GDP to grow 7.4-8.2%, says CII prez Bajaj

Mumbai: The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) expects India’s GDP to grow between 7.4% and 8.2%, new president

Sanjiv Bajaj

said. He also unveiled

CII

’s 10-point policy agenda for the government to leapfrog to $9-trillion GDP by the fiscal FY31.

Bajaj, who is also the CMD of

Bajaj Finserv

, unveiled the industry body’s India@100 vision which draws up goals for 2047 — the 100th year of independence. Sharing the economic growth scenarios for this year,

Bajaj

said that the outlook critically hinges on the trajectory of global crude oil prices. “Global headwinds and inflation will have to be countered with robust policy reforms, both domestic and external sector reforms, to unlock the economy’s growth potential,” said Bajaj. According to him, growth-supportive measures include government capex, private sector investment, which shows an uptick aided by strong demand in some sectors and the performance-linked incentive push in others.Bajaj called for moderating taxes on fuel products, which constitute a large share of the retail pump prices of petrol and diesel to immediately bring inflation down. “CII would encourage Centre and state governments to collaborate in reducing these duties,” he added. According to the India@100 vision, India will become a $40-trillion economy by the time it turns 100 in 2047, with milestones at $5 trillion by 2026-27 and $9 trillion by 2030-31.Setting forth the policy agenda for this decade, Bajaj outlined a 10-point agenda for the government. “One, both central and state governments must increase their expenditure on public health & education to make these services accessible to all. This will drive inclusive and equitable growth, improve workforce productivity, and make the economy more resilient,” he said.

He called upon more sectors to be brought under the government’s performance-linked incentive scheme, especially those which are labour-intensive such as leather, footwear and toys, “and sectors where our imports are high, but there is a possibility of building a competitive domestic industry, for example capital goods”.


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