New Delhi:  Minister of External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar has said that the focus of the government is on employment, and employment numbers will not be generated without boosting the manufacturing sector.

Addressing the Fireside Chat with Harsh Pati Singhania, Past President, FICCI and Vice Chairman and Managing Director, JK Paper Limited, on ‘Future of India’s Economic Diplomacy and its Outreach in this era of emerging global opportunities,’ Jaishankar said that we have taken few tough decisions for the benefit of the manufacturing sector.

“It’s an opportune moment and we need to send a clear message that we are a manufacturing friendly economy, with ease of doing business. The PLI scheme is a clear message that this country is serious about attracting manufacturing,” he asserted.  

Today, he said, we have people in the government to recognize that there are concerns and take the hard decisions to rectify. “I visualize an India which would be far more open and promotional of manufacturing,” he said.

Responding to Singhania’s question on how Indian economic diplomacy is gearing up to rise up to the occasion for crafting next phase of outreach for Indian industry, Jaishankar said that the ventilation crisis, the mask crisis, oxygen crisis and the sanitizer crisis have inspired the country to create a health infrastructure on the run in the face of Covid-19, in a way that would have been unimaginable a year back.

With medical demand going up ten times, the entire country responded like a team through the crisis and people must not be complacent as the pandemic will not go away in a hurry but it is worth reflecting how team India, inspired by the government, has put its faith in the ability of its own way out.

Speaking on global partnerships, he said, a sense of partnership was created in the last two years which must be routinized. The need is to continually reform and do better and create new capacities. “We could not have produced the number of vaccines if we did not ensure the supply chain from the private players,” said Jaishankar.

Emphasizing the economic development, he said, in the last eight years the economic development through the govt national campaigns through every stage like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, Digital India, Skill development Initiative, Urbanization programs, etc., points towards a reform that should have taken place since the last 25 years.

Speaking on India’s economic prospects abroad, he said we have roughly 300 lines of credit to different countries to promote projects, businesses, and Indian products. The image of India is changing, and India is looking good to the world outside, we came through with a great deal of sacrifice. People do note the economic recovery underway, positivity and optimism coming out of India. This is an enormous tailwind that I have, said Jaishankar. /BI/