India will become the new ‘boss’ of the world
India is now preparing to redefine its economic strength on the global stage. The government has prepared a roadmap to make the country the world’s next ‘factory’, which if successful, can become a matter of concern for countries like China. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is now aiming to increase the country’s exports three times to 1.3 trillion dollars (about Rs 108 lakh crore) by 2035. The special thing is that this time the emphasis of the government is not on distributing huge subsidies from the government treasury, but on changing the basic rules which have been standing in the way of progress for years.
This is special in this time’s strategy
It is no secret that India has been trying to become a manufacturing hub for the last few years. Despite the ‘Make in India’ campaign in 2014 and an incentive package of $23 billion in 2020, the target of increasing the share of manufacturing in GDP to 25% was not fully achieved. Officials believe that the old policies could not give the expected results.
Therefore, this time the strategy has been changed. The government is now focusing on selected 15 sectors. These include high-end semiconductor (chips), metal and leather generating industries. The government believes that just throwing money will not solve the problem, but a “bold and focused” strategy is needed that can improve the internal structure of the system.
Rs 100 billion will be spent
Under this ‘National Manufacturing Mission’, the government plans to create about 30 manufacturing hubs across the country. About Rs 100 billion ($1 billion) will be spent for this. These hubs will be built in places where infrastructure already exists or which are close to ports, so that it can be easier to send goods abroad.
However, the government has also set aside a grant of $218 million for modern sectors like chips and energy storage. The Finance Ministry and NITI Aayog are busy finalizing this policy. It is expected that this mission may be announced in detail in the budget to be presented on February 1, although it has not been officially confirmed yet.
The biggest hit to red tape
The most important part of this entire master plan is the simplification of rules. The biggest complaint of business people in India has been ‘red tape’. It takes months, and sometimes years, just to get approval for electricity, water and land to set up a factory. Apart from this, different rules of the central and state governments confuse the investors.
To eliminate this problem, a special government panel will be formed. This panel will be headed by a minister and will include senior officials like the Cabinet Secretary. The work of this panel will be to work with the states to ensure that factories get cheap and uninterrupted electricity. Also, this panel will see that labor and business rules of different states do not conflict with each other, so that the costs of the companies can be reduced.