The Hindu Business Line : Assocham pins hopes on national trade policy

THE Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) President, Mr Mahendra K. Sanghi, is hopeful that the first National Trade Policy of the UPA Government will create a conducive environment for India to attain at least 1 per cent share in total world trade by 2006, against India's current share of 0.8 per cent.

The Assocham President said India should improve its food and agriculture production, which is currently valued at $125 billion.

"This can easily go up to $2 trillion, provided a new paradigm shift - from `farm to foodgrains' to `farm as factories' is adopted. To achieve this, India must be focused with an integrated, high-end, high investment, high-yield, resource-efficient model of farming," the chamber said in a statement.

Mr Sanghi said that India's manufacturing contributes to about $130 billion in output which can easily go up 20 times provided new and scientific methodologies are adopted in designing, discovering and developing domestic manufacturing activities for making India a global manufacturing hub.

Mr Sanghi suggested that the National Trade Policy should have provisions so that India's export contribution to its GDP can be enhanced to at least 10 per cent in a year's time from its current level of 8 per cent.

He also said that one option before the Commerce & Industry Minister was to grant income tax exemptions to export proceeds under Section 80 HHC to ensure that exports leapfrog and become the engine of a double digit GDP growth.