PRESS RELEASES

Department of Public Enterprises (DPE), in association with Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE), organised a ‘Workshop on Procurement by CPSEs from Micro and Small enterprises (MSEs)’ on 21^st December, 2022 at SCOPE Auditorium, New Delhi. Shri

B.B. Swain, IAS, Secretary, Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises; Shri Animesh Bharti, Economic Adviser, DPE and Shri Atul Sobti, Director General, SCOPE addressed the inaugural session of the workshop, which saw a large participation of senior officials from various CPSEs, MSEs and Industry associations from across the country.

Shri B.B. Swain, in his keynote address, commended DPE and SCOPE for conducting the workshop to deliberate on the practical aspects and operational issues faced by CPSEs in procurement. He appreciated the contribution of CPSEs by continuously increasing procurement from MSEs, and reaching the highest ever 36% share during the ongoing financial year.

Shri Atul Sobti, welcomed the huge gathering of the around 250 participants from 77 CPSEs and five industry associations, said that cost effective and quality procurement is an imperative for business, impacting an organisation’s commercial prudence and performance. Reiterating the role of CPSEs in the national economy, he emphasised on the need to further increase CPSEs’ procurement from MSEs, and encouraged MSEs to upskill themselves to be globally competitive.

Shri Animesh Bharti, guiding the way forward, said the workshop was planned to help participants from CPSEs and associations of MSEs with regard to procurement and the deliberations would also help the Government in proposing a proper policy direction and way ahead.

The interactive workshop also threw light on Public Procurement Policy Order, 2012; new announcements regarding MSEs, MSME-Sambandh and MSME-Samadhaan portals; GeM and TReDS Platform etc. with regard to CPSEs. The workshop also provided platform to representatives of Industry Associations to raise their issues and concerns before policy makers to have a constructive and inclusive procurement process for the benefit of all stakeholders involved.

Remembering the Father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi, on his 153^rd birth anniversary, Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) paid floral tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at   SCOPE   Convention   Centre, New   Delhi. Shri Atul Sobti, Director General, SCOPE garlanded the statue of Mahatma Gandhi on the occasion.

Paying tribute to the Father of the nation, Shri Atul Sobti said, “Gandhiji, endowed with the ability to inspire generations, across the globe, remains one of the most revered leaders of all times.” He added that, “the true tribute to the Father of the nation, would be to follow his values and teachings, not just on one day, but every day in our lives.”

Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) organised a ‘National Meet on RTI Act,’ in Leh, Ladakh which was inaugurated by Shri Radha Krishna Mathur, Hon’ble Lt. Governor of Ladakh, in the presence of Shri Y.K. Sinha, Chief Information Commissioner. Shri Atul Sobti, DG, SCOPE and Shri Pradip Kumar Das, CMD, IREDA also addressed the inaugural session of the two-day program. Senior officials of Ladakh Government and Public Sector Enterprises (PSEs) were also present. The meet is being attended by over 75 senior officials from 35 PSEs.

Calling RTI, the legal responsibility of every single Public Sector Enterprise (PSE), Shri Radha Krishna Mathur in his address, emphasised the need for a more conscientious understanding of the RTI Act.  Stating that the primary role of SCOPE is to steer PSEs in the right direction, he complimented them for hosting the National Meet in Ladakh and building the capacities of officials. Shri Mathur launched the webpage of ‘Disclosure of Information under RTI Act Section 4(2)’ for Ladakh during the meet. SCOPE’s film on 'PSEs in pursuit of Aatma Nirbhar Bharat' was also released by Lt. Governor, Ladakh during the event.

Addressing the session, Shri Y.K. Sinha said that we need to look at how to implement the RTI Act more effectively and not merely as a grievance redressal mechanism and called for inculcating an innovative approach towards addressing RTI issues.

Shri Atul Sobti in his address said that it is SCOPE’s prime endeavour to provide a platform for PSEs to deliberate on the most pertinent topics, like this National Meet on RTI being organised to simplify and demystify the provisions of the Act. He added that, SCOPE remains committed towards creating a conducive environment of constant learning and development in PSEs across the country.

Shri Pradip Kumar Das in his Vote of Thanks encouraged participants to imbibe the most important aspects of RTI from the workshop and follow the same in their organisations.

