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K.V. Kurmanath

Hyderabad , Sept. 4

THE Confederation of Indian Industry (AP Chapter) has called for a simplified industry-friendly policy framework, rationalisation of cost of finance and quality infrastructure at an affordable price to facilitate unhindered growth in the State.

In interview with Business Line, Mr Satish Reddy, Chairman of CII (AP) and Chief Operating Officer of Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd, said that areas such as infrastructure development, IT, IT-enabled Services, biotechnology and power would drive the State's economy. "The Government should encourage more public-private partnerships to trigger growth in these areas."

"Take, for example, the model of some of the most developed economies. We can see a fine blend of public-private initiatives that has led to their success," he observed.

"Industry looks at the Government for facilitation of developmental process by creating conducive business environment, which is a combination of simplification of procedures, quality infrastructure and less delays at critical junctures. What we need is cooperation at all levels to build overall competitiveness to face global challenges in the post-WTO (World Trade Organisation) regime," he said.

Referring to CII's effort on sustainable infrastructure for the South, he said there was a need to improve the operational matrix of transportation, including rail, roads and ports. "Address the bottlenecks on a priority basis, make optimum use of resources and encourage private participation."

The first draft of a report, comprising opinions from all the Southern States is expected to be out soon.

The apex industry body sees positive trends emerging in the economy this year. "Last year was not a good year. A lot of issues weakened the economy. Thanks to a good monsoon, we can see an uptrend in the agricultural and manufacturing industries. We have revised the growth forecast for the year," he said.

Asked whether IT out weighed other sectors in getting Government support, he said that growth in the IT sector was quite high, going by the figures. "But, I wouldn't say that other sectors have been ignored. Maybe, they might not have got the priority they required," he observed.

Alluding to the initiatives taken by the Government in the fields of pharma and biotech sectors, he said there was a feel-good factor in the State that would boost the prospects. "The momentum is picking up steadily. We have a clear edge in the pharma, food processing, business process outsourcing and hospitality sectors," he said.

Stating that the CII would act as a catalyst, he said it would provide necessary platforms to facilitate interaction among the stakeholders.

Asked about the status of a number of projects announced at the Partnership Summit held under the aegis of CII, he said some of them had taken shape and some others had been dropped. "But our job is to provide a platform. We will provide more such platforms."

According to Mr Reddy, the CII, which has been largely considered as a Hyderabad-centric association, will be fanning out to the rest of the State. "We have started conducting meetings in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam as well."

The association has also started working on "linkage projects" with a view to synergise the strengths of small-scale and large-scale industries.

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