India needs boldness in policy implementation: Birla

Amidst global economic worries, Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla today said the government needs "boldness" in policy implementation as fiscal measures taken in 2008 "seem either unsustainable or just not up to the task".

Delivering 'JRD Tata Memorial Lecture 2011' organised by industry chamber Assocham, Birla said the country should focus more on increasing the manufacturing sector's contribution.

"The prospects of a double-dip recession now seem very real... We need boldness, speed, decisiveness and experimentation in policy and implementation.

"The fiscal measures that were needed and were appropriate to resolve the problems in 2008 suddenly seem either unsustainable or just not up to the task," he said.

The queue behind Greece grows longer with fiscal problems hitting other nations such as Portugal, Spain, Italy and Ireland, he added.

"The US debt situation has also escalated into a new zone of danger. Japan is entering a third decade of low growth," he said, adding the shifts in global economic situation have become extremely volatile and unpredictable.

"This calls for a global coordinated response... The prospects for a return to pre-crisis normalcy are difficult," Birla said, adding international trade is coming under pressure from the possibility of protectionism and currency manipulation.

He said the country needs to go over-drive in manufacturing sector to increase in contribution.

"Currently manufacturing sector contributes about 15% to India's GDP. It should at least go up to 25%," Birla said.

He also urged the government to undertake reforms in Indian agriculture sector, which contributes about 15% to the GDP.

"More than half of our population depends on agriculture for their livelihood. Hence, reforms in agriculture are required to be implemented with a sense of urgency," he added.