Reckoning the gigantic impact of Climate Change and need for building capacities towards its mitigation, Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) & GIZ, Germany, a German public-benefit federal enterprise, organised a series of workshops across the nation for developing climate resilient pathways and green skills as per international standards.

Acquainting upon various facets of Climate change mitigation imminent for a sustainable future, these workshops held in New Delhi, Bhubaneshwar, Bengaluru and Mumbai brought together participants from PSEs in every nook and corner of the country to gain insight on topics such as Climate Policy, Climate leadership; Carbon Pricing; Carbon Markets; Climate finance, amongst other issues. These workshops were built upon SCOPE- GIZ’s comprehensive report on ‘Low Carbon and Climate-Resilient Pathways for Indian PSEs.’

SCOPE, an apex body of Indian PSEs, in the recent past has undertaken a series of studies, research work on various subjects including Climate change, women empowerment, leadership, digital transformation among others.

“Aiming to be an outcome-based MoU, this collaboration will focus on providing research work in innovative practices and business solutions to PSEs while providing industrial facilitation by way of clarifications on accounting treatments and policies,” said Mr. Atul Sobti, Director General, SCOPE during the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) for capacity enhancement and knowledge building of PSEs in India.

The MoU was signed by Shri Atul Sobti, DG, SCOPE and Dr. Jai Kumar Batra, Secretary, ICAI in the presence of Members of SCOPE Committee of Financial Management, Mr. Subodh Gupta, Director (Finance), BHEL; Mr. R.P. Goyal, Director (Finance), NHPC; senior officials of ICAI and SCOPE.

The MoU is in continuation of SCOPE’s endeavours to provide PSEs with opportunities for capacity building in resilience and expertise through enhancement of knowledge, skills, and expertise.

Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) organized a programme on ‘Self-Empowerment through Yoga’ with Dr. Mohit D. Gupta, leading cardiologist and motivational speaker as part of Yoga Utsav 2022. The occasion was also addressed by Shri Atul Sobti, Director General, SCOPE. The motivational talk was followed by meditation which focused on harmonizing mind and body and relieving stress and Dr. Sandeep Sharma, Convener, SCOPE Health Committee gave the concluding remarks.

Dr. Mohit D. Gupta, in his talk shared the nuances of positive thinking and how through yoga one can attain self-empowerment. Yoga, he said, is all about synchronization and harmonization of mind and body. Dr. Gupta presented case studies and scientific data on how individuals can unravel their true potential by the power of positive thinking and believing in themselves.

Shri Atul Sobti, enunciating the importance of Yoga, said it is an age-old Indian spiritual tradition and has been globally accepted as a way to live a healthy and happy life. Self-empowerment, he said, can be achieved primarily by developing a positive attitude. He added that SCOPE will continue to create newer avenues to accentuate mental and physical well-being.

Shri Atul Sobti, Director General, Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) was awarded 'Outstanding Leadership Award' by Shri Jagdish Mukhi, Hon’ble Governor of Assam. Recognizing his incessant efforts towards capacity building of Public Sector Enterprises in India, the award conferred by Institute of Economic Studies (IES), was presented in the presence of Smt. Sangeeta Singh, President IES and other dignitaries.

Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) & Center for Creative Leadership (CCL), USA released first of its kind study on ‘Future-Fluent Nation Builders: State of Leadership in Public Sector Enterprises’ assessing skill gaps and identifying skill sets to curate a learning module for potential leaders for the future. The study was released in the presence of Sister BK Shivani, internationally renowned spiritual speaker; Ms. Soma Mondal, Chairman, SAIL & Chairperson, SCOPE; Mr. Atul Sobti, DG, SCOPE; Mr. Pradip Kumar Das, CMD, IREDA; Mr. Ranjan Kumar Mohapatra, Director (HR), IOCL. Ms. Elisa Mallis; Mr. Muniinder K. Anand and Mr. Sunil Puri from CCL were also present for the release which was followed by motivational talk on leadership by Sister BK Shivani.

Sister BK Shivani during her motivational talk shared that anyone can be a leader if they have the right approach and empathy. She emphasised on the need for authenticity of thoughts, harmony in mind and words, need for spiritual, emotional and intelligence quotient in order to be future ready.

