Ominous reminder that young people will hold Indian companies accountable if it misses the opportunity hidden in today’s crisis and puts it on the grinder, the Finance Minister said: “They will ask, ‘What are you all doing?’’’
“In the past five years, startups have proven to us how they can deliver on all their difficulties…If they can do that, none of us should try to make India grow faster… Are you today or in the 60s and 70s?” Sitharaman asked the audience during a fireside chat with ET’s Sruthijith KK.
A confused Sitharaman nudged the company chief to speak for any hesitant investment, and I certainly hope they talk about things, investment. After all, how can the government have any idea of how things go if they don’t speak? ”Her colleague Ashwini Vaishnaw won the ET Award for the Business Reform Award of the Year, and he had similar, sincere candid contacts. “Can I make a request? All of you are doing really well in life, in your business. Can we really identify some products and start investing in them?” he said.
Focus on what is good for India
“For example, something as basic as capital goods,” said the Minister of Railways, IT and Information and Broadcasting. “Suppose in the tech industry, can the IT industry invest in three basic models? Can the IT industry invest in creating our own mobile operating system? If you take a step forward, the government will be there with you 10 steps.”
Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman of Aditya Birla Group, is honored to appreciate the Business Leader of the Year. “The way forward is to invest rather than wait for it,” Birla said in an acceptance speech.
However, the two senior ministers made it clear that the need for this hour is pragmatism, bilateralism and correcting past mistakes, with a bizarre emphasis on being “good for India” rather than returning to theory and ideology.
“The Ministry of Commerce is reviewing many free trade agreements…the negotiations are very quick to handle, or the language of the documents is very loose…the flood of goods that you cannot regulate…there is no effect on them,” Sitharaman said.
“Unless you negotiate for India’s own interests, your negotiations won’t be taken seriously even on the other hand,” she said.
Rope walking and touch will also be used when addressing the threat of dumping. According to Sitharaman, while small and medium-sized manufacturers must be given cheaper investment, the country cannot be a victim of dumping. “Some people prefer to stop dumping merchandise altogether, others prefer calibration methods. The task is to balance everyone’s interests,” she said.
However, South Asia CEO Romal Shetty, the event’s CEO, said the responsibility is not the government that is solely responsible, and the ET Award winner is a collective testimony to the fact that Indian companies can lead from the front.
“Mahindra & Mahindra is redefining defense technology using autonomous systems powered by AI (Artificial Intelligence). TVS Motor has launched the world’s first CNG scooter, changing urban mobility. (Aditya) Birla Group leads in sustainability with seawater scrubbing technology. Lenskart is combining AI and AR (Augmented Reality) into personalized glasses, and Zomato develops food beyond food into a comprehensive technology platform,” said Shetty, emphasizing his point.
