Spike in consumer spending indicates life is getting restored, says Sitharaman
Finance Minister Nirtmala Sitharaman has requested India Inc to venture into new areas, find partners to upgrade technologically, invest in infrastructure and focus on growth as the Government makes the business landscape easy and facilitative.
Addressing the Inaugural Session of the CII Global Economic Policy Summit 2021, organized from 17–18 November 2021, the Minister emphatically urged the industry to seize the opportunities presented by Aatmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Sufficient India), ramp up capacities, create job opportunities and empower people with skill sets.
Sitharaman also shared her views on the Public Sector Banks including declining Non Performing Assets, an uptick in recovery, credit outreach programmes including the distribution of Rs.75,000 crores in 4-5 categories and partnerships between PSBs and NBFCs.
The changing geopolitical landscape poses several challenges including the rise in crude oil prices, which is making it difficult to purchase natural gas, she added.
Nevertheless, the spike in consumer spending suggests not just pent up demand, but indicates that life is getting restored after a crisis of this scale caused by COVID-19, reiterated the Minister.
The labour market also indicates the presence of semi-skilled and highly-skilled labour who value their skill sets and are in a position to bargain, while looking for employment.
She has outlined some of the Government’s priority areas including infrastructure building and technology driven infrastructure, and highlighted the Rs.5.5 lakh crores allocated for infrastructure with 134% increase in health infrastructure.
The Minister underlined the reach of technology. Fintech and Bharat Net are reaching the farthest corners of the country which present collateral benefits for growth. Start-ups and new age technology will make a big difference to the economy.
Uday Kotak, Past President, CII and Chairman, CII Global Economic Policy Summit, also outlined some crucial priorities for sustainable growth and recovery which will be centre stage in policy making.
The areas he outlined were inequality, liquidity measures, climate change, technology induced disruption and dislocation, supply chain shocks, private sector investments and Universal Basic Income.
Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, Confederation of Indian Industry, pointed out that there are several indications of economic recovery due to measures such as privatization and ease of doing business, amongst other regulatory measures. #investment #economy /fiinews.com
