“India is at the threshold of a major structural shift in its growth trajectory:” RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das at 188th AGM of Bombay Chamber

June 26, 2024, Mumbai: India is at the threshold of a major structural shift in its growth trajectory, moving towards 8 percent GDP growth in a sustained manner, said RBI Governor Shri Shaktikanta Das. He was speaking at the 188^th AGM of Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry. Giving figures, Shri Das said that the average growth India recorded over the last three years is 8.3%, with the current year projected at 7.2% growth. “The Indian economy in the last FY contributed to 18.5 percent of global growth – and this is no mean achievement,” he added. 

According to Shri Das, the main drivers for this growth in the last three years have been the various structural reforms and policy initiatives. He pointed out that GST has stabilised much faster than other economies – this is reflected in the fact that the tax collections in GST has touched 1.7 lakh crores per month. Further, the introduction of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code and Flexible Inflation Targeting Framework by way of amendment to RBI Act in 2016 – have all helped this growth.

Shri Das further said that India’s growth story has been and will be multi sectoral. “A country with a 140 crore population, which is the fifth largest economy, aspiring to become the third largest and an advanced economy by 2047, cannot depend on a  single sector.”  He mentioned how growth is well sustained with the outlook for the current year at 7.2 %. “Inflation is at 4.7 percent with downside risks, our aim is to bring it down to 4%, but this will take time for us to achieve.” 

He also spoke about the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and said that it is the future of money. He added that the digital currency will not be in competition with UPI and, instead, both will co-exist and be interoperable. 

Concluding his Address, Shri Das said, “As a central bank, we have issued our agenda for RBI@100. We are at the forefront of adoption of technology and of innovation and are fully committed to all its mandates and responsibilities assigned to it and in supporting India’s growth story.”

In his Presidential address, Ritesh Tiwari, outgoing President, Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry and CFO, Hindustan Unilever and Unilever South Asia, outlined the Chamber’s various path breaking initiatives and said, “Bombay Chamber’s continued programmatic educative interventions, like the many we did this year, are paramount to accelerate the pace of digitisation across the country that is needed to capitalise on this potential thus driving pan India innovation.” 

Tiwari also highlighted the high quality of advocacy papers submitted by the Bombay Chamber, and their impactful recommendations to the SEBI expert committee for improving the ease of doing business. He noted that most of these recommendations were accepted and are now open for public consultation, emphasising that such advocacy by the Chamber has a significant and tangible impact.

Delivering her mission statement, Pinky Mehta, President Designate, Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Director, Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance, said, “In keeping with our government’s vision of making India a Developed Nation, I wish to call my mission statement ‘Collaborative Development towards a Viksit Bharat‘. The same four critical aspects of the mission will continue with a focus on (1) Embracing Digitalisation (2) Bringing ESG to the heart of business (3) Enhancing Ease of Doing Business and (4) Fostering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.”

At the event, the Chamber also unveiled the findings of its inaugural Sustainability Practices Survey. Anirban Ghosh, Chairman of the Sustainability Committee at Bombay Chamber and Head of the Centre for Sustainability at Mahindra University, presented the key highlights.

Aligned with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Viksit Bharat@2047, the evening also saw a Panel Discussion on the topic. The panel was moderated by Dr. Sachchidanand Shukla, Chairman, EPRD Committee, Bombay Chamber and Group Chief Economist, Larsen & Toubro Ltd, and featured Nilesh Shah, Past President, Bombay Chamber and Group President & MD, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company, Navneet Munot, Director, Bombay Chamber and MD & CEO, HDFC Asset Management Company, Neelkanth Mishra, Chief Economist, Axis Bank and MD & Head of Global Research, Axis Capital and Santanu Sengupta, Chief India Economist, Goldman Sachs. They discussed steps that need to be taken for India to reach its aim of a Viksit Bharat by 2047 – while the country is already developed in terms of digital infrastructure, there is a need to look at important aspects such as climate change, technology, significant health and income inequality, and ensure growth shifts from poverty to middle income. Reforms are also needed in areas such as GST, direct tax and urban infrastructure, where the biggest drawback for us viz a viz developed countries is capital stock. 

Rajiv Anand, Sr. Vice President Designate, Bombay Chamber and Deputy Managing Director, Axis Bank, delivered the Vote of Thanks.