POWER PANEL: THE ECONOMIC MANIFESTO
Discussion Framework: The Economic Manifestos will have the most direct impact on the lives of the common people. It is no longer about awareness, it is about economic issues becoming felt-needs. The governments, whether at the centre or the states, which have delivered strong GDP growth and macroeconomic stability, have been re-elected, while the ones which fail to deliver on the economy have higher chances of getting rejected by the electorate. No doubt, all the political parties are giving increasing importance to economic issues in their manifesto. The immediate challenges include accelerating GDP growth, controlling inflation, curbing trade and fiscal deficit and reviving business and consumer confidence. Against this backdrop the panel examines the following:
- Economic performance review till date.
- Current macroeconomic challenges.
- Economic roadmap for 2019-2024.
POWER PANEL: DECIPHERING DIGITAL ECONOMY POLICY
Discussion Framework: Will the Digital Economy policy of the government end-up shooting itself in the foot or will it lead to a new renaissance and revival? The government has set an ambitious target of making India $1 trillion digital economy by 2022. This will require right policies and proper execution. Major policy areas that have direct impact on the digital economy include privacy, cross-border data flow, consumer protection, intellectual property and financial regulation. IT/ITeS, financial services, electronics, telecom and e-Commerce contribute lion’s share to the digital economy. Going forward the focus will be on start-ups, financial technology and new age technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, digital payments, digital education, gaming and e-healthcare. Against this backdrop the panel examines the following:
- How to ensure level-playing field?
- Who bears the cost of compliance?
- What will it take to set the right policy for a $1 trillion digital economy?
- Is India missing on the online gaming opportunity?
- Listing and differential voting rights for Indian start-up entities.
POWER PANEL: BANKING AND FINANCE: THE NEXT FIVE YEARS
Discussion Framework: Will the NPA cycle finally reverse? Even as the reforms such as the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code have come to the fore to salvage some of the lost money of banks, do we need more to revive credit to the NBFCs and the industry in the light of recent headwinds? With the introduction of digital banking, payment banks and RBI’s data localisation, the prospects for banking in India are sending mixed signals and the next five years could prove to be crucial in the process of reform, recovery and strengthening of the banking sector which the Finance Minister recently termed the backbone of Indian economy. Against this backdrop the panel examines the following:
- Success of the IBC and possibility of trimming the process of resolving NPAs further?
- How to revive MSME sector?
- Payments regulatory bill 2018: boon or bane?
