India Inc should play more active role in partnering with the Government to help propel economic growth, Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu has said.
Inaugurating the CII Partnership Summit 2015 at Jaipur on Thursday, Prabhu also said States should in the next few years look to convert themselves into "specialists" and focus on attracting investments in their areas of specialisation.
Infrastructure linked to such areas of specialisation needs to be created and this could help improve growth of the economy, he added.
There is a need to ramp up infrastructure spend as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) to 10-11 percent levels, Prabhu said.
Later, at a press conference, Nirmala Sitharaman said it made sense for States with already proven strengths to pursue the path suggested by the Railways Minister Prabhu.
Pursuing specialisation may not be right solution for all the States, she noted, when asked about Prabhu's suggestion on the need for all States to turn themselves into centres of excellence.
Partnership Summit--the flagship summit of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)--is being held at Rajasthan after a gap of 15 years.
The latest edition is significant as it is the first such event held after a new Government assumed office at the Centre in May last year.
It is also the first after Vasundhara Raje led dispensation came to power in the State of Rajasthan.
As many as 51 countries are represented at the Partnership Summit 2015. Also, 24 trade and economy ministers are expected to attend this three-day event.
RAJE WOOS INDUSTRY
Rajasthan is focused on developing an ecosystem that would help bring job-oriented growth for the State, Vasundhara Raje, Chief Minister, said in her keynote address at the Partnership Summit on Thursday.
The State has embarked on a new economic journey where its future growth could be secured through inclusive growth as well as skill building among its youth, she said.
She also said that Rajasthan will soon have full-fledged Skills University.
Rajasthan--which took the lead in bringing some labour law reforms--is now actively looking to re-engineer the processes so that it could buttress the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Make in India' initiative with 'Make in Rajasthan', Raje said.
Rajasthan will not only focus on the Smart Cities initiative of the Modi-led government, but will also develop knowledge hubs, she added.
Raje also announced that the State plans to host a "Resurgent Rajasthan" event in November this year and expressed hope that industry would take active interest in that event also.