Mr. Steve Felder – Managing Director, Maersk South Asia reacted to the Budget 2019 presented on July 5 2019.
“We welcome the Budget’s continued focus on boosting India’s infrastructure, introducing much needed labour reforms and catalyzing MSMEs through incentives and ease in regulation.
The proposed investment of Rs 100 lakh crore in infrastructure over next five years recognizes the importance of the private sector and the need for innovative financing models. The Centre’s proposal to work with States to develop State roads under Bharatmala will further improve in country road infrastructure. The Government envisions to further develop Inland Waterways and multimodal operations using rivers for cargo transport which will also decongest roads and railways which is a welcome move. This coupled with recently launched National Common Mobility Card and the proposed electronic invoice system, will facilitate trade further.
Labour reforms have been a long-standing demand on the industry. The Government’s decision to streamline multiple labour laws in four labour codes is an important step towards larger labour reforms which will encourage investment into Make in India.
Finally, MSMEs are the back bone of the economy and will play a crucial role in India achieving its vision of becoming a US$ 5 trillion economy. In that respect quick loans of upto Rs 1 lakh for MSMEs and Rs 350cr. outlay under the interest subvention schemes will ease much needed credit flow to the sector, fuel its competitiveness and boost trade.
As a global integrator of container logistics, Maersk has been partnering Indian business for global trade since 1990. We recognize the potential of MSMEs in the hinterlands and have been investing in building our in-country warehousing and container depot facilities and providing credit access to grow their business.”