Ms. Soma Mondal in her address said that leaders today need to introspect on how to change and adapt to today’s business environment, in order to be future ready. She added that as PSE leaders face a greater challenge to perform, the focus should be to attain contentment and focus for self, team and stakeholders on the whole.

Mr. Atul Sobti enunciating the significant role of PSE leaders in evolving the PSEs in accordance with changing times, stated that this milestone study was SCOPE’s endeavour of preparing robust, future ready and visionary leaders. He shared that this study was being released as part of Public Sector Day celebrations, that honours the integral role of PSEs in the socio-economic development of the nation.

Ms. Elisa Mallis stated that enlightened leadership is key for overcoming challenges and the aim of leaders should be to evolve both through their heart and mind.

Mr. Muniinder K. Anand said that as the strength of the industrial and socio-economic fabric of the nation depends on the future fluency of its leaders, this study focuses on PSE leaders, who are nation builders and work beyond commercial prudence.

Mr. Pradip Kumar Das, highlighting the importance of ‘walk the talk’, said that in order to excel as leaders and guide others, one needs to imbibe, follow and bring about changes in oneself

Mr. Ranjan Kumar Mohapatra complimented the comprehensive presentation of leadership in PSEs in the Report and encouraged the PSEs to consider the way ahead suggested in the Report.

Giving a succinct look at the report, Mr. Sunil Puri shared glimpses of the study that provides a four-pronged approach to India’s future PSE leadership.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Shri Atul Sobti, Director General, Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) and Prof. N. R. Bhanumurthy, Vice-Chancellor, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar School of Economics University, Bengaluru to strengthen PSEs by broadening their horizon through effective capacity building and skill enrichment aligned with international benchmarks. The MoU intends to undertake joint studies, research, workshops, training programs on pertinent subjects including corporate governance, economics, ethics, legal complexities, global best practices of PSEs etc.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) and Institute of Management Technology, Hyderabad (IMTH) to conduct a research-based study on ‘Digital Transformation in PSEs.’ The MoU was signed virtually by Shri Atul Sobti, Director General, SCOPE and Dr. K Sriharsha Reddy, Director, IMTH, in the presence of Shri Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary I&C and IT, Govt. of Telangana; Dr. S. K. Joshi, Advisor, Centre for Sustainability & CSR, IMTH and Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Telangana; and Shri O. P. Singh, Director (Technical & Field Services), ONGC & Chairperson, SCOPE Committee on Digital Transformation.

Shri Atul Sobti emphasised that digitalization is one of biggest differentiators in an organisation’s performance today, and stipulated that the study aims at moving beyond data analysis and understanding internal efficiencies, external components of digitalisation and ways to accelerate digital transformation in PSEs.

Dr. K. Sriharsha Reddy said that as PSEs are major contributors in all strategic sectors of the economy, therefore this study aims at decoding PSEs’ readiness to leverage emerging technologies.

Dr. S. K. Joshi congratulated SCOPE and IMTH on undertaking this ambitious study with PSEs, who are not only strategic partners in country’s economic growth but also trend setters in imbibing emerging technologies.

Shri Jayesh Ranjan stated, that as the pace of technology has increased manifold, in this era of perform or perish, PSEs must aim for rapid adoption of new technologies.

Shri O.P. Singh, highlighted the importance of the study for the PSEs, to better comprehend the need for digital efficacy.

National e-Meet of Women in Public Sector (WIPS) under the aegis of SCOPE (Standing Conference of Public Enterprises) was addressed by Smt. Rekha Sharma, Chairperson, National Commission for Women; Smt. Soma Mondal, Chairman, SAIL and Chairperson, SCOPE; Shri Atul Sobti, DG, SCOPE; Smt. Alka Mittal, CMD, ONGC; Smt. Vartika Shukla, CMD, EIL and Smt. H. K. Joshi, CMD, SCI in the presence of Dr. Dharini Mouli, President APEX; Smt. Nanda Kulkarni, President, Western Region and other members of WIPS. The program was attended by around 900 participants from across the country.

Unravelling the Union Budget 2022, Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) organised a webinar on ‘Decoding the Union Budget 2022.’ Prof. N. R. Bhanumurthy, Vice-Chancellor, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar School of Economics University, Bengaluru; Mr. Atul Sobti, DG, SCOPE and Mr. S. Sakthimani, Director (Finance), FACT, addressed the webinar. A comprehensive presentation on various aspects of the Budget was shared by senior partners and subject matter experts from Deloitte. About 400 participants, including board members and senior officials from PSEs attended the webinar through SCOPE’s various platforms.

