New Delhi. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday expressed confidence that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is going to return to power after winning the ongoing Lok Sabha elections with a good majority. If the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wins this election, Modi will hold the post of Prime Minister for the third consecutive time. The election results will be announced on June 4.
Addressing the annual business meeting of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here, Sitharaman said, “We are confident that Prime Minister Modi is returning to power with a good majority.” In the presence of industry leaders, he said, “Immediately after the formation of the new government, we will establish dialogue with CII regarding the general budget to be presented in July. There will be a lot of consultation with the CII team in this regard.” The Finance Minister said that there are immense opportunities for growth in the country and they extend to all sectors of the economy. Its potential to contribute significantly to global growth has also been recognized by global agencies such as the IMF and S&P.
He said the huge Indian consumer market is expected to double by 2031 due to increase in consumption expenditure. This will ensure that the country remains the fastest growing economy in the future. Sitharaman said that according to the Reserve Bank and the Economic Survey, India has overcome the problem of double bookkeeping of the past and has moved towards double bookkeeping profit. This has brought vibrancy to the market and increased investment by companies. The problem of double bookkeeping means on one hand the increase in bad loans of banks and on the other hand excessive debt of companies.
Along with this, he said that India will continue to get age based dividend of its population for the next 30 years. Public-private partnerships can increase prosperity and consumer demand by focusing on skill development. The Finance Minister said that India’s transition towards green energy and sustainable future will create new markets and demand. Government encouragement to solar energy and promotion of green hydrogen and green ammonia will also provide employment opportunities to the youth.
India needs to accelerate manufacturing sector: Sitharaman
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday that the country needs to accelerate its manufacturing sector to increase its share in the global value chain and become self-reliant. Addressing leaders of Indian industry at the CII Annual Business Summit, the Minister also underlined the need to achieve greater sophistication in product formulation and policy support.
Sitharaman said, “I want to underline something contrary to the advice given by some economists that India should no longer focus on manufacturing or should not accelerate manufacturing…. I want to emphasize the fact that there should be an increase in manufacturing. “India should also increase its (manufacturing) share in the global value chain with the help of policies.” Some economists, including former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan, have expressed the opinion that India should focus on the services sector rather than manufacturing as it has missed that opportunity. He says that China’s manufacturing-based growth model can no longer be replicated.