Click to play videoNew Delhi: India is on the move like never before. The reform process started with the liberalisation of the economy in the 1991 is bearing fruit today. And the most significant consequence has been the emergence of a new face of entrepreneurship. At CNN-IBN, we call this the birth of a Young India.
Sixteen days before the Union Finance Minister rise to present the Union Budget 2007, things have never looked better. The economy is growing in about 9 per cent, the industry is scorching at a growth rate of about 11 per cent, and in the second week of February, corporate India has sealed up deals in excess of $25 billion.
In that context, CNN-IBN's Shireen Bhan spoke to a large group of representatives from the Corporate India's GenNext on CNN-IBN’s special show Rising India: Corporate India's Generation Next to find out where they see the economic blueprint of India in the next the couple of years. It was the largest congregation of corporate leaders in Indian television history. To begin with, a simple question was put to the young corporate leaders:
Do you rate the Budget as the most significant economic event of the economic calendar?
In a quick vote on the question among the congregation, as many as 67 per cent voted 'yes', 33 per cent said 'no'.
"I think India has reached a stage today where lots of policy are already there as a foundation," says Shivinder M Singh, MD, Fortis Healthcare. "So it's the incremental policy that are coming and shaping up, which could be significant but they are incremental. So they don't really change the course of the direction. It will be significant only if it changes the course. I don't think it's changing the course."
Ratul Puri, ED of Moser Baer, says: "There may be other events that take place through the year. There may be lesser importance to the Budget today than there was in the pre-liberalisation period. But relative to other economic events, besides the RBI setting fiscal policies, it is certainly the most significant economic event. Should it be the most significant event, that's a different question though."
Some say the Budget should be an economic blueprint, some say it should just be a statement of account. What should the Budget ought to be?
"I firmly believe that there should be less government and more governance," says Ratul Puri of Moser Baer.
Rajiv Bajaj, CEO of Bajaj Auto, says: "The Budget is okay for the government to work on the system. There is some skepticism about that. But as far as I am concerned, there is so much we can do in the system to keep the economy moving forward."
Has the government done enough to sustain and maintain a double-digit growth? Do you think on the policy framework and on the regulatory environment, what the government has actually done will sustain and push up to that double-digit growth?
In an instant voting, 73 per cent of participants said 'no', 23 per cent said 'yes' and the rest four per cent voted 'can't say'.
"I think, fundamentally, the government hasn't done anything significantly negative," argues Rajiv Memani, CEO and Chairman, of E&Y, India. "But you can actually count the initiatives that have been taken. I think the Finance Minister has done a very good job of focusing on fiscal deficit, on ensuring that the tax collections stay on course."
"But if you look at what is required is now much more detailed reforms. If you look at the hurdles, it's coalition politics. I think it's time for the senior politicians to stand up and try and actually make an effort to convince the public at large — if not convincing the other parties, because that's a dogmatic stand — that what is happening is happening for the good of the public," he says.
Ashish Gupta, COO, and Country Head of Evalueserve, says: "Overall, if you look at the growth rate of India, it is primarily coming from urban India. You could say 20-22 per cent growth is coming from urban areas and there are really small growth rates in the rural areas. And 65 per cent of India still live in the rural parts of our country. It's time they are brought into the growth spheres and there is more inclusive growth."
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