Piyush Goyal Calls for Faster Reforms, Industry-Government Collaboration
to Achieve Viksit Bharat 2047
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Mr.
Goyal says India must convert global uncertainties and geopolitical challenges into
opportunities for faster reforms, stronger supply chains and higher exports
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Piyush
Goyal Expresses Confidence in Services Sector, Highlights Opportunities in AI, Cybersecurity
and Data Centre Ecosystem
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Indian
GCCs are Expanding Rapidly Due to Trust in Indian Talent
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Data
Centres that are Coming Up in Big Way Will Create its Own Ecosystem Benefitting
the Economy
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Piyush
Goyal Calls for Out-of-the-Box Reform Ideas from Industry
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Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal
addressed the ASSOCHAM India Business Reform Summit 2026 in New Delhi on 19 May
2026.
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The Minister called for deeper collaboration
between industry and government to:
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Improve ease of doing business
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Enhance India’s competitiveness
o
Accelerate progress towards Viksit Bharat 2047
Global
Uncertainty Seen as Opportunity
·
Goyal said geopolitical tensions and global
uncertainties should be treated as opportunities for:
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Faster reforms
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Stronger supply chains
o
Better business resilience
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Improved operational efficiency
·
Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said
India has never allowed a crisis to go to waste and would convert global risks
into growth opportunities.
·
Speaking about the West Asia crisis and global
instability, Goyal advised businesses to remain alert to both risks and
opportunities without panicking.
Focus on
Efficiency and Productivity
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The Minister urged businesses to:
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Reduce waste
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Improve productivity
o
Increase energy efficiency
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Adopt smarter business practices
·
He highlighted lessons from the COVID-19 period,
including the effectiveness of:
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Digital engagement
o
Remote working models
o
Technology-driven operations
·
Goyal encouraged Indian industry to adopt best
practices from Japanese manufacturing systems to improve efficiency and
quality.
Growth of
Global Capability Centres (GCCs)
·
India currently hosts around 1,800 Global
Capability Centres (GCCs).
·
These GCCs generate:
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Nearly 2 million direct jobs
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Around 10 million indirect jobs
·
Goyal said global companies increasingly view India
as a trusted partner with skilled and youthful talent capable of supporting
international operations.
AI,
Cybersecurity and Data Centre Push
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The Minister expressed confidence in emerging
sectors such as:
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Artificial Intelligence
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Cybersecurity
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Cloud services
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Data centres
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He said the government is building an enabling
ecosystem through:
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Trusted global partnerships
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Affordable data access
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Renewable energy expansion
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Reliable power infrastructure
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Goyal announced that cloud services exported from
Indian data centres have been granted 100% tax-free status until 2047.
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He said investments in data centres would stimulate
growth across:
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Real estate
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Hospitality
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Logistics
o
Transport
o
Healthcare
o
Education
o
Manufacturing
Export
Growth and FTAs
·
Despite global challenges including tariffs, the
Ukraine war and the West Asia crisis, India achieved record exports of USD 863
billion last year.
·
Growth was recorded in both:
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Merchandise exports
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Services exports
·
Goyal said India is engaging globally from a
position of strength as both:
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A competitive manufacturing hub
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A major services provider
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Referring to Free Trade Agreements covering 38
countries, he urged businesses to:
o
Increase exports
o
Attract investments
o
Expand global market access
o
Avoid FTAs becoming merely channels for higher
imports
·
India is now targeting exports worth USD 1
trillion.
·
Exporters were encouraged to proactively prepare
for upcoming FTAs through:
o
Market exploration
o
Trial orders
o
Product sampling
o
Greater international engagement
Industrial
Parks and Ease of Doing Business
·
Goyal referred to the government’s Bhavya
initiative and consultations regarding 100 new industrial parks.
·
About 20 industrial parks are already under
development.
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The government is considering establishing a single
authority within industrial parks to act as a one-stop centre for:
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Central approvals
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State approvals
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Regulatory clearances
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He urged stronger private sector participation in
improving government systems and ease of doing business.
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Goyal noted that the National Single Window System
launched after COVID had not received sufficient industry engagement and
feedback.
Push for
Value-Added Manufacturing
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The Minister stressed the need to increase exports
of value-added products including:
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Automobiles
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Auto components
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Electronics
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Consumer goods
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Agro-based
processed products
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He said India should export finished goods rather
than raw materials so that:
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Farmers
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Fishermen
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Domestic producers
receive better value realization.
Tourism,
Energy Efficiency and Domestic Consumption
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Goyal highlighted tourism and domestic consumption
as important economic growth drivers.
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He encouraged citizens to promote Indian tourism
destinations.
·
Referring to the Ujala LED bulb programme, he said
the initiative significantly reduced energy consumption and generated annual
savings of nearly ₹1 lakh crore.
Government
Reforms and Administrative Integration
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Goyal said the Commerce Ministry itself is
undergoing internal reforms to improve:
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Transparency
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Efficiency
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Service delivery
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The Ministry currently operates:
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482 offices
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Across 216 cities
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Under 46 organisations
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Plans are underway to consolidate operations into
integrated single-point contact centres in state capitals and major cities.
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Businesses would then be able to access services
related to organisations such as:
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Directorate General of Foreign Trade
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Government e-Marketplace
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Coffee Board
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Spices Board
through digitally connected systems.
