Nirmala Sitharaman to meet India Inc on January 7

NEW DELHI: The commerce and industry ministry will take up a host of issues related to the manufacturing sector and improving ease of doing business with representatives of industry chambers on January 7.

The meeting will be chaired by Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Representatives from industry bodies including CII and Ficci will attend the meet.

Three presentations will be given by senior officials of the ministry on Make in India, Start-Up India and Ease of Doing business, an official said.

"After the presentations, issues related to these areas will be discussed between the ministry and industry chambers," the official added.

The meeting assumes significance against the backdrop of declining exports and contraction in the core sector industries.

India's exports continued to be in negative zone for the 12th straight month as outward shipments slumped by almost one-fourth to USD 20.01 billion in November on account of global demand slowdown and falling oil prices.

Similarly, in its worst performance in seven months, output of the eight core sectors contracted by 1.3 per cent in November from the year-ago period on account of a sharp drop in steel, cement and crude oil production.