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January 2010 / Vol. 2, No. 1

Vision for Indo-Korea Trade Relations

NK Goyal

Friday, January 1, 2010

Noble Laureate Rabindranath Tagore composed a short but evocative poem in 1929 about Korea's glorious past and bright future. He wrote:

"In the golden age of Asia Korea
was one of its lamp bearers,
And that lamp is waiting
To be lighted once again
For the illumination of the East."

Historical and cultural contacts between the two peoples date back to ancient times. According to "Samguk-Yusa" or "The Heritage History of the Three Kingdoms," written in the 13th century, a princess from Ayodhya came to Korea and married King Kim Su-ro and became Queen Hur Hwang-ok in the year 48 AD [former President Kim Dae-jung, former President Kim Young-sam and former Prime Minister Kim Jong-pil trace this ancestry]. The enduring philosophy of the Buddha, which has influenced the lives and thoughts of the people of the two countries, has also provided a strong link. The rationale for a close relationship between India and South Korea has been reinforced in modern times by political and economic imperatives.

Renewable Energy Technologies and Smart Grids

Rakesh Taori

Hokyu Choi

Friday, January 1, 2010

What is renewable energy?

Renewable energy is the energy generated from natural resources such as sunlight, wind and tide, which are naturally replenished. Contrast renewable energy with fossil fuels, which are non-renewable, i.e.; the latter draw on finite resources that will eventually shrink, resulting in them becoming too expensive or too environmentally damaging to retrieve. On the other hand, renewable energy resources are constantly replenished and will never run out.

Maritime Security Co-operation Between India and Korea

Shyam Paliwal

Friday, January 1, 2010

Maritime security cooperation in South East Asia is still in the early stages of development. The interests of various stakeholders in maritime security generally overlap, but sometimes are in conflict too. Not only have incidents of piracy and ship hijacking in the waters between the Persian Gulf and the South China Sea increased, but they have become more technologically sophisticated, with modern weapons and gunboats being used, and their link to Al Qaeda groups is becoming increasingly manifest. The Indian Navy and Coast Guard are fully conversant with this threat and have been engaged in discussions and exercises with the navies of the United States, Australia, Japan, Singapore and others to deal with the emerging challenge.

Arvind Saxena, Senior Vice President, Hyundai Motor India Ltd.

Donald Kirk

Friday, January 1, 2010

Hyundai Motor broke into the Indian market in the early 1990s and has since established itself as one of the country's most competitive brands. Arvind Saxena, senior vice president, marketing and sales, Hyundai Motor India Limited, answered these questions exclusively for Donald Kirk, long-time correspondent in Seoul and author of "Korean Dynasty: Hyundai and Chung Ju Yung" and numerous articles on the Hyundai empire:

Future Prospects of India - Korea Relations

Kim Bong-hoon

Friday, January 1, 2010

As the businesses of India and South Korea "discover" each other, the political leadership of the two countries has noticed the potential mutual advantage of forging a closer bilateral partnership like an FTA. Accordingly, Korea and India need to move to a more close relationship.

CEPA Effect: Korea to Recruit Language Professionals From India

Christopher Sanders

Friday, January 1, 2010

Korea has long had an insatiable thirst for English. English as a second language (ESL) education is a billion dollar industry in this country of 48 million. Starting in third grade, all students receive compulsory ESL classes in the public school system; these classes continue through the first or second year of university. Some 40,000 children are sent to study in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa and Great Britain, as well as special camps in the Philippines, Malaysia and some other countries. ESL is a US$15 billion a year industry.

Reserving High-End Niche Early On

Matthew Weigand

Friday, January 1, 2010

When one writes about Korea, India or both, there is really only one topic to speak about right now, and that is the ratification of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). There has been quite a lot of ink spilled and pixels tickled about the partnership between the two countries. After all, it is indeed hard to ignore the elephant in the room. This writer can only see half of the room from this perspective, sitting in the capital of South Korea and having never been to India.

