Sorab Agarwal, Executive Director, ACE
Increased investment in infrastructure sector will ensure economic growth.
The Infrastructure sector, just like other sectors, has taken a beating because of the pandemic; the work progress and revenue generation has gone down significantly in the last quarter. Even in the current quarter, the work is progressing at a slow speed due to migrant labour issues and the monsoons. On a whole year basis, construction activity is expected to go down by at least 15%. The only way to rev up the infrastructure sector post the monsoons would be to ensure increased investments into the sector, which is also necessary to turn the wheels of the economy and ensure economic growth.
We expect the CE industry to pick up after September and be near normalcy by end of FY2021.
The first 2 quarters of FY2021 will be the quarters for survival but we feel that the CE industry should get back on track after September and be somewhere near normalcy by end of FY2021. On account of low base of FY2021, the CE industry would witness growth in FY2022 - somewhat in similar numbers as compared to FY2020. The CE industry is dependent on infrastructure development and we are sure that the Government will find the ways and means to keep the ball rolling.
February 2021 seems to be an opportune time to hold bauma CONEXPO INDIA as the CE industry as well as the Infrastructure sector would also be back on track.
We feel that it is a very wise decision to postpone bauma CONEXPO INDIA to Feb 21 (which was supposed to held in the latter part of this year) as due to the Covid fear, participation from the CE Industry and the visitorship would have been limited. By Feb 2021, the CE industry and the Infrastructure sector would also be back on track towards normalization.
