Karnataka should strive to become like Gujarat in terms of manufacturing goods, Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) K H Muniyappa said on Saturday.
Speaking at a programme organised by Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) to present Export Excellence Awards to exporters, he said the state’s exports are worth Rs 1,65,000 crore and hoped that this would increase in the near future.
“The state’s exports are good. We have to set up manufacturing units and industries on the lines of Gujarat and Maharashtra. I am hoping that our export touches Rs 2 lakh crore mark in a few years,” he said.
He expressed concern over the export-import disparity and said the country’s export business is worth Rs 300 million dollars and the import business is worth Rs 480 million dollars.
“We should try hard to stabilise it and not lose any foreign exchange,” he said.
Earlier, speaking at a press conference, Muniyappa said the National Manufacturing Policy 2011 targets the share of manufacturing sector in GDP from 16 to 25 per cent by 2025 and the share of MSME is expected to increase by over 40 per cent from the current 36 per cent, he added.
Director General of Foreign Trade Anup K Pujari said exporters may think rupee depreciation was something to celebrate about, but it is not true.
It may be helpful to a few industries, like the software companies, he observed.
“We import crude oil for the petroleum products and the gold for gems and jewellery. Considering this, the rupee depreciation is not good at all for India and we should hope for the stabilisation of the rupee value,” Pujari said.