POSCO Leads the Way

Friday, January 1, 2010

POSCO, whose two huge plants in Korea make it the world's fourth largest steel manufacturer, is planning to build an enormous plant in the Indian state of Orissa. Donald Kirk asked POSCO for details on this exciting venture, which promises to be the most significant of any foreign investment on the Indian subcontinent. Here's how POSCO responded to Kirk's questions:

Question: How did POSCO become involved in the project?

Green Technology and Sustainable Development in India and South Korea

Friday, January 1, 2010

India and South Korea, known for their collaboration efforts in various fields, have now embarked on a mission to implement environmentally friendly projects by reducing carbon emissions and enforcing strict adherence standards for their industries.

In this context, India has announced energy efficiency measures to fight against the ills of climate change with South Korea following suit by announcing that it will set carbon emission targets to be achieved by 2020.

India - Korea Cooperation in Education

Chander Wanchoo

Friday, January 1, 2010

Although India and Korea are separated by a vast continental landmass, they share multiple common denominators like oriental values, moral attributes, social interactions and family values to name few. In recent times, when all nations have experienced a direct or indirect impact of the economic downturn, Asia is looking promising to lead the world out of this recession and is poised to become the next global power continent.

Tata Daewoo: An Indian Success Story in Korea

Dr. Oh Hwa-seok

Friday, January 1, 2010

In 2004, employees at Daewoo Commercial Vehicle heard good news that they would have a new owner after months of uncertainty sparked by the bankruptcy of its parent company Daewoo Motor Co.

But their excitement turned into confusion when they found out that the new owner is Tata Motors, a company based in India, which they had considered a lesser developed country. Tata was something they had never heard about before.

The Success of Korean Firms in India

Friday, January 1, 2010

South Korea and India are at the threshold of a major collaboration to boost trade between the two countries and take it to new levels. The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement signed initially in August 2009 is a free trade deal that is expected to give both the countries more access to each other’s markets.

The highlight of the deal is that import duties between South Korea and India will be reduced or eliminated. The deal signed by India will be implemented from January next year according to reliable sources.

Chakraa: An Indian Success Story

Friday, January 1, 2010

In 1999, Prince Jacob and his wife Shanti arrived in Korea with a dream - to be the first to offer authentic Indian food in the Seoul area. They started out simply, offering a place for friends to come when they wanted home-cooked Indian food. As the customer base began to grow, the Chakraa chain was born. "As Koreans are not used to strong Indian flavors, we have to make some small changes, but we kept the food completely authentic," said Jacob.

India and Korea: Old Friends, New Partners

Clair Go-eun Chun

Friday, January 1, 2010

To Koreans, India is like a country out of a fairy tale where all citizens liberate themselves from desire in pursuit of Nirvana. For young Korean students, India is often confused with the Native Americans who greeted Columbus when he first reached the New World.

Emerging Indian Global Leadership in Climate Change Negotiations

Harish Chintapalli

Friday, January 1, 2010

As the Copenhagen Summit meeting of the climate change negotiations drew closer, most major nations announced their approaches. Indian Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh informed the Indian Parliament on Dec. 3 that India would cut its carbon intensity by up to 25 percent.

Some critics have been quick to denounce that this is too insignificant. However, to be fair, the India case needs to be viewed in perspective.

A Small Republic in Korea: Nami Island

Friday, January 1, 2010

Situated 63km from Seoul in the middle of the Han River, the island looks like a leaf floating gracefully on top of Cheongpyung Lake. There are more than 300 different kinds of trees and 2 million tourists visit the island every year. Among them are 200,000 foreign visitors from all over the world - India, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan and China. This unique island is called 'Nami Island.'

Higher Education in India - Concerns and Strategies

Debkumar Mukherjee

Friday, January 1, 2010

Elementary education, being the foundation of the pyramid in the education system, has been accorded high priority since the post independence period in India. Two programs, which were implemented in the beginning of the 21st century through the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) and the Midday Meal Program (MDM), played important roles in increasing the gross enrollment ratio in the 6-14 age group.