The economy gathering pace marks an admirable start to the BJP-led Government but economic reforms must be sustained and interest rates cut to keep India charting an upward trend on the growth path.

This was the consensus among panellists at a session of the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) India Economic Summit, co-organised with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), here on Wednesday.

Titled ‘India Growth Outlook’, the session focused on issues including the importance of regulatory reforms and highlighted labour market compliance, deregulation of diesel prices and Indian manufacturing.

The speakers included Anand Mahindra, Mahindra & Mahindra Group Chairman and Managing Director; Ajay Shriram, CII President; Gita Gopinath, Professor of Economics, Harvard University; and William Danvers, Deputy Secretary General of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

“For big bang reforms there is a need for steady consistent ones. It’s like cleaning the pipelines which were clogged. The Indian economy is like a flywheel, it takes a while to gain momentum and I see signs of it moving,” said Mahindra, adding that it was small businesses which required and most benefited from implementation of reforms.

Danvers urged patience, believing there was a need for clarity on the question of reforms for both investors and Indian citizens.

“Investors don’t want a miracle, they just want clarity. There needs to be better articulation of policy to the electorate. The Government, due to a large mandate, also needs to be careful about not committing to unrealistic expectations,” he said.

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