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Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, on Wednesday said India will continue to grow 6 to 8% in real terms and 10 to 13% in nominal terms in the next five years.
Speaking at the session on 'Bet on India - Bank on the Future' organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with EY coinciding with the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2026 at Davos, Vaishnaw spoke of the government's efforts towards ease of doing business. "India will continue to grow 6 to 8% in real terms and 10 to 13% in nominal terms, supported by moderate inflation and strong growth," he said. The Minister highlighted the importance of simplification of permissions and noted that the average time for installation of telecom tower permission has decreased from 270 days to 7 days, with 89% permissions coming in zero time. He further highlighted that there is a need to bridge the gap between the intent and the functioning. Vaishnaw also discussed the importance of communicating challenges amongst the industry members, mentioning standardisation of data localisation norms across the US and Europe. Rajiv Memani, President, CII and Regional Managing Partner, Africa-India Region, EY, called for increasing India's per capita income by at least five times by 2047. He highlighted India's strategy to diversify its trade relationships, noting that agreements with regions such as the Middle East, the Asia Pacific, and the United Kingdom are becoming increasingly important, and also pointed out the significant reforms undertaken domestically such as labour reforms and the implementation of GST, which lowered tax rates on consumer food products. Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII said, "This discussion is particularly timely. As the global economy navigates uncertainty, fragmentation, and rapid technological change, India stands out as a market of scale, stability, and long-term opportunity." Earlier in Davos, Ashwini Vaishnaw rejected the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva's suggestion that India belongs to a second tier of AI economies, saying that India is clearly in the first group globally. "I don't know what the IMF criteria has been, but Stanford places India as third in terms of AI penetration, in terms of AI preparedness, and in terms of AI talent," he said during a World Economic Forum (WEF) panel discussion. Addressing the IMF chief directly regarding the classification, he stated, "I don't think your classification in the second book is right. It's actually in the first." The Union Minister detailed India's comprehensive strategy across the five layers of AI architecture, which include the application, model, chip, infrastructure, and energy layers. He noted that India is making significant progress in all these sectors to ensure its independence in the global tech landscape. Vaishnaw emphasised that India is charting its own course rather than strictly aligning with the paradigms set by the United States or China. (ANI)
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