Commerce Min formulating new industrial policy; likely in Oct

The commerce ministry today said it has started a process to formulate a new industrial policy, expected to be released in October, which is aimed at making India as a global manufacturing hub.
The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), under the ministry, said that since the announcement of last industrial policy in 1991, India has transformed into one of the fastest growing economies in the world.
"With strong macro-economic fundamentals and several path breaking reforms in the last three years, India is equipped to deploy a different set of ideas and strategies to build a globally competitive Indian industry. The new policy will subsume the National Manufacturing Policy," it said in a statement.

The DIPP has constituted six focus groups for the policy and an online survey is being conducted to obtain inputs.
The groups have members from government departments, industry associations, academia and think tanks.
The six areas on which the group would focus are - manufacturing and MSME; technology and innovation; ease of doing business; infrastructure, investment, trade and fiscal policy; and skills and employability for the future.

Besides, a task force on artificial intelligence has been set up to provide inputs for the policy.
The new policy is likely to be announced in October this year, it added.
"It is proposed that the new Industrial Policy will aim at making India a manufacturing hub by promoting Make in India. It will also suitably incorporate the use of modern smart technologies such as internet of things, artificial intelligence and robotics for advanced manufacturing," it said.

Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will also hold consultations with stakeholders, including industry captains, think tanks and states in Chennai, Guwahati and Mumbai.
DIPP has also sought comments, feedback and suggestions from the public for the proposed policy.