R Mukundan, president of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), has emphasized the need for advance preparation steps for delayed monsoon effects this year, including rolling out incentive schemes for farmers at the state level. According to reports from Business Standard, Mukundan stated that states need to start planning for fodder and water for cattle, while providing farmers with drought-resistant seed varieties and late-harvest varieties with short production times. The industry body noted that reservoir levels are slightly better than previous years and buffer stocks are good, providing some cushion against potential rainfall delays.
CII has outlined a three-tier reform approach including foundational reforms, factor reforms, and future-ready reforms. As reported by Business Standard, the foundational reforms focus on improving the speed of doing business beyond ease of doing business, with emphasis on timely land allotment and power supply for projects. The industry body highlighted the need for minimum price mechanisms and price-stability policies for critical minerals and bioethanol, similar to the Gujarat micro-irrigation model that could be replicated nationwide.
According to Business Standard reports, multimodal infrastructure development remains a key concern despite road and railway improvements, with particular focus needed on reducing friction between transport modes. The power sector continues to face significant challenges, with cost variations as high as double between states and high power rates impacting industrial growth in major industrialized states. CII has recommended metered rural distribution to ensure proper measurement of free power allocation, with states that have implemented such reforms showing improved performance.
As reported by Business Standard, the government has demonstrated significant coordination across departments including DPIIT, commerce and industry ministry, external affairs, and finance ministry during the West Asia crisis. The finance ministry moved rapidly to create short-term solutions while identifying new trade areas for export growth. Industry has pivoted rapidly to discover new markets, with CII suggesting a GST-style council for concurrent subjects to ensure better coordination between states and central government on key issues like land allocation and power costs.
