Editors Note

As we welcome the start of a New Year, 'India Investment Journal' takes a look-back at developments in 2016 that will continue to unravel and define 2017. The last year was characterised by many upheavals and will go down in history as a year of turbulence and disruptions. In our central feature, we pick out five such developments that emerged as central to these disruptions and analyse why they will be the ones to watch out for in the New Year. The Narendra Modi led government's bold demonetisation move, key state-level elections and what the results are likely to indicate, the rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), the growing speculation around interest rate cuts and whether jobs and employment will finally register a much-needed upward spike have been shortlisted by 'IIJ' as the things to watch out for in India. Besides, we also present a special deal tracker of the 50 key deals struck by big and small enterprises to bring in investments into India in our Snapshot 2016 segment. From Uber's £3.5-billion investment to Vodafone's $3-billion equity infusion plan, this cross-country and cross-sector tracker provides a handy guide to how 2016 shaped up for foreign investments into India. In our central interview, the chief of India's Department of Investment Policy and Promotion (DIPP) - Ramesh Abhishek - tells 'IIJ' about how his department is easing rules and re-engineering government processes to make India an easier place to do business in. With the biennial Vibrant Gujarat scheduled for January 2017, what better time to throw the spotlight on this western state in our regular State Focus segment. We have an in-depth interview with the state's dynamic chief minister, Vijay Rupani, as well as insights from a host of officials, experts and diaspora representatives on the region. Our interview with the CEO of GIFT City reveals Gujarat's ambitious plans to rival the financial centres of the world like London and Singapore. We analyse why micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) continue to be at the heart of the state's impressive growth story and in our regular Expat's Guide segment, we feature Ahmedabad - not only the largest city of the state but also one of the fastest growing trade and commerce hubs of India. And, with 2017 ear-marked as the UK-India Year of Culture, we have a rare feature on the Indian treasures held in the archives of one of the world's best-known libraries - the Bodleian at the University of Oxford. As always, there are a host of interesting features and interviews, including a CSR Focus with FMCG giant Hindustan Unilever and Digital India updates from Intel and Deloitte. India Inc. realty expert gives his overview of what to expect from 2017 in the Indian property market and a Tax Talk column from the UK's Chartered Institute of Taxation delves into changes to how overseas work will be taxed. We take this opportunity to wish all our readers a very Happy New Year and, of course, Happy Reading!