Govt Must Shed British-Style Bureaucracy To Achieve $5 Trillion Economy: Gopichand Hinduja

Hinduja Group co-chairman Gopichand Hinduja on Tuesday, December 17 said the target of $5-trillion Indian economy by 2024 is achievable if the central government sheds the British style of bureaucracy.

The industry veteran also said that the company is interested in investing more than $20 billion in India, but it would want the government to remove the obstacles and provide ease of doing business.

“The first step we have to see is how our bureaucracy will be modified. Some 6-7 years back, we wanted to invest $20 billion more in India. When we started getting in, we could see so many obstacles and was not easy to do business. But when Modi announced the initiative of ease of doing business, we thought things will change,” Hinduja said.

“$5-trillion economy is an achievable target. The initiatives taken by Modi are great, and his vision is excellent, but his team has to be fast,” Hinduja said at the India Economic Conclave 2019 event.

He further said his company would love to invest more and more in the country because India has the maximum opportunities to investors from all over the world. Speaking at the event, Hinduja Group of Companies chairman Ashok Hinduja noted that system processes need to change.

“There is a lot of criticism from the SME and corporate sector about the fear and psyche, but I think this has to be there. We have to change the seven-decade-old system processes, and there has to be a stick approach, and we need more transparency. But at the same time, there should be a limit to it, and everything cannot be criminalised,” he added.

At the same event, India-born International Monetary Fund chief economist, Gita Gopinath said that IMF is all set to cut the growth estimate for India ‘significantly’.

A fall in consumption, lack of private investments and sluggish exports are being pointed at a slower GDP growth which slipped to a six-year low of 4.5 per cent in September. Gopinath said India is the only emerging market which has experienced a such a fall in the economy.

Also Read: India’s Growth Forecast Likely To Be Significantly Cut In January: IMF Chief Economist Gita Gopinath