SAMBALPUR: Principal secretary to the Prime Minister of India, Pramod Kumar Mishra on Saturday said India is striving to be ‘Atma Nirbhar’ which goes beyond self-sufficiency and focusses on the production for the world.
He was addressing the 56th annual conference of the Odisha Economic Association organised by the Department of Economics, Sambalpur University here.
Addressing the gathering, he said, global uncertainties have arisen from three sources - geopolitical uncertainty, technology and innovation such as AI-driven uncertainty, and environmental concerns or energy transition related uncertainties. “Amidst global uncertainties, Indian economy remains a major performer,” he highlighted.
In order to achieve sustainable development one should focus on economic growth that ensures an equal society and makes the world a safer place, Mishra stated. “For addressing the environmental concerns India has taken initiatives like LIFE, Solar Alliance and CDRI. Other countries too should join their hands in these initiatives,” Mishra informed the audience.
He further cited in last two budgets of the Union government, a number of initiatives have been taken to address the environmental concerns. During COVID-19 when the world was giving a number of stimulus packages, India adopted labour reforms, implementation of GST, Insolvency and Bankruptcy code to promote the participation of private sector.
He also spoke on how the government of India is investing a higher percentage of budget on infrastructure through PM Gati Shakti. “India has adopted logistic policy, production linked incentives, signed more free trade agreements. Moreover, India has announced to reduce carbon intensity of the growth by 45 per cent, increase the electricity generation capacity to 50 pc and adopted Green Hydrogen initiatives, Nano Urea, rooftop solar, modular nuclear energy,” Mishra stated.
For ensuring social equality government has implemented National Education Policy, PM Awas, Jal Jeevan, PM Swanidhi, PM Viswakarma schemes, skill development, he informed and said “Government is stressing the use of technology in every field to ensure better delivery of services. JAM trinity (Jan Dhan, Aadhar, and Mobile) is one such example.”
President of Odisha Economic Association and former chief secretary, Odisha government Jugal Kishore Mohapatra emphasised that in order to face the future uncertainties we need to strengthen the institutions.
On the first day of the two-day conference, over 300 delegates participated. The themes of the conference include Pathways for Sustainable Growth in an Uncertain World and Emerging Issues in the Social Sector of Odisha.
In the panel discussion on challenges of regional development, speakers spoke on how Odisha needs to build the capacity of SCs and STs to achieve inclusive growth.