Over the past 100 years, the Chamber has been making significant contribution to the economic growth of our country and particularly the Dynamic North. These have already been highlighted, and I would therefore, like to dwell on the challenges of the future and the opportunities to be seized.

Two decades from now, I envision a prosperous and thriving India, taking its rightful place in the comity of leading nations. An India which is economically strong, an India, which is global economic power, and, an India, that provides growth opportunities to all.

India has improved its ranking in terms of its social indicators, be it, literacy rates, higher life expectancy, or percentage of population below the poverty line. Over a million Indians already enjoy living standards comparable to those in industrialized societies.

We have become all the more optimist when we see our young and upwardly mobile population. By 2010, we would have 425 million citizens, in the working age group, of 16-25 years. I am confident, that these educated, committed and enterprising young people would trigger a quantum leap, which would help us secure our due place in the world, commensurate with our potential.

At a time, when the developed economies are growing at about 2 per cent per annum, I am proud that India is registering 7 to 8 per cent growth. This has impelled recent studies, such as, those on BRIC economies, goes on to predict, that India will be the fifth largest economy of the world by 2020, and the third largest by 2050. The world is watching India much more now, than in the past.

Our country is at a cusp of strong contradictory forces, one strand of which can lead us to greatness, while the other, can be a cause for our decline. Our economy, if nurtured properly, could work wonders to help us realize our vision. But if neglected, we could once again slip back. What is required is, an innovative strategy, consciously conceived and effectively executed, which will help us harness, the opportunities knocking at our door, so that we are able to convert today's India, into an economic powerhouse.

To realize our vision for 2020, the country will have to re-engineer itself in the realm of economic policies, to meet the tough challenges before us. It is thus, the time, that we take tough decisions.

I make myself bold to say that, the often-witnessed political impasse and the veritable scenes call for a crusading need for political reforms. To say it in the same breath, equally important, is the need to improve effectiveness in governance, to bring in the essential element of public accountability.

Federalism needs to be brought centrestage. A quick review of the last five decades reveals, that administratively, and fiscally the country could not follow the ideal federal model, which was the vision of our constitution makers. Significant corrective measures are therefore called for.

Decisions on economic issues, should not be allowed to be imperilled by populist political considerations. The government's borrowing programme must be reduced to lower the pressure on interest rates. A cut in revenue expenditure is essential to release more resources for public investment in infrastructure for rural & urban sectors, agriculture & irrigation, health and education.

Infrastructure is a major constraint, which needs to be given the highest priority to make the Indian industry globally competitive. The constraints government is beleaguered with, in developing infrastructure are known. The private sector has the capability and capacity, to make the needed contribution. The foreign investors too have shown keen interest to join the Indian investors. What remains is, that, the government focus on its enabling role, for creating a well defined legal and regulatory frame work, and setting standards to facilitate private sector, making effective contribution in this field.

Privatisation of the telecom sector and resultant growth is a model which should be replicated in the sectors of power, water and petro-products. We further believe that the Disinvestment route, besides other resultant benefits, would also help resolve the problem of subsidies, which is embedded in the system.

I maintain that exports cannot continue to grow if ports and airports' capacity is not expanded fast enough. Inadequacy and high cost of railways, roads and power raises the transaction cost of operations and stymie economic growth. In this context, regulations and procedures for land acquisition need to be overhauled to make the acquisition process simpler and faster. The government's initiatives on infrastructure, enunciated in the budget, are indeed welcome. We trust that these ideas would be put on the fast track of implementation.

We are all convinced that India can emerge as a globally competitive manufacturing base. Apart from infrastructure, another area which requires urgent attention is, labour law reforms. The existing labour laws which act counter to employment generation and production, should be corrected at the earliest. The working class is as important in generation of national wealth as any entrepreneur is. No doubt, there is by and large a marked improvement in industrial peace, what needs to be injected and ensured is, the committed work culture.

The Government has rightly accorded high priority to development of agricultural and rural economy. Agro-processing has emerged as a key sector of growth offering the benefits of value addition to the farmer. Mass production of basic Agro raw material for some of the key industrial sectors in the country, needs to be opened up for commercial cultivation. The land holding laws require a review and modification, paving way for fully realizing, the inherent strength of our agro-based economy. Higher priority also needs to be accorded to national water management, which will require rescheduling of plan priorities and allocations.

Mr. Prime Minister, Sir, it is high time, that as a country, we should realize the economic dimension of time. Everything we think, plan and do, must be achieved within defined time frame. This leads me to mention, the interminable delays, in administration of justice and the complicated legal system we have continued with, as a legacy of the pre-Independence past.

To conclude, I would only say that India is delicately poised at the stage of development for which our opportunities are at a historic high. It is for us to seize these opportunities by taking tough decisions enabling us to move forward to reach the destination of our dream - India stepping into global leadership - by the year 2020.