India Inc should now respond to the several ethical wealth creation opportunities thrown open by the recent reforms (such as those in labour laws) undertaken by the Government, said the Chief Economic Advisor to Finance Ministry Krishnamurthy Subramanian.
Corporate India should latch on to the opportunity that the Covid-19 pandemic has illustrated —that factories can be set up in the hinterland and managed virtually. “Comparative advantage will be even higher if we do this. What possibly was a constraint before the Covid-19 outbreak will no longer so now. Corporates, I hope, would use this”, Subramanian said at a virtual event “ Massmerize 2020”, organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
Mentoring
He advised large corporates to mentor MSMEs on aspects such as inventory management, operational management and financial management techniques, which will have large impact on productivity. India Inc should also look to increase female labour force participation given that work-from-home flexibility can enhance overall productivity in the company, Subramanian said. This can be a big opportunity for companies in e-commerce, he said.
Self reliance
On Aatmanirbhar Bharat, Subramanian underscored the need to differentiate between self-reliance and self-sufficiency.
“ Self reliance can never happen without adequate capabilities. Capabilities are never built in a vacuum. Capabilities are built only competing with the best. The idea of Aatmanirbhar Bharat is not anathema to competition, it actually co-exists with competition”, he said.