JOIN USUnion Home Minister Rajnath Singh said that the country has the potential to emerge as a super power.
“I am confident that India will become a super power going forward,” Singh said, while speaking at the plenary session of the Maritime India Summit 2016.
According to Singh, shipbuilding and ship-repairing offer investment opportunities. “Shipbuilding and ship-repairing is a potential area of investment. Given the availability of highly-trained technical manpower and reasonable cost of inputs including labour, under the Make in India programme of the government, the country can become a major player in shipbuilding and ship-repair,” Singh said.
“I hope that the contribution to GDP from the shipping and road sector will increase 2-3 times under the leadership of Union Shipping and Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari,” Singh said, adding that the government is looking forward to the Ministry of Shipping, and all other stakeholders to make the maritime sector a vibrant and dynamic one, and one which will be a flagbearer for the nation.
As far as export-import trade is concerned, Singh said that he hopes that 50% of exim trade is done through the sector, going forward. “When the British came to India, we were producing 30% of world GDP and our shipping industry was thriving. We can again enter that golden era by increasing shipping trade in value and volume.
India can be more prosperous by increasing seaborne trade of finished goods, by strengthening our shipping routes and improving our shipping and shipbuilding activities. Let us try to ship at least 50% of all total exim cargo through Indian shipping companies and with ships built in India,” Singh said.
Around 141 agreements totalling Rs 82,905 crore were signed in the first two days of the Maritime India Summit, by various players in maritime sector including major ports, State Maritime Boards, etc.