Stressing on the Aatmanirbhar Bharat mission, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday asked the Indian industry to procure locally wherever there is an opportunity so that domestic supply chains are fortified and become more resilient. He was speaking at the ‘Breakfast session Discussion on Trade 4.0’ in Davos, Switzerland.
“Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal today asked Indian industry to procure locally wherever there is an opportunity so that domestic supply chains are fortified and become more resilient and the tendency to place excessive dependence on international supply chains is curbed,” the commerce ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.
Observing that the India story had been receiving a lot of enthusiasm across the world, the minister also said that in spite of constraints like COVID-19, chip shortages, conflict, rising commodity prices, container shortages and significant shipping and logistics issues in the past two years, Indian businesses have displayed great resilience, overshooting export targets and achieving USD 421.8 billion worth of exports.
He said India among all these problems is an oasis, which reflects transparency, offers trust and timeliness, and that the nation has responded to every crisis in a timely manner. “This responsiveness, he said, is a manifestation of the resilience that Indian businesses have to offer and the resilience and confidence of political leadership.”
Goyal expressed confidence that “India could achieve a target of USD 1 trillion worth of merchandise and services exports each by 2030”.
The minister said that Digital India has helped India work during the pandemic-induced lockdowns. He added that missions like Swachh Bharat, Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile trinity, financial inclusion, Ayushman Bharat and vaccination programmes have helped prepare India for the next level of growth and engagement with the world.
Goyal added that India had taken a series of strict measures to tame inflation, keep interest rates in check and rein in the rupee depreciation, so that growth and prosperity are not affected.
He urged the Indian industry to look at boosting value-added exports and ensure that new jobs came into India instead of raw materials going out of India. Highlighting the serious efforts being made in that direction, the Minister said that the government was striving to ensure orderly behaviour of prices and ensure that businesses add value and jobs.
Referring to trade agreements recently inked with the UAE and Australia, the minister said that these agreements were opening new frontiers in international trade. He added that agreements with Canada, EU, UK, Israel and GCC were in the pipeline. The minister said that the world had great confidence in India and wanted to engage with it enthusiastically.
He also assured that every Indian mission had been tasked with supporting Indian industry and pitching for our businesses. Every Mission, every office, every official is now ready to stand for Indian businesses and that is what will spearhead trade 4.0, he added. “The minister remarked that the government was on a mission to rewrite the script of a New India that is ready to play the leading role in global trade and asked investors to come invest in India, in its ideas, talent and limitless potential. India is the future,” the statement said.
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