Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday said the aspiration of the southern region of India to become a $1.5 Trillion Economy by 2025 is certainly achievable, and advised the states to focus on reforms, ‘Ease of Doing Business’ and adopt the best practices to attract investments.

Speaking virtually at ‘Mystic South, Global Linkages Summit – Towards a $1.5 Trillion Economy by 2025’ organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry, he said that now this was the right opportunity for all the stakeholders to join hands and ensure sustained economic momentum.

Referring to the opportunities in the region, he said that this region combines manufacturing with services, culture with modern values and education with skills.

Noting that most of the Southern States rank amongst the top in terms of ‘Ease of Doing Business rankings, he cited entrepreneurship, skilled workforce, presence of reputed educational institutions, leading IT companies, modern medical infrastructure and excellent connectivity between important cities as some of the major advantages of the region.

Pointing out that special attention was needed on agriculture to get a sustained growth rate in the economy, the Vice President also called upon the industry to work with the government on implementing various reforms with greater vigour and pave the way for sustained economic growth in the coming decade.

Referring to the slew of measures taken by the Centre to revive the economy, he said, the industry on its part, must rise to the occasion and ensure that the upward growth trajectory continues.

“The need of the hour is to initiate actions that return the economy to a high-growth track and create gainful jobs for millions of workers by 2030,” Naidu said.

Stressing the need for India to leapfrog ahead to achieve the required employment and productivity growth, he commented that global trends such as digitisation and automation, urbanisation, rising incomes, sustainability, health, and safety are assuming a new significance in wake of the pandemic.

“For India, these trends could catalyze growth and become the hallmarks of the post-pandemic economy”, Naidu added.