Targets, programmes and policies pertaining to economic growth is what people should look for in public debates of political parties, rather than rating their slogans alone, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, former Deputy Chairman of the erstwhile Planning Commission of India, said on Friday.
Social inclusion through emphasis on education and health ought to be an essential component of economic growth. While utility of investment on education is a long-time prospect, the focus on health will reflect in a short-term benefit of stronger workforce that is required for achieving economic growth, Mr. Ahluwalia said.
He was delivering a guest lecture on ‘Future prospects of economy’ at National Institute of Technology - Tiruchi (NIT-T) as part of Pragyan ‘19, the annual techno-management festival.
Referring to the NDA government making a lower estimate of the growth rate recorded during the UPA regime, Mr. Ahluwalia observed that the path to achieving the ₹10 trillion GDP target by 2032 necessitated a better year-on-year growth than the current level of 7.5%. agricultural growth of 4%, for instance, would not augur well for the country where the sector accounting for 17 % of the GDP supported 47 % of the population.
Only by reducing dependency on agriculture through provision of alternative employment can the set targets be achieved meaningfully, he explained.
A policy decision also needs to be taken on improving the reach of education through public and private sectors. Allowing private sector to compete with public sector in this area was ideal, he felt.
Future economic growth will be determined by the country's inherent strength, the state of the world, effective management of macro economy and the state of the policies.
There are signs of downslide in the economies of the USA, European Union, China, Russia and Middle-East for the next two to three years, Mr. Ahluwalia said, reflecting on the state of the world.
On macro-economic management, he said the trend of 6% fiscal deficit every year was a hindrance for economic progress. The extent of fiscal deficit will be more if the State budgets are factored in. To bridge the deficit, hard decisions on matters such as disinvestment of public sector undertakings and cutting down of subsidies would become essential.
There were also views that rigid labour law was an obstacle for increasing quantum of workforce. There was also a compulsion to integrate technology progress into the nation's growth. Notwithstanding apprehensions that technology adoption will lead to loss of jobs, the country cannot grow in isolation from the rest of the world. The challenge is in creating a nimble economy factoring in these aspects, he said.
Earlier, Dr. Ahluwalia inaugurated a new training and placement facility christened ‘Çapstone’ in the presence of Director of NIT-T Mini Shaji Thomas.
