Kapoor calls for revision of PCPIRs

International investors, who have stayed away from India’s chemical industry, have been told of the key manufacturing sector growing at 8% to 9% per annum with potential to grow much faster.

Giving the industry potential, Rajeev Kapoor, Secretary, Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, regretted that the international investors have stayed away from the Indian chemical industry.

Speaking at the 4th edition of CII Chemistry Everywhere Conference on 28 Nov 2017 in New Delhi, Kapoor said that the chemical sector although globally competitive, is constrained domestically.

Still, much more can be enhanced by keeping close interaction with the user segment, he added.

One important action plan for government will be to work with the consumers and industry and then develop the products, elaborated Kapoor.

The Chemistry Everywhere Conference- Energizing Make in India through the Chemical & Petrochemicals Industry was organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in partnership with Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals.

The Secretary emphasized on giving focused attention to few policy areas including revising the Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemical Investment Regions (PCPIRs), as three out of the four PCPIRs are not reflecting desired results.

“Our trade Policy also needs stability and we have already taken up that with the Ministry of Commerce,” he said.

“In order to make petrochemicals a major source of sustainability, we need to work on value chains and for that we need to work with the champion industries. We also need to push for skilling the chemical aspects of the industry,” he stressed.

Elaborating on the objectives of the CII Chemistry Everywhere campaign, Dr Raman Ramachandran, Chairman, CII National Committee on Chemicals, observed that the chemical sector is truly being geared for the next phase of growth.

Dr Ramachandran also presented some of the key issues, needs and roadmaps for the sector and urged the government for making those actionable in coming times.

Creating an integrated Petrochemical & specialty chemicals Master Plan, investing in heavy upfront Infrastructure in Greenfield PCPIRs, setting up a technology upgradation fund for the chemicals industry and reviewing reverse duty structures, establishing India’s chemical inventory database, upgrading the Tier-2 Chemical Universities through PPP model, launching of parallel inspections, time bound clearances, pre-approved list of companies, etc are some of the key elements which were highlighted.

Kapoor also released CII Compendium on Chemistry Everywhere – In Pursuit of Sustainable Development at the conference. fii-news.com