Demonetisation Should Have Been Done Differently, Says Sanjeev Bajaj
The recent turbulence caused by demonetisation and the faulty implementation of GST has been hailed by the private sector as a short-term pain with long-term efficiency and opportunities for growth.
Sanjiv Bajaj, Managing Director of Bajaj Finserv, India appreciated the boldness of the government because getting India on course for 9% GDP growth rates could not happen with tiny, incremental reforms. However, he maintains his stance on the inefficient implementation.
"Demonetization should have been done differently," said Sanjiv Bajaj, Managing Director of Bajaj Finserv, India, referring to the "negative mood" that the reforms caused.
"This government has taken a lot of major steps, especially on the financial side. But some of those reforms are not going to work and let us be honest demonetisation did not work. The intention was right, but we haven't seen the results yet. Having said that, we must be critical where we need to be but must also encourage".
He further added, "The last thing we want is a government that shies away from taking bold steps as incremental steps would not take up to the level of 9-10% growth rate," said Bajaj on the sidelines of World Economic Forum."
Commenting on the GST, Bajaj mentioned that the impact or the net change is going to be significantly positive.
"Any such large step will have some kind of uncertainty, initial difficulty and noise. The pain will exist for some time and that is what we are reacting to. However, the impact or the net change of that is going to be significantly positive," said Bajaj adding how the muted consumer demand has started to pick up complimented by the company's recent move of raising 800 million dollars last month to take care of next 2-3 years of growth.
He also adds the current lag of job in the country and urged for labour reforms.
"The biggest reform that we need for job creation is the labour reform and it is for states to execute. If we are able to cut through this, there will be the pain but it would be the single biggest driver of additional employment. With the current labour rules, companies are very cautious of adding additional labour", said Bajaj.
