‘India should capitalise on anti-China sentiment’
   Date :30-May-2020

Som Parkash_1  
 Som Parkash
 
Business Bureau :
 
“Many new schemes on the anvil will further enhance India’s attractiveness to potential global investors. Local products must become global and all of us should work towards that end,” Som Parkash said. 
 
COMPARED to many other advanced nations, India has effectively handled the COVID-19 situation. Now that the world has started questioning China’s credentials, India needs to strike while the iron is hot and optimize its innate advantages. A nation at our level of development needs to shift more resources from the services into the manufacturing sector.
 
The opportunities – as well as the challenges – are now greater than ever before. This was the general feeling at the webbing on ‘Enhancing diaspora engagement with India’ organised jointly by the Maharashtra Economic Development Council (MEDC) and the Person of Indian Origin Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PIOCCI) on May 22. Delivering the keynote address, the chief guest on the occasion Som Parkash, Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, said, “The country is passing through a difficult phase. Finance Minister announced a dynamic stimulus package which will certainly make a positive difference in the current scenario. Many new schemes on the anvil will further enhance India’s attractiveness to potential global investors. Local products must become global and all of us should work towards that end.
 
The discussions in this meeting could act as a guide for future course of action, and with the help of NRIs the country could garner much more investment in a wide range of sectors.” Panelists agreed that the Indian economy has a lot of innate potential and will continue to go from strength to strength. India should capitalise on the rising anti-China sentiment and innovatively blend ‘Make in India’ with ‘Digital India’ for maximum effect. Despite the lockdown-induced drag on the economy, there is a sense of optimism that systemic fundamentals continue to remain sound. The most affected sectors in the current scenario are apparel, textiles, automobiles, tourism and hospitality.
 
The growth sectors at the moment are technology, mining, space exploration, atomic energy and food processing. The time has come to seriously consider upgrading our industrial infrastructure if we are to truly ensure the long-term competitiveness of the nation’s workforce. We have a large and influential diaspora who are keen to invest strategically in their motherland.
 
They should be given all possible incentives and assistance. It helps that the ease of doing business has risen steadily in the country over the past five years, and we have a large domestic consumer market that could be used to our advantage. According to Ravindra Boratkar, President, MEDC, who, along with Atul Kulkarni, Working President, PIOCCI, delivered the introductory remarks, MEDC is keen to partner with the Government to do everything possible to enhance diaspora engagement with India.