SPECIALITY CHEMICALS INDUSTRY CAN MAKE INDIA A GLOBAL MANUFACTURING POWERHOUSE
Manufacturing sector is imperative for providing sustainable livelihood to growing population. The Indian government’s ‘Make in India’ campaign is focussing on revamping the manufacturing sector. Unlike in other emerging economies, in India, manufacturing sector has been given lesser importance than services sector to people the economic growth. Even after registering a healthy average GDP rate ranging between 8-9% during the period from 2005 to 2012, the manufacturing sector’s contribution to the GDP has remained steady at 16%. With an aim to make India a global manufacturing hub, the government is trying to create a conductive environment where the participants of the entire value chain can flourish- right from product manufacturers to suppliers.
Chemicals industry has been one of the key components of the thriving manufacturing ecosystem in India. Development of any economy is directly related to per capita consumption of chemicals. At a recent industry conference, Surjit Kumar Choudhary, the secretary of the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals (DCPC), mentioned that without chemicals the development of other sectors is not possible. Specialty chemicals segment is one of the fastest growing sectors in chemical industry and registers 15% annual growth rate. However, the segment registers one of the lowest per capita consumption.
According to Deepak Bhimani, the president of Indian Speciality Chemical Manufacturers’ Association (ISCMA) and the CMD of Navdeep Chemicals, there is a growing need for companies to invest in research and development activities associated with speciality chemicals to cater to evolving consumer needs. Keeping environment in view, micro-organisms are being used to manufacture speciality chemicals. Indian companies need to collaborate with their foreign counterparts to jointly manufacture speciality chemicals. Read more…