PM Modi’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ Important Initiative: IMF

Calling for a ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ (self-reliant India) by Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi is a significant initiative, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday.

Mr Gerry Rice, Director, Communications Department, IMF, said, “The economic package under this self-reliant India initiative, which was announced in the aftermath of the coronavirus shock, has supported the Indian economy and mitigated significant downside risks, so we do see that initiative as having been important”.

Looking ahead, as the Prime Minister said, for India to play a greater role in the global economy, it is important to follow policies that stimulate the economy by improving productivity and competitiveness, he said, referring to a query on Modi’s call for a ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat.’

Mr Rice said, “To achieve the stated ‘Make For The World’ goal in India, the priority is to remain focussed on policies that can help further integrate India in the global value chain, including through trade, investment and technology”.

In response to another issue, the IMF’s joint study with NITI Aayog and the Ministry of Finance showed that India would have to steadily increase its overall investment in the healthcare sector from the current 3.7% of GDP to achieve a high performance in health-related sustainable development objectives.

Mr Rice stated, “More generally, beyond the health sector, comprehensive structural reforms are needed to achieve more inclusive and sustainable medium-term growth. We have talked about those reforms before — infrastructure, land reforms, product market and labour market reforms, increasing female labour force participation, access to finance and better jobs”.

Source : IBEF