‘Core sector could create 10 crore jobs’

In a two-day visit to the textile town, Shah had come to interact with industrial organisations and entrepreneurs to get a first-hand idea about the problems faced by them and find appropriate solutions. 

Shah opined that the manufacturing sector’s contribution to the GDP had gone up by 2.1 per cent in the last two years. The government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative is aimed at highlighting the role of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in creating employment opportunities. 

Also, a focus on the manufacturing sector through investments would be able to generate a three-fold increase in employment compared to services sector, Shah noted, citing the manufacturing to GDP contribution of countries such as Thailand (35 per cent to GDP), China (32 pc), Philippines (30 pc) and Indonesia (29 pc). 

Though 65 per cent of India’s population is below 35 years, the demand for jobs is from 1.5 crore people entering the employment scene every year. Even at the best growth rate of 8.5 per cent, the number of jobs available were only 40 lakh a year. Therefore, entrepreneurship seemed to be a better alternative for employment generation, Shah added.