Nirmala Sitharaman at CII Summit: Check 7 key takeaways from FM’s speech

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the industry should now start taking risks and invest in capacity creation that will help cut reliance on imports.

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New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday (November 17) reiterated that India’s economy is witnessing an uptick. Speaking on the sidelines of the CII Global Economic Policy Summit 2021, she said that the industry should now start taking risks and invest in capacity creation that will help cut reliance on imports.

Here are the top 7 takeaways from Nirmala Sitharaman’s speech at CII Global Economic Policy Summit 2021: 

Economic Recovery 

One of the major points on which the finance minister spoke about was the revival of India’s economy after the pandemic-driven slowdown. Sitharaman said that there are clear signs of an uptick in the economy. 

Appeal to Industry 

She also appealed to the industry to increase the capacity without any delay. “I appeal to the industry not to further delay increasing capacity, not to further delay looking at areas to partner in technology,” she said.  

Offer more jobs

Sitharaman also appealed to the industry to offer more jobs to reduce income disparity and cut down on importing finished goods reduce and instead ramp up investment in manufacturing.

Take Risks 

She also urged the industry to take more risks to improve India’s growth. “At a time when India is looking at the impetus to growth, I want Indian industry to be a lot more risk-taking and understand what India wants,” she said.

Become Self-Reliant

At the Global Economic Policy Summit 2021, Sitharaman said that India must become more self-reliant, after the pandemic disrupted supply chains and showed the risks of depending on exports for essential risks. 

Reduce Dependency 

She also urged that India should aim to reduce dependency on other countries. "Even as we want to be linked with the global value chains, we have to understand and take cognizance of the risks it has posed us," Nirmala Sitharaman said. 

She said India had to import protective equipment and testing kits during the initial phase of the pandemic. She also added India will need to build manufacturing centres at scale to reduce dependency in the future. Also Read: IT Department conducts searches in relation to fintech company offering loans via mobile app

Hailed India’s Startup Ecosystem

Sitharaman said that the startup ecosystem in India and hailed the 36 companies that turned unicorns in the past 12 months. Also Read: RBI slaps penalty on Shri Kanyaka Nagari Sahakari Bank, Chandrapur, here's why