NEW DELHI, Jan 31: The apex industry associations today hailed the Economic Survey 2024-25, saying it was heartening to see the emphasis of the government on “deregulation” and furthering the agenda of ease of doing business in the country.
Commenting on the Survey tabled in the Parliament earlier today, Harsha Vardhan Agarwal, President, FICCI, said, “It is heartening to note the emphasis the Economic Survey has placed on ‘deregulation’ and furthering the agenda of ease of doing business in the country. The survey has highlighted that allowing businesses to focus on their core mission is a significant contribution that governments around the country can make to foster innovation and enhance competitiveness.”
FICCI has been of the view that by simplifying regulations and doing away with old regulations, the cost of doing business in the country can be reduced significantly and this will promote investments and overall growth.
“Further, we would like to mention that regulatory reforms require active participation of the state governments and their role in improving the business climate in the country is becoming increasingly important,” he added.
Similarly, the ASSOCHAM also said that it (Economic Survey) has aptly built a strong case for further economic reforms, particularly at the grassroot levels to take India on a faster growth trajectory even as the global environment remains challenging.
“While 6.3-6.8 per cent GDP growth projection for 2025-26 is realistic and there is a strong chance of reaching the higher end of the curve, the striking feature of the Economic Survey is the emphasis it lays on deregulation and reforms especially at the grassroot level and particularly for the MSMEs,” Sanjay Nayar, President, ASSOCHAM, said.
The key government document rightly and forcefully impresses upon the states to go in for reforms in legal framework governing the use of land, labour and building.
The survey has rightly emphasised that these are right beginning points for the states, as the same influence the big decision-making by the entrepreneurs, the ASSOCHAM said.
The survey has also highlighted the need to improve the manufacturing sector competitiveness. This is extremely important, and FICCI has suggested scaling-up R&D and innovation spend in the country. Additionally, there is a need to create a robust eco-system for domestic manufacturing by laying a thrust on Production Linked Incentives for critical sectors.
The Economic Survey has highlighted FICCI’s report on how PLI schemes have led to development of complete value chain.
Commenting on the GDP growth outlook, Agarwal of FICCI said, “while the growth assessment is slightly lower than FICCI’s own assessment, we expect that the Union Budget on Saturday (tomorrow) will provide impetus for both consumption and investment demand. We look forward to rationalization of the tax structure in the budget with a view to putting more money in the hands of consumers for greater discretionary spend.”
Addressing the issue of food inflation is equally important. FICCI concurs with the suggestions made in the Economic Survey for developing climate-resilient crop varieties and enhancing agriculture yield, as well as implementing robust data collection and analysis systems for integrated monitoring of agriculture ecosystem.
This is in line with FICCI’s suggestion to have a Food Inflation Response and Strategy Team (FIRST) mechanism for creating an e-enabled, empowered co-ordination framework along with a global market intelligence mechanism that can aid in better forecasts and planning.
The Economic Survey has focused on balancing energy transition while maintaining energy security. FICCI agrees with the Survey’s analysis and recommendation to reduce import dependence for critical items from a single source.
Building the domestic ecosystem for industries such as EVs, Solar and Wind Energy are critical from the perspective of meeting our long-term targets for a low carbon growth path.
(UNI)
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