BIZ-PRABHU-INDUSTRIAL-POLICY

The government is coming out with

a new industrial policy that will link the country with the

global supply-chain that will be mutually beneficial, commerce

and industry minister Suresh Prabhu said here Saturday.

Prabhu, who also handles the aviation ministry said,

businesses can only grow when there are partnerships among

several other geographies.

Comments come amidst continuous fall in merchandise

exports from the country and the growing threats to global

trade and even questions being raised about the existence of

the global trade body WTO after the US administration under

Donald Trump has opened a slew of anti-trade practices against

most of its trading partners, including us.

The trade war between the US, the world's largest

consumer, and the world's largest producer China has cast a

pall of gloom over global economic growth.

"Manufacturing cannot happen end-to-end only in one

geography; it has to be part of a global value- chain, global

supply-chain. And that is why we are discussing and finalised

from my ministry side, a new industrial policy that's awaiting

Cabinet approval, which focuses developing mutually beneficial

value chain and supply-chain," Prabhu said while addressing a

event organised by industry lobby CII.

It is especially important when we are working towards

a USD 10-trillion economy by 2035, when we see great

opportunities for all countries to participate. Because no

country can grow in isolation, he added.

"So if we were to have a USD 1-trillion manufacturing

GDP, a good part of that could be sourced and worked with so

many other countries," he said.

In the services sector, which is the key export

segment for the nation worth over billions of dollars, Prabhu

said 12 sectors have been identified.a

On agriculture, he said, government has already come

out with an agriculture export policy, which has helped the

farm economy fare better. "We have already worked out on plans

which are mutually beneficial where we produce under the

quality control regime of the importing countries."

Further, the minister said, the government has

prepared a plan that each district will grow by 3-4 percent

more than the normal growth to help the overall economy clocl

double-digits growth.

"Our strategy is grass-roots development, from grass-

roots to global, manufacturing to services, farming to value

added and from FDI to investment by India in other countries,

is the objective of our trade policy," he said.