New Delhi, September 11 (IANS). During the BRICS Summit and BRICS Business Forum on Friday, industry leaders and global experts underlined India's growing economic power, innovation potential and its important role in global cooperation. Representatives from various sectors said that India's strong growth rate, entrepreneurial culture, digital public infrastructure and investment-centric policies are creating new opportunities for the BRICS countries.
FICCI Director General Jyoti Vij, while talking to news agency IANS, said that BRICS has now become a large and influential group of 11 member countries and 10 partner countries. He said the group plays an important role in global production, trade, energy, food security and fertilizer supply chains.
He further said that cooperation among BRICS countries can promote job creation, innovation and new business opportunities. He said that it was clearly revealed from the discussions of the leaders at the BRICS Business Forum that all the countries want to move towards shared development and collective progress.
Neeraj Bhatnagar, founder and chairman of The Corporate Profiles India, told IANS that India's strength is not just the economic growth rate of 7.8 per cent, but the entrepreneurship of the country's people. He said that a large number of Indians are thinking of growing on their own and setting up businesses.
He said, “India has such potential in the field of innovation and entrepreneurship, which can become an inspiration for BRICS countries and other countries of the world as well.”
At the same time, Upasana Arora, Managing Director of Yashoda Group of Hospitals, while talking to news agency IANS, said that despite global challenges, India's economy is growing at a strong pace and the credit for this goes to the effective policies of the government. He said that free trade agreements (FTAs) and global economic partnerships will help India reach new heights.
Upasana Arora further said that the presence of the world's major economies at the BRICS platform is a big opportunity for India. He said that in the coming years, India can reach heights which were long imagined, and the country is rapidly moving towards global leadership.
Meanwhile, Harshpati Singhania, Chairman and Managing Director of JK Paper Limited and Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce, told IANS that trade between BRICS countries in local currencies is likely to increase. However, he clarified that this should not be seen as de-dollarization.
He said India has already taken steps towards trading in local currencies with countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Russia. He pointed out that the dollar will retain its important role in the global economy, but the use of local currencies in bilateral trade may increase.
Speaking to IANS, Barista Coffee CEO Rajat Aggarwal said that the government's aim is to involve the business community more actively in the development process. He said that the government's initiative is playing an important role in strengthening global supply chains, increasing employment generation and strengthening business relations between different countries.
Rajat Aggarwal further said that in the last five to six years, India has developed a strong and integrated digital payments system. Today, digital payments have become widespread till the last mile of the country. He pointed out that if UPI and the Indian digital payment model is expanded globally, it will further strengthen India's financial diplomacy and economic influence.
Apart from this, Olivier Frejo, director of international geo-regions at BRGM, a French geological survey organization, while talking to news agency IANS, praised India's National Critical Mineral Mission and said that the importance of critical minerals for energy transition and industrial development is continuously increasing.
He said that minerals like rare earth elements, tungsten and copper will be extremely important for the global economy in the coming years. Copper in particular plays a central role in the process of renewable energy and energy transition.
Frejo further said that cooperation between India and France is increasing in the field of technology, resources, geological data and mineral processing. He informed that there is an ongoing partnership between BRGM and Geological Survey of India (GSI) in areas like exploration, data science and mineral processing.
Olivier Frejo told IANS that increasing India's cooperation with different countries is a visionary strategy, as it will reduce dependence on any one country and make the mineral supply chain more secure. He said that both India and Europe are democratic systems and are working towards long-term and credible development.
He further said that recycling alone will not meet the future demand as the demand for critical minerals is going to increase continuously. Therefore, it will be necessary to discover new sources and develop sustainable production systems.
–IANS
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