Industry Leaders Call for Tech-Driven Productivity at CII Roundtable
Industry leaders at a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) media roundtable in Vadodara emphasized the critical need for technology adoption to enhance efficiency, productivity, and business growth. The discussion highlighted that Indian productivity lags behind global peers, particularly China, and urged the adoption of automation, robotics, Industry 4.0, and artificial intelligence.
Milan Nag, Deputy Chairman of CII Western Region, stated, "What is in our hands is to improve our productivity through many different methods. Chinese productivity is several times higher than ours, as is of many countries in the world. Our productivity is very low." He added, "We should look at methods including automation, robotics, Industry 4.0, AI, and harness every possible method to improve the output per person."
Labour Shortage and Structural Challenges
The roundtable also addressed labour shortages, particularly as migrant workers returned to their home states for elections in Assam, West Bengal, and Bihar. Nag explained that workers delayed their return to spend time with families, a situation exacerbated by supply concerns from the West Asia crisis. He noted, "This is being faced in all industrial states where there is more migrant labour."
MSME Empowerment: Skill to Scale
Gaurang Joshipura, Chairman of CII Central Gujarat Zone, stressed the "skill to scale" approach to support MSMEs. He identified skilled manpower and finance as two major hurdles for MSMEs. "We are focused on broad-based MSMEs because MSMEs are our large-scale members. What we have seen is that MSMEs have many problems, but two of the major problems are the skilled manpower, especially the blue-collar, and finances," Joshipura said.
He outlined CII's coordination with companies and institutes to leverage skill development centres. "We are bringing various financial institutes as well as risk management insurance experts and conducting programmes which will help MSMEs to either safeguard themselves or get the finances," he added.
Competitive Frameworks and Macroeconomic Outlook
Joshipura noted that CII has organized competitive frameworks and specialized programmes covering manufacturing excellence, ESG compliance, AI, and Power BI to elevate operational standards. Regarding broader macroeconomic targets, he maintained that local consumption indicators suggest long-term resilience despite external disruptions.
