Towards a healthier India - Focus on accessibility, affordability, and quality

VOLUME 05 ISSUE 01 JULY-AUGUST 2018Focus on accessibility, affordability, and qualitySTATE FOCUS: PunjabFORCE FOR GOOD: CMCAINDIA MADE: TTK PrestigeTOWARDS A HEALTHIER INDIADr Vinod K Paul, Member, NITI AayogExclusive interview with 1JULY-AUGUST 2018www.ibef.orgJULY-AUGUST 2018www.ibef.orgCEO SPEAKIndia Now Business and Economy DEAR READERS,India’s promise is driven by fundamental growth drivers including a favourable demographic profile, a skilled workforce, an emerging middle class, a strong entrepreneurial culture, rising productivity, and a resilient private sector. The country’s strong economic fundamentals, high rates of GDP growth, and long-term potential make it an attractive destination for business and investment across borders. With a growth rate of 7.7% in the fourth quarter of 2017-18 (Central Statistics Office), the Indian economy regained the tag of being the fastest growing economy globally. Given the high levels of global interest in India and to promote a better understanding of the present progress and long-term potential of the country’s economy, IBEF launched an exclusive India Study in April 2018 titled India: Pushing the Right Levers. It highlights some of the major game changers expected to transform the Indian economy in the coming decade. The themes cover a host of areas including developments in the agri-value chain, measures to boost manufacturing, smart urbanisation, increasing renewable energy capacity, evolving a startup ecosystem, e-governance, new phase of consumerism, and GST. The study is accessible on the link https://www.ibef.org/research/india-study. IBEF will be continuously tracking these themes and providing updates and new insights for the benefit of its online audiences. IBEF was also involved in brand promotion of the Indian engineering sector at Automechanika Dubai during May 1 to 3, 2018. Automechanika Dubai is the largest international automotive aftermarket trade show in the Middle East and serves some of the largest automotive markets like Saudi Arabia and Iran. Over 100 Indian exhibitors participated at Automechanika Dubai 2018. Branding initiatives undertaken by IBEF included advertising at the venue and in print, PR and digital marketing. The branding effectively communicated the manner in which the industry is building on its strengths and expanding its reach in the global market.India has emerged as a leading global automotive hub in recent years and exports to over 160 countries. Moreover, manufacturing costs in India are 10 to 25% lower, as compared to Europe and Latin America. India’s geographical proximity to strategic automotive markets like the Middle East and Europe further strengthens its competitive advantage. The industry is highly focussed on quality as well, which was also a focus of IBEF’s branding initiatives. The Automotive Mission Plan 2026, a combined vision of the Government and the industry, aims a total turnover of US$ 200 billion (US$ 43.5 billion in 2016-17) with exports at US$ 70 to 80 billion (US$ 11 billion in 2016-17) by 2026, thereby making India’s auto component industry the world’s third largest (ranked 4 presently). Ms Anu P MathaiCEO, India Brand Equity Foundation 2JULY-AUGUST 2018www.ibef.org India Now Business and EconomyDEAR READERS,The Indian healthcare system is quite unique—while the nation has invested in building a robust public healthcare infrastructure, it has also supported the evolution of world-class private sector facilities. However, with a population of almost 1.32 billion—with a majority living in the rural hinterlands—there is always scope to do more. It is estimated that presently, almost 70% of the spending on health is paid for by the individual—a steep cost that pushes many families into debt. The recently announced Ayushman Bharat scheme, that would cover at least 40% of the population, envisages a holistic approach. It seeks to address the inherent problems of accessibility and affordability and provide a well-rounded solution. Reinforcing infrastructure to improve access, and provision of insurance to make healthcare cost-effective are part of its blueprint. Importantly, it draws upon the strengths of the public sector and private players to redefine the healthcare delivery system. The nation’s demographic dividend has been hailed as one of its biggest competitive advantages. But as Mr Arun Jaitley rightly said in his Budget speech, “Only Swasth (healthy) Bharat can be a Samriddha (prosperous) Bharat. India cannot realise its demographic dividend without its citizens being healthy.” The shift in focus from curative to preventive and promotive is the first step towards a massive transformation in healthcare. By improving accessibility and health outcomes, Ayushman Bharat is all set to steer the country towards a ‘New India’ by 2022—one that accords topmost priority to ‘health for all’.MANECK DAVAREDITORIALEditor: Maneck DavarManaging Editor: Poornima SubramanianDeputy Editor: Anitha Moo