can’t be gener-

ated by sitting at home. Expose

yourself to the outside world

and learn what is going on

around the world.

AD: before any idea, we have

to check whether it is required

at all. The reason being, if it is

not satisfying any need it is not

fruitful.

Q: Talking in the context of In-

dian IT industry, we see a lack

of innovation. How we as man-

agers, can mitigate this issue?

AD: Usually a lot of focus is

given on services rather than

products. However products

are the area where there is a

lot of scope of innovation. Ser-

vices generally have optimiza-

tion rather than true innova-

tion. This has been recognized

and there is increased focus on

innovation. Now most of the

service organizations also oper-

ate in product domain.

VS: Today the market is chang-

ing which is giving a lot of push

for the product development.

In the future, we expect to see

innovative ideas from this sec-

tion mainly.

AS: Prima facie, product devel-

opment provides a compara-

tively low return on investment

to the service provider. People

should understand what prod-

uct development is. Building or

creating a product is easy part.

The tough part is to sell it and

manage it over the time. But

that is where revenues are gen-

erated. In comparison, the ser-

vice industry is a lot easier.

However product development

is very learning and it adds tre-

mendous value to the person.

Organizations always look for a

person with significant product

development exposure.

Q: What are the must-haves

for starting up an entrepre-

neurial spirit?

AD: the first thing we should

look for is, are you solving a

problem or it is just for the sa-

ke of it. The next important

consideration is, do you have

the right team.

AS: Finding the right team is

like marriage. We need to

spend time with a person to

evaluate if we can trust the

person. It is extremely im-

portant. Second, it is not about

the idea but the passion about

the idea.

SA: One must be ready for the

failures. Once we know we can

handle it, we can focus on it in

a much better way.

VS: Learn to be risk taking. Dis-

cipline is very important yet we

should also have enough flexi-

bility to take up new challeng-

es. Discipline should not be

translated into rigidness.


…………………………………………………….

Shaping the Future ………………………………………………………This was the last query and it

marked the end of the session.

A note of thank was delivered

to all guests. This marked the

formal conclusion of the ses-

sion. It proved to be a very use-

ful session which would defi-

nitely help students in their

grooming as future managers

and leaders.





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