PRIME MINISTER’S OPENING REMARKS AT THE MEETING OF PM’S COUNCIL ON TRADE & INDUSTRY

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Following is the text of the Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s opening remarks at the Meeting of the Prime Minister’s Council on Trade and Industry, here today:

"This meeting of the Trade & Industry Council is taking place in the shadow of the sad demise of Shri Dhirubhai Ambani last week. He was an outstanding entrepreneur. Starting from humble beginnings, he created a business group that is world-class in capacity, quality and productivity. He dared to think big. Through his own example, he inspired many Indians to be self-confident in their ability to translate their dreams into reality.

To Mukesh, who is a member of our Council, and to his bereaved family, we send our condolences.

I am pleased to welcome a few new members to this Council. They include the new Presidents of CII, Shri Ashok Soota; and of FICCI, Shri R.S. Lodha. They also include Shri Shashi Ruia and Shri Sanjeev Goenka, who now comes wearing his personal hat, not that of CII.

While on this round of welcoming new faces, how can I forget our new Finance Minister – Shri Jaswant Singhji? I am sure that our economy will further prosper in his strong and able hands.

Shri Jaswant Singhji has inherited the economy in a good shape, which will, believe me, only get better in the months to come. As all of you know, in the past year there has been a significant improvement in the economic situation. The agricultural sector grew at 5.7%. The GDP grew at 5.4%, up from 4% in the previous year. This year, it is expected to grow beyond 6%. There has been unprecedented price stability. Inflation is around 2%. Forex reserves have grown to $ 58 billion, which provides more than 13 months of import cover – the highest for any country excepting China.

Yes, we are aware of the problems facing Indian industry. In the past four years that we have been in office, you have known that ours is a responsive Government. I assure you that we shall continue to respond to your concerns. The new Finance Minister has already begun the process of consultations. He will certainly take your views on board as he gets cracking.

What we should avoid, however, is the tendency to exaggerate the negative and bypass the positive. For example, a couple of years ago, there was a lot of attention on reports of starvation in Kalahandi in Orissa. Does anyone hear those reports now? No, because we have increased the provision of foodgrains to the poor – and that too at cheaper rates – and also streamlined the distribution system. Besides, last year, India exported 110 lakh tonnes of foodgrains and earned Rs. 5,400 crore in foreign exchange. I can tell you that some countries are getting worried about India soon emerging as a major exporter of agricultural and horticultural products.

Our kisans have achieved this feat against many odds. Our workers, managers and entrepreneurs, too, are notching up heart-warming results in many fields against heavy odds. We have the happy example of our auto and auto component industry, our pharma industry, our cement and construction equipment industry, our IT-enabled services, and several others, which are all adapting themselves to the challenging environment of competition, both internal and external.

In some areas, such as housing and telecom services, the high growth is a direct result of our policy reforms.

I am giving these examples to drive home the point that, as a nation, we must believe in ourselves. We must believe in the path we have chosen. And we must unreservedly accept that the only way we can move faster along this path is by moving together – in cooperation, in partnership, between the Government, the business community and the people.

Indeed, look how fast the reforms have moved. Despite the situation on the borders, neither the pace of economic and policy reforms, nor the implementation of key infrastructure projects has slowed in any way. Apart from the Bills to be considered by the Council today, the Convergence Bill for Telecom and IT; the Competition Bill; the Patents Bill; the Amendments to the Civil Procedure Code; the Ordinance for Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest are some examples of legislation accomplished or underway. I appeal to all political parties to help us conclude our legislative agenda fully in the forthcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament.

Similarly, reform of fertilizer pricing; dismantling of the Administered Pricing Mechanism for petroleum products; reduction in scope of the Essential Commodities Act; reducing price control on pharmaceuticals; and withdrawal of the Milk & Milk Products Order are a few examples of reforms accomplished through Governmental action.

The process of disinvestment has now crystallized into a transparent, non-discretionary process. The returns have exceeded the most optimistic expectations. It has also appreciably increased the value of PSU equities. Apprehensions on security of employment after disinvestment have been shown to be without foundation.

We will further accelerate disinvestment of PSUs, except those in strategic sectors. We will relinquish Government involvement in production, and raise resources for development of our social sector.

The complexion of the highway network in India is rapidly changing with the implementation of National Highway Development Project. Similarly, the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana and the Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana, besides others, have the potential to transform the rural sector beyond comprehension. We intend to soon launch a similar big initiative for the modernization of Indian Railways.

The Cabinet has decided to vigorously pursue labour reforms. Now the report of the Second National Labour Commission has also been received. I appeal to all the major political parties for a consensus on labour reforms, so that we can soon give effect to the consensus through appropriate legislation. Above all, these long-delayed labour reforms will create more employment opportunities, thus fulfilling our shared objective of achieving growth with jobs.

All these measures will certainly help boost productivity in Indian industry and services. However, businesses too need to take many steps to increase productivity – especially in the manufacturing sector – to globally competitive levels.

The Tenth Five-Year Plan has commenced. It will chart the roadmap for investment plans over the next half-decade, thereby enabling the private sector to reap the full benefit of economic reforms.

The Government is conscious of the need to attract larger volumes of Foreign Direct Investment. I hope that the Expert Committee in the Planning Commission would submit its recommendations soon. It is necessary to have an appropriate legal and institutional framework for increasing the flow of FDI.

Government has recognized that announcements are only as good as their implementation. I remember that all of you have stressed this point in the previous meetings of this Council. We have taken two significant steps to address this imperative. One, about 100 major infrastructure projects have been identified for fast-track implementation, and are being monitored by the Cabinet Secretary.

Secondly, I have set up a Cabinet Committee on Economic Reforms to develop the "Priority Agenda" for policy reforms across different sectors each year, and to monitor its implementation. The proposed Priority Agenda for the present year is being worked out by the Committee of Secretaries, and will be shortly placed before the CCER for consideration. You will be pleased to know that many of these proposals have their origin in the reports of your Council and the Economic Advisory Council.

While on the issue of reforms, let me reiterate a point I have often made in the past. For the Indian industry and economy to rise to their full potential, it is not enough for the Government alone to reform its policies and practices. Businesses too must reform themselves. The principle of Good Corporate Governance is the touchstone of your commitment to reforms. Recent reports of accounting scandals elsewhere in the world are beginning to worry a lot of people about the bombshells hidden in the boom-time economy. We cannot allow people’s faith in economic liberalisation to be shaken by those who do business with an ethical deficit.

As you have already been informed, this meeting of the Council will specifically focus on two major reform legislations: the Electricity Bill and the Petroleum Regulatory Bill. You are well aware of the problems in these two areas. This consultation during the implementation phase of reform programmes is a natural evolution from the earlier phase, when inputs were sought from the two Councils on developing macro level and sectoral reform agenda.

I am sure that your ideas and suggestions will greatly help us in moving forward with the implementation of reforms in these two critical sectors of the economy.

Now, I invite you to present your remarks".