Call for
Collaborative Growth
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Goyal urged industry and government to jointly
create scorecards to monitor:
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Indigenisation
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Import substitution
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Exports
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Innovation
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Energy efficiency
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He called for a stronger national culture focused
on:
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Quality
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Productivity
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Localisation
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Innovation
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The Minister concluded by urging all stakeholders
to work together to make India’s Amrit Kaal journey toward Viksit Bharat more
collaborative, efficient and outcome-oriented.
Union
Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal addressed the ASSOCHAM India Business
Reform Summit 2026 in New Delhi on 19 May, 2026 and called for deeper collaboration
between industry and government to advance ease of doing business, enhance India’s
competitiveness and accelerate the country’s journey towards Viksit Bharat 2047.
The
Minister said the present global situation and geopolitical uncertainties should
be viewed as an opportunity for India to strengthen business processes, undertake
faster reforms, build greater resilience and strengthen supply chains. He said India
and Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi have never allowed a crisis to go to waste
and expressed confidence that the country would convert current global risks into
opportunities for growth and reform.
Speaking
on the evolving global situation and the West Asia crisis, Mr. Goyal said businesses
should remain alert to both opportunities and risks without panicking. He said India
had successfully overcome unpredictable challenges such as COVID-19 and emphasised
the need for smarter and more efficient business practices, including reducing waste,
improving productivity and adopting energy efficiency measures.
He
said lessons learnt during the COVID period had demonstrated the effectiveness of
digital engagement and remote working models. Referring to the rapid growth of Global
Capability Centres (GCCs) in India, Mr. Goyal said around 1,800 GCCs are operating
in the country and generating nearly 2 million direct jobs and around 10 million
indirect jobs. He said international companies increasingly recognised India as
a trusted partner with youthful and talented manpower capable of supporting global
operations.
The
Minister expressed confidence in India’s services sector and said emerging technologies
such as Artificial Intelligence and cyber security would create new opportunities.
Mr.
Goyal emphasised that India should look at emerging technologies, business reforms
and global developments as opportunities. He said the government is creating an
enabling ecosystem for investments in data centres and cloud services through trusted
global partnerships, low-cost data availability, renewable energy expansion and
robust power infrastructure.
He
informed that cloud services provided from India or Indian data centres to the rest
of the world have been granted 100 per cent tax-free status till 2047. He said investments
in data centres would create demand across sectors such as real estate, hospitality,
logistics, transport, healthcare, education and manufacturing, thereby generating
a virtuous cycle of economic growth.
Mr.
Goyal urged industry to adopt greater efficiency and reduce waste by learning from
global best practices, including Japanese manufacturing systems. He noted that despite
global challenges such as tariffs, the Ukraine conflict and the West Asia crisis,
India’s exports had reached an all-time high of USD 863 billion last year, with
growth recorded in both merchandise and services exports.
Mr.
Goyal highlighted that India is engaging with the world from a position of strength
and noted that the country is a competitive manufacturer of goods and provider of
services. Referring to the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) covering 38 countries, he
said these agreements open doors for greater engagement and stressed that Indian
businesses must leverage them for attracting investments and increasing exports
rather than allowing imports alone to rise.
Mr.
Goyal said the government would continue to act as an enabler and referred to the
Bhavya initiative and stakeholder consultations regarding the location of 100 new
industrial parks. He informed that 20 parks are already at various stages of development.
Referring to suggestions received during discussions with industry representatives,
he said the government is examining the possibility of establishing a single body
at industrial parks to function as a one-stop shop for all central and state approvals.
The
Minister urged greater engagement from the private sector in improving government
systems and noted that the national single-window system launched post-COVID had
not received adequate participation and feedback from industry. He called upon businesses
to work with the government in identifying specific pain points and improving ease
of doing business through collaborative efforts.
The
Minister said India should focus on increasing exports of more value-added products,
including automobiles, auto components, electronics, consumer goods and agro-based value-added products, so that farmers and fishermen
benefit from better prices and improved value realization. He said Indian products
should reach global shelves as finished products rather than merely as raw materials.
The
Minister also highlighted the importance of tourism and domestic consumption in
strengthening the economy and urged citizens to promote Indian destinations. Referring
to India’s energy efficiency initiatives, he recalled the success of the Ujala LED
bulb programme, which significantly reduced energy consumption and led to savings
estimated at around one lakh crore rupees annually.
He
said India is now targeting exports worth USD 1 trillion and urged exporters to
proactively leverage upcoming FTAs by exploring new markets, conducting sampling
and trial orders and increasing global engagement even before the agreements formally
come into effect.
The
Minister reiterated that the Government works in an integrated manner rather than
in silos and invited industry to provide out-of-the-box suggestions to the government.
He said the Commerce Ministry itself is undertaking internal reforms to improve
efficiency and transparency.
Mr.
Goyal informed that the Ministry, which has 482 offices across 216 cities under
46 organisations, is working towards consolidating operations into single-point
contact centres in state capitals and major cities. He said this would enable businesses
to access services related to organisations such as DGFT, Coffee Board, Spices Board,
GeM and other bodies through integrated and digitally
connected systems.
Calling
for a culture focused on quality, productivity, localisation and innovation,
Mr. Goyal suggested that industry and government jointly develop scorecards to track
progress in areas such as indigenisation, import substitution, exports, energy efficiency
and innovation.
The
Minister urged all stakeholders to work together towards making the Amrit Kaal journey
towards Viksit Bharat more outcome-oriented, efficient and collaborative.