As GDP growth slumps to 5.8%, India Inc urges Modi Cabinet 2.0 to focus on economy

India Inc Friday said the priority for the new NDA government will be to kick-start the economy as soon as possible. The comments came on the day when India lost the tag of the fastest growing economy with the March quarter growth at 5.8 per cent and the portfolios to the 57 ministers allocated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In FY19, the GDP grew 6.8 per cent as against 7.2 per cent in FY18.

Speaking to reporters, TVS Motor Chairman Venu Srinivasan said with the crisis in the NBFC sector, there is not enough money supply and customers don't have money to buy products. "All sectors are suffering from lower growth like FMCG, auto including cars, trucks two wheeler and tractors. So, the first challenge for the government will be to kick-start the economy and get growth...," he said on the sidelines of a memorial event for Professor Lord Sushanta Kumar Bhattacharyya, organised by CII. He said there is a need to push demand with flow of credit to the consumers.

Echoing the view Tata Steel managing director, TV Narendran said the first focus of the new cabinet will be on fixing the economy and getting it started again in a good way that it was. "There will be focus on rural economy as well. So, we look forward for the new team (of ministers) setting things in motion, which I am sure they will," he said.

He said foreign direct investment is coming into the country and soon private investments will also pick up. Talking about the steel sector, Narendran said the BJP in its manifesto talked a lot about infrastructure and if the government gets on and invest in infrastructure then it would be good for the steel industry both from the point of view of demand and cost efficiency.

He said the steps the Reserve Bank of India has taken a lot of steps to improve liquidity situation in the NBFC sector. Professor Bhattacharyya, founder and chairman of WMG (Warwick Manufacturing Group) at University of Warwick, was a British-India engineer, educator and government advisor. He was passed away recently in the UK.

Speaking at the event, Tata Group chairman emeritus Ratan Tata said he had met Bhattacharyya 18-19 years back and shared his idea of producing cars in India. "We met because I have, perhaps, a crazy idea of producing a car in India ourselves. But many felt that this is a crazy view. My international friends decided to distance themselves from me. Later, my friends in India decided to distance themselves because closeness to failure was something that they tried to avoid.

"One person did not, and that was Kumar. He encouraged that risk to be taken and, infact, backed it up with great deal of assistance from Warwick and so the first car in India, the Indica, come to be," Tata recalled. The event was attended by Tata Sons Group chairman, N Chandrasekaran; Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing company chairman and managing director Jamshyd N Godrej and Hero Enterprise chairman Sunil Kant Munjal, among others.