India to send 500 delegations to FTA partner nations to expand export opportunities

Commerce

and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has indicated plans to send 500 delegations to India's FTA (Free Trade Agreement) partner countries in the next few months to expand business opportunities, with the government having collected data from 1,600 business associations to encourage the export of new products to capture newer markets.

He informed me that 1000 people will be trained and stationed across districts to disseminate information as part of the Export Promotion Mission.

Highlighting that India has nearly 11 months of import cover in foreign exchange reserves, he noted that the country's trade deficit in goods and services together was much lower than its annual remittances.

Pointing to a strong element of labor mobility in India's FTAs, he stressed that remittances also form a part of trade in a globalized world.

Speaking at the CII Annual Business Summit in New Delhi, he called for an increase in e-commerce for Indian businesses to go global and be "ready to ship on demand."

Calling for more plug-in hybrid vehicles to reduce energy imports in line with the prime minister's appeal for austerity, he said that an EV battery with a charge of 100 km would run well in most parts of the country with the backup of an IC engine, freeing users of range anxiety along with cutting imports and fuel usage.

The minister urged the industry to leverage artificial intelligence, robotics, and quantum computing as force multipliers for growth and competitiveness, noting that AI should not be viewed merely as a cost-cutting tool but as an instrument for business expansion, efficiency, and market growth.

Advising industry to run dedicated programs for employees to train them in smarter uses of AI, he said that the same can be used to improve productivity, capture larger markets, and grow businesses rather than simply reduce manpower.

He added that while some sectors may face technological disruptions, he pointed out India has consistently adapted to changing technologies by moving from call centers to BPOs, software services, and higher-end business solutions.

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He further said that sectors such as hospitality, jewellery and several people-centric industries would continue to rely heavily on human creativity and skills, even in the age of artificial intelligence.

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