The JSW School of Public Policy (JSW-SPP) at the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA), a premier global management Institute, launched its Public Talk Series titled ‘India 2031: The Decade of Transformation’ today at the IIMA Campus.
Introducing JSW-SPP and the theme of the Public Talk Series ‘India 2031’, Professor Namrata Chindarkar, Chairperson, JSW-SPP talked about the need for smart and evidence-based policymaking, which would entail engagement and dialogue with various stakeholders and collectively identifying the right steps for the next decade.
Following this, Shri Rajiv Mehrishi, Former Comptroller and Auditor General of India spoke about policy reforms that can add value to India’s growth as a developing economy. Shri Mehrishi focused his Keynote address on two specific areas that need more public policy debates and conversations- primary education and health. The need for asking the right questions and de-centralising certain policy mandates were ideas that were put forth by him.
This was followed by an engaging panel discussion, moderated by Professor D’Souza between Shri Mehrishi, Shri Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, KP Krishnan, IEPF Chair Professor in Regulatory Economics at the National Council for Applied Economic Research, and Parameswaran Iyer, Professor of Management Practice, IIMA. The deliberation centred on the measures that can contribute to the public policy landscape of the country and how reforms can expedite its journey towards becoming the third largest economy in the world in the next decade.
During the panel, Dr KP Krishnan, Chair Professor of IEPF in Regulatory Economics spoke about economic reforms, specifically on enforcement of contracts and ease of doing business by circulating capital back into the economy. Dr Krishnan highlighted how technological interventions redefined the equities markets in India in the last 2 decades and also mentioned that similar reforms need to be undertaken in the debt markets in India to bring about a change. Co-panelist Mr. Parameswaran Iyer, Professor of Management Practice, IIMA spoke about the role that district level administrative machineries can play to bring about a positive change.
Later in the day, Shri Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog delivered the inaugural lecture for the series on “Public Policy Priorities for the Social Sector – Leaving No One Behind in New India.” Talking about the path that India must take to achieve public policy priorities that can result in holistic and inclusive growth, Shri Kant talked about the role that digitization can play in building India as a future superpower.
He added that massive benefit that can be achieved from tracking real time data and publishing it in the public domain to create transparency. Shri Kant said that five key areas such as improving outcomes in education, health, and nutrition; promoting sunrise sectors of growth such as AI and Data Science, scientific urbanization, technological advancement and shifting to sustainable sources of energy such as green Hydrogen can contribute significantly to India’s growth in the years to come.
Shri Kant was joined for a brief discussion on the subject by the Chief Secretary, Government of Gujarat, Shri Pankaj Kumar, IAS who shared insights on the public policy interventions undertaken in the state.
The series was organised by the JSW-SPP with the objective of bringing together eminent speakers from across sectors to share their perspectives on public policy in India and across the globe and brainstorm on ideas that can further India’s policy landscape.
The event was attended by faculty members, and students of IIMA along with industry professionals from organisations in and around Ahmedabad.
