PM Modi calls for mapping of human resources and making India a hub for export of services

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday drew up a vision for mapping the country's human resources to develop region-specific talents that would make India a hub for export of services to the rest of the world.

Modi also pitched for making the country a centre for global arbitration and asked lawyers not to be scared of foreign competition.

Inaugurating the first Global Exhibition on Services in New Delhi, Modi said that India should assess its service capabilities in the global perspective.

He added that India has vast potential to meet the skilled manpower needs of the entire world and called for a careful mapping of global needs, which India could fulfil over the next decade.

Modi said that India has made the transformation from a country worried about its brain drain to a country that thinks of brain gain.

Observing that in the coming days, India is going to get younger, Modi said, "We need to focus on this aspect while thinking about our development journey." As a country, he said, there is a need to think of multiple layers of services which can be exported to the world.

Elaborating on the mapping of services, the PM stated that in a country as diverse as India, onesize-fits-all approach may not be appropriate. He said that people of different regions have different talents and the effort could be made to develop those specific skills.

"At the same time, there is a need to understand the needs of our trading partners and accordingly tailor our skills supply to meet their requirements," he added.

Seeking to allay fears that opening of legal services would result in dominance of foreign lawyers, Modi said that they are unfounded.

The PM further said that India could become a hub for global arbitration with changes in the legal system.

The government has already introduced amendments to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, in the Lok Sabha to encourage the international business community to settle commercial disputes in India.

Stating that human resource is India's biggest asset, Modi said that India's development journey should focus on the 65 per cent of its population, which is below the age of 35.

He said that as the world looks for skilled manpower, India had the capability to become a crucial provider of this resource.

Commerce and industry minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who was also present, said that success of the services sector becomes even more important for supporting the 'Make in India' initiative.

"As a part of the focussed strategy to promote the sector, the government is taking steps to boost services exports like diversifying services export basket and exploring new geographies", she added.