The government is working on a roadmap for employment generation and economic revival, Information Technology and Communication Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has said.
“The Centre’s commitment towards employment generation can be gauged by the impetus being given to the electronics manufacturing sector,” which alone, he claimed, would add 2.80 crore jobs. The Minister said manufacturing electronic goods would have the twin benefit of creating jobs as well as reducing bills incurred on imports.
“We import electronic goods worth $100 billion and by 2020 this will go up to $400 billion. Going by the indicators, our electronic imports bill will be much larger than our fuel import bill. Therefore, it is imperative that we start manufacturing,” he said.
The Centre is willing to incentivise the manufacturing of electronic goods and has pushed for the clearance of eight electronic clusters in various cities, including Ghaziabad, Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad, Nagpur, Nashik and Thane.
“With Prime Minister Narendra Modi having assured full support and incentives being offered for the sector, a number of States have shown interest. In fact, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh are competing for these clusters,” he said.
Mr. Prasad said the Prime Minister was keen on IT projects. “We are on the cusp of a digital revolution and Mr. Modi is keen on digital connectivity. He wants universities to have wi-fi, to be connected digitally and also wants broadband connections in all schools,” he said.
