Industry should realign itself keeping political, strategic policies in mind: Nirmala Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said the industry will have to realign its policies keeping in mind the political and strategic decisions of the country.

Outlining the priorities of the economy for the next decade, Sitharaman also said attempts should be made to restore global calm and normalcy and noted that war or any form of disruption should be avoided.

Sitharaman said the economy has to "clawback" more to regain its strength after the Covid pandemic and any skirmish or war will impact the supply chains and food value chains.

"The world is facing challenges which are reflected in the economy," the Minister said at the CII Global Economic Policy Forum here.

Talking about ways to tackle supply chain disruptions, Sitharaman said that currently there is a need to blend economic priorities with politics and strategic needs.

"When we talk about restoring supply chains to frictionless supply chains, let's not forget it's not just economics, it's more than that... We have to build in our decision-making not just in the economic sense but also in a political and strategic sense.

"Supply chains will have to be restored but you would have to reset it, realign it, you will have to make sure that it is spread so much that no geopolitical or strategic risks will threaten our wellbeing, Sitharaman said.

She said lessons learnt in the last decade should tell us that the country will have to now realign, and industry will have to realign itself not just on economic principles.

There is a need to blend large, small and medium industries to achieve scale and spread and job creation, Sitharaman said.

"Industry will have to look at ways to adapt with newer challenges," she said, adding scale cannot be the only criterion.