Bhubaneswar: Foreign trade is very important when India targets to achieve 400 billion dollar merchandise export in this fiscal, said Asit Kumar Tripathy, Principal Advisor to the Odisha Chief Minister.
Noting that Odisha has set a target of achieving Rs 1 lakh crore exports by 2025, Tripathy said the state is confident to achieve the feat this year itself.
“Odisha is the steel capital of India now and two aluminum parks are coming up. The state is set to become a top exporter in the country,” the former Chief Secretary said while participating in the Vanijya Utsav organized here on Tuesday.
The Department of Commerce (DoC) under the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry and DGFT in association with the state MSME and Industries Departments organized the Vanijya Utsav, an Exporter’s Conclave as part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav to showcase India as a rising economic force.
“India has set a target of 400 billon dollar export, which is a quantum jump from the current export of 291 billion dollar. It will be possible with collaborations of policy makers and stakeholders,”Prafulla Chandra Mishra, Statistical Advisor,DGFT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry said.
Satyabrata Sahu, Principal Secretary, MSME Department of Odisha, said despite the pandemic, the State has improved in export. “The state has rich mines, mineral, marine, agricultural and other valuable resources and is contributing to the economic growth nationally. In the first quarter of this year alone, Rs 41000 crore worth of export has already been achieved,” he said.
Hemant Sharma, Principal Secretary, State’s Industries Department, said initiatives like Vanijya Utsav coinciding with Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav are the need of the hour. “We need to focus on our future export policies. We need to start thinking about plans for the next 25 years so that when we celebrate India’s 100th year of independence, we will be able to make it memorable,” he said.
The event was organized in hybrid mode where senior officials from the government of Odisha, DGFT, Indian Oilseeds and Produce Export Promotion Council (IOPEPC), ECGC, FIEO and other stakeholders made excellent presentations showcasing India as a rising economic force.
The conclave was attended by exporters of different fields from different regions of the state. Besides, representatives from seven districts including Angul, Sundargarh, Sambalpur and Jagatsinghpur connected in the conclave through virtual mode. Experts have brainstormed on different possibilities to increase the export potential of the state and of the country.