Budget: PM Narendra Modi holds meeting with leading CEOs

New Delhi, Dec 20: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday interacted with CEOs of companies from various sectors of industry at Lok Kalyan Marg in the run up to the next Union Budget.

During the meeting, the Prime Minister spoke about the inherent strength of the country, displayed during the battle against Covid and thanked the industry leaders for their inputs and suggestions, and exhorted them to make full use of policies like PLI incentive, a statement from the PMO said.

He said that just like the country aspires for a podium finish at the Olympics, the country also wants to see our industries among the top five of the world in every sector, and this is something for which we should collectively work towards. He said that the corporate sector should invest more in areas like agriculture and food processing, and talked about the shifting focus on natural farming, the statement adds.

PM Modi stressed on the policy consistency of the government and said that the government is firmly committed to take initiatives which will give impetus to the economic progress of the country. He also spoke about the focus of the government towards reducing the compliance burden, and sought suggestions on areas where undue compliances need to be removed.

"His dream is to see Indian companies in top five across the world in all sectors. Government is ready to take all risks for it and create a platform & enabling environment. This was an interactive session as well as a very good inspirational discussion," Vineet Mittal, Chairman, Avaada Group, is quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

The industry representatives gave their feedback to the Prime Minister. They thanked the Prime Minister for putting his faith in the private sector. They said that due to his leadership, the economy of the country is moving ahead on the path of recovery after Covid, through his timely interventions and transformative reforms.

"The interaction with the Prime Minister was interesting, positive and encouraging. He heard us for almost 2 hrs, about all issues & problems & also the opportunities that corporates like us talked about. He talked about opportunities in India & his expectations," Sumant Sinha, Chairman-MD, ReNew Power, said.

They expressed commitment towards contributing to the Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision of the Prime Minister and praised several steps taken by the government like PM GatiShakti, IBC etc. They spoke about steps that can be taken to further boost Ease of Doing Business in the country. They also talked about India's commitments at COP26 and how the industry could contribute towards achieving the goals outlined.

Uday Kotak, MD-CEO, Kotak Mahindra Bank, said that time has come for Indian industry, banking and financial sector to think about scale without fear. Indian banking and finance are out there to support industry across sustainability, inclusion, digital & infrastructure," he added.