It’s Business with capital B as India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi began the bilateral leg of his visit to Australia with a strong sales pitch for garnering more investments.
Interacting with business leaders at a breakfast meeting with them in Brisbane, the capital of Queensland on November 17, Mr Modi underlined his government’s ambitious agenda for reforms.
The meeting was hosted by Campbell Newman the premier of Queensland and marked Mr Modi’s final engagement in Brisbane where he spent a hectic weekend engaging with world leaders at the G-20 Summit.
Well aware that the world is looking towards his government to provide a more favourable business environment and cut out the red tape, Mr Modi’s took care to address the corporate world’s numerous concerns in his speech. “We have launched a major set of reforms to boost economic growth and improve the quality of life of people. We have set an ambitious agenda and a brisk pace,” he said.
“We have made our policies transparent and predictable. We have made our procedures clearly defined and smooth,” the prime minister declared as he set out to woo industry leaders. He added that his government is also focusing on “the ease of doing business” while also sharing with economic leaders his newly minted concept of `Make in India’.
More importantly, Mr Modi’s speech sought to clear the air on the many misgivings that industry leaders abroad have when it comes to doing business in India.
In the policy arena, Mr Modi told the gathering that his government has eased FDI (foreign direct investment) laws in such key sectors as defence, railways and insurance.
Noting that the Indian government has also introduced labour reforms, the PM added, ” We have made big changes in our policies on fuel – coal, natural gas, diesel.””
In the processes arena, the PM said: ” (We’re) Changing the way we work as government. Good governance is the starting point of change. It is as important to business as it is to ordinary change.”
Other steps being taken to change the processes include
eliminating unnecessary laws and regulations, making processes easier and shorter and ensuring greater transparency in government, said Mr Modi.
As for ushering institutional changes, the PM spoke about the setting up of a special authority for industrial corridors, the formation of an Expenditure Reform Commission and the close monitoring of decisions.
Alluding to his pet project, “Make in India,’ the Indian leader spoke about the plan to have 100 smart cities, metro projects for 50 cities and modern waste management systems for another 500 cities.
Hard-selling India as a business and investment destination, he said: “You will begin to find a difference in India.” And that foreign business would “no longer have to reach those opportunities through uncertain and unpredictable pathways crossing hurdles along the way.”
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