India’s top diplomat briefs industry body on G20, diplomatic initiatives

Amid concerns about a looming recession, India’s Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla launched an outreach to Indian industry on the government’s global diplomatic initiatives in multilateral forums such as G20 and BRICS. During a video conference organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on CII on April 28, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla briefed the members about the government’s interactions with the leaders of the G20 and G20 countries, especially the business aspects, and how the Indian industry could actively engage as India assumes the chair of G20 in 2022. The meeting was attended by CII President Vikram Kirloskar, CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee, and former CII presidents, including Mr Venu Srinivasan, Mr Dhruv M Sawhney, Mr Hari S Bhartia, Mr R. Seshasayee, and Mr Naushad Forbes.The foreign secretary also outlined the role of G20 in addressing the COVID-19 crisis and the outcomes of the extraordinary virtual G20 leaders’ summit on March 15, 2020. He said that G20 leaders have agreed on a plan to protect the health, economy, and livelihood of the people. Mr Shringla outlined the government’s initiatives in protecting the vulnerable sections of the population, such as providing relief to MSMEs and ensuring adequate liquidity in the system. He also informed them about the help extended by the country’s diplomatic missions to the Indian exporters in looking for opportunities abroad as well as promoting the diversification of India’s imports.Mr Shringla, a former ambassador of India to US, said that India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is facilitating the export of essential medicines and health equipment to friendly countries to enable them to tackle the pandemic. Mr Shringla also briefed the participants about PM Modi’s video conference with the leaders of SAARC countries and the medical assistance provided by India to the member countries. He said that India has supplied several consignments of Hydroxychloroquine and paracetamol tablets besides other medical aid to the SAARC countries. It was one of the series of meetings that the government has held with different sections of the society since the outbreak of the disease early this year to boost novel initiatives that could counter the virus setback.PM Modi has already reached out to the civil society members, politicians, subject experts, administrators, and other stakeholders in India and abroad to muster a joint response to the crisis.