'Labour reforms & banks' privatisation rqd'

MUMBAI: The India Policy Forum on friday said sweeping labour reforms, privatisation of the banking sector, encouraging fiscal consolidation and rapid expansion of unskilled labour-intensive manufacturing was the need of the hour to give a further momentum to the 15-year-old Indian economic reforms agenda.

All the panelists of the forum, a joint venture between the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) and Brookings Institution, Washington, were unanimous in their opinion that while India has progressed substantially since its economy was opened up, there were still important areas where much more was still needed to be done.

In a discussion chaired by the Deputy Governor of RBI, Rakesh Mohan, the panelists comprising of distinguished personalities were unanimous in their opinion that unless labour reforms were initiated soon, efficient units would not enter the market.

Pointing out that China was much ahead of India in segments such as apparel, textiles and leather, the panelists said this was because China was strongly focussing on labour-intensive manufacturing, which India has not done because of the lack of "a right environment."

It is in this context that labour reforms were the need of the hour so that Indian firms can compete globally on even terms.

Privatisation of banks and not just divestment, plus fiscal consolidation were also emphasised while the strengthening of banking supervision and reduction in NPAs were welcomed.