India must complete its reform process in next five years: Expert

New York: India must focus on growth of labour-intensive sectors to create decent jobs for the masses as well as give "serious thought" to privatising the public sector banks (PSBs), eminent economist Arvind Panagariya has said, emphasising that the reform process must be completed in the coming five years.

Panagariya, who had served as the first Vice Chairman of the NITI Aayog from January 2015 to August 2017, was responding to a question on what the priorities should be of the government that comes into power when India's mammoth and crucial general elections end next month.

"My personal view is that India must complete its reform process in the coming five years," Panagariya, Director at the Raj Center on Indian Economic Policies at Columbia University, said.

The Deepak and Neera Raj Centre in The School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University provides research and expertise necessary to inform policy decisions, deliver increased prosperity, and define India's future role in the global economy.

Highlighting the priority areas, Panagariya said that India needs a clear focus on the growth of labour-intensive sectors such as apparel, footwear, furniture, kitchenware and other light manufactures to create decent jobs for the masses.

"We need firms in these sectors that are globally competitive and capture the space in export markets that China has been quitting due to its high wages.

This requires flexible labour and land laws and an ecosystem that is yet friendlier to large firms," he said.

Panagariya elaborated that one way to achieve this is to create Shenzhen-style Coastal Employment Zones (in China) that create zones of 500 square kilometers or more along the coast that are characterized by highly entrepreneur-friendly regime with respect to land, labour and international trade.