Green Shoots Visible, Indian Economy Will Revive: Anurag Thakur

Mr Anurag Thakur, Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Government of India said that adopting the motto 'vocal for local', the states can now produce more and export more, thereby promoting competitive federalism. This will act as a catalyst in reviving the economy, which has already begun seeing green shoots.

Addressing the session on Reimagining a Glocal Ecosystem at LEADS 2020 organized by FICCI, Mr Thakur said becoming Atmanirbhar or self- reliant does not mean closing our economy and import substitution. "It, in fact, means that India can be connected to the global supply chain in the same way it was, but will focus on making the country a global hub of manufacturing and services. Our focus primarily will be on advancing our economy and making it an export hub," he said.

"We need to adopt the motto of both 'vocal for local' and 'vocal for global'. We need to produce locally and support the country's demands and exports globally, " the Minister noted.

India can be connected to the global supply chain, but the focus will be to make India a global hub of manufacturing and services. The pandemic has altered the global supply chain; we need to re-balance, re-imagine, re-start our activities by factoring in the new normal that will benefit each one globally, he said.

"No nation in the world has progressed without focusing on manufacturing and manufacturing-based exports, barring a few countries that focus on oil or similar commodities," he observed. Mr Thakur said that the Govt of India is trying to fix the supply chain. "We are pumping in to generate demand as well,? he said. In September, consumption of steel, toll collection, sale of tractors and passenger vehicles, surpassed pre-COVID level that was seen in the month of February," he stated.