Addressing the participants, Prof. N. R. Bhanumurthy deliberated upon the macro perspectives of the Budget and said it unveils a roadmap of the economy for the next 25 years with renewed impetus to growth and development issues. He also spoke about the strategic role of PSEs in achieving sustainable growth and making the nation a 5 trillion economy.

Calling the budget growth centric, Mr. Atul Sobti said that as the focus of the Budget this year is on infrastructure development, digital ecosystem, skill development, energy transitions, and Ease of Doing Business 2.0, PSEs being present in core sectors will act as catalysts in the overall growth of the economy. He also added that SCOPE will continue to make concerted efforts to offer a platform for dialogue and capacity building for PSEs.

Mr. S. Sakthimani, in his address, while appreciating initiatives undertaken by SCOPE, emphasized that PSEs can be strategic partners in the country’s high trajectory growth by propelling digitalisation and start-up ecosystem.

SCOPE (Standing Conference of Public Enterprises), apex body of Public Sector Enterprises compliments the Hon’ble Finance Minister in presenting a visionary & progressive budget focussing on the long-term agenda of growth by developing an international infrastructure through ‘new-age’ announcements. While appreciating the Budget, Mr. Atul Sobti, Director General, SCOPE said that the Budget is inclusive and has given the right impetus to infrastructure while balancing it with penetration and building new digital ecosystem. “Overall, a futuristic budget with increased capex, new schemes, incentivising domestic industries, impetus on digitalisation and skill development, thereby bolstering the upward trajectory of growth”, he added.

Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) organized a Symposium on ‘Transformational Leadership in Governance – The Gandhian Way’ to commemorate the 74^th Martyrs’ Day. The occasion was addressed by Shri Rohit Kumar Singh, Secretary, Consumer Affairs; Dr. Shobhana Radhakrishna, Veteran Gandhian; Shri Pradeep Kumar Agarwal, CMD, Cotton Corporation of India Ltd. and Shri Atul Sobti, Director General, SCOPE.

Shri Rohit Kumar Singh, in his address, enunciated Gandhiji’s vision of Governance being citizen centric, decentralisation of power to the grassroot levels and treating customer as supreme. He highlighted areas of conflict resolution, envisioning India 2047 and democratisation of information where Gandhian principles of transparency and ethics are most relevant to strengthen the country and prepare for the future.

Dr. Shobhana Radhakrishna in her lecture highlighted the global presence of Gandhiji as a moral leader. She also discussed his quest for positive change to ensure social and economic well-being of people. She reiterated the various traits of Gandhiji that are most relevant for a transformational leader in the present dynamic business environment which would help in overcoming various social and ethical dilemmas.

Shri Atul Sobti said that SCOPE through its dedicated forum has been exploring Gandhian principles while creating awareness among PSEs of its application in the modern times. Amidst rapid change, he added, there was a rising need for leaders to adopt Gandhian virtues today so as to instil positivity and self-belief in the people.

Shri Pradeep Kumar Agarwal while paying tribute to the Mahatma, accentuated the need for leaders of today to create trust and influence people as manpower is the most essential component of any organisation.

Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) hosted its 47th Annual General Meeting (AGM) which was chaired by Smt. Soma Mondal, Chairman, SAIL & Chairperson, SCOPE and was attended by Shri Sanjay Kumar Jain, Joint Secretary, DPE; Shri Pradip Kumar Das, CMD, IREDA & Vice Chairman, SCOPE; Shri Atul Sobti, DG, SCOPE; Executive Board Members of SCOPE; CMDs, Directors and senior officials of member Public Sector Enterprises (PSEs). The meeting was held through the physical and virtual mode.

The AGM, highlighted SCOPE’s endeavour of developing into an impactful organization and its synergising efforts to enable PSEs to play a vital role in the national and global economy. A series of initiatives undertaken by SCOPE towards policy advocacy, representation on national and international forums and collaborative efforts towards research, were also showcased during the AGM.

The meeting also reflected upon the future vision of the apex body, intending to carve a niche for PSEs in the global economy.