Despite COVID-19 disruptions, clear indications of economic revival in India, says Piyush Goyal

COVID-19 disruptions notwithstanding, there are clear indications of economic revival in India, Union minister of commerce and industry Piyush Goyal said, adding that the industry is indeed on a growth path. 

Addressing the Plenary Session of CII-Horasis India Meeting 2021 on India's Emerging Industry and Trade Architecture, Goyal noted that exports from the country are going up and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows are also at their highest.

"Indian industry is indeed on a growth path. The highest ever merchandise have been logged for exports in a quarter (Q1 2021-22, $ 95 billion) in the history of India (more than 18 per cent from Q1 of 2019-20). In July (till the third week), exports were at $2.48 billion, at an increase of 45.13 per cent with respect to the same period in 20-21, and more than 25.42 per cent with respect to 2019-20," he said.

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The Union minister further stated that labour intensive and employment generating sector of Engineering goods has also registered growth of 33.70% in third week of July with respect to 2020-21, and 51.2% with respect to the same period in 2019-20.

"India has broken into the top 10 list of Agriculture produce exporters as per WTO report. The Indian growth story is now being reflected across all the sectors from the ease of doing business to exports and from Startups to Services, India is taking giant leaps in each sector," Goyal said.

The Union minister noted that there is a new energy in India's startup space. "In just the first six months of 2021, India has been to see 15 more unicorns," he stated.

Goyal added that Indian startups are more than commercial success stories and are key to India's transformation.

He noted that presently India is the preferred destination for Industry, Investment and Innovation.

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"This situation has arisen as a result of consistent efforts to bring structural changes in the last seven years. Some of these key changes include large scale digitisation, modernisation, simplification and facilitation," Goyal said adding that growth-centric reforms have enabled India to embark on a holistic economic transformation and as a result, the country is growing with "SPEED - Stability, Productivity, Enterprise, Entrepreneurship and Demand."

"Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has set itself upon the path to become "Aatmanirbhar Bharat"-- self-reliant and self-sufficient. Aatmanirbhar Bharat is the recipe for rebuilding, revitalising and building resilience in the economy. 'Self-Reliant India' does not mean closing our doors to the world, on the contrary, it empowers us to engage with greater confidence and competitiveness," the Union minister stated.

Goyal also implored that Indian Industry must rest on strong foundations of "quality, productivity and economies of scale". He added that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India decided to revolutionise its manufacturing sector by bringing the PLI Scheme - to produce national manufacturing champions in each sector.