India Announces Steps To Revive Economy

(UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 05th Jun, 2020) NEW DELHI, 5th June, 2020 (WAM) – With only two days to go until the first phase of unlock takes effect, ending a two-month-long shutdown in India to slow the spread of Coronavirus, the government is taking a series of actions daily to revive economic activity across the country.

As part of this strategy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced the setting up of a separate department to strengthen the blue economy, a concept which envisages the use of ocean resources for economic growth.

Modi’s efforts to develop the blue economy aim to benefit not only India, but also all nations which have maritime resources, especially small island nations and coastal least developed countries. V. Muraleedharan, the Minister of State for External Affairs, who deals with the Gulf and most of the Asian and African maritime states, said, the "responsible development of blue economy forms a cornerstone to the realisation of the vision for a new India."

Modi also announced the constitution of a National Traders’ board for speedy resolution of business disputes, which hold up and delay growth of commercial enterprises engaged in wealth creation.

Complementing these announcements by the Prime Minister, the Cabinet this week set up a high-power committee to "provide support and facilitation for investing in India and to boost growth in key sectors.

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The new panel will be headed by India’s senior-most bureaucrat, the Cabinet Secretary, and will have as members the Secretaries of departments for promoting industry and trade, revenue and economic affairs in addition to the CEO of Niti Aayog, the government’s economic think tank.

The Cabinet further decided to establish Project Development Cells within economic ministries which will work towards facilitating investments in India.

India is seeking to "attract foreign direct investment inflows into the country from large companies which seek to diversify their investments into new geographies, mitigate risks and ramp up production across product lines to serve big markets," a statement issued after the Cabinet meeting said.

Simultaneously, ending a three-month suspension of visas to almost all categories of foreigners, the Ministry of Home Affairs here said aliens could visit for business, healthcare, engineering and other technical work, but only on incoming chartered flights.

"Foreign businessmen coming to India on a Business visa (other than on B-3 visa for sports) in non-scheduled commercial or chartered flights would be permitted," a Home Ministry statement said. The first phase of unlock will have an "economic focus," the government emphasised.