More reform announcements likely by Diwali, says NITI Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam

India could see another round of major reform announcements by Diwali as the government steps up efforts to boost manufacturing competitiveness and rebalance trade, NITI Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam said on Sunday.

A senior government official added that the government is examining reforms across 13–14 key sectors, with a particular focus on trade and MSMEs. “One of our immediate priorities is trade and MSME reforms,” he said.

The Trade Watch Report, he added, exposes the deep imbalance in India’s current trade composition. “Our trade is very, very unbalanced. It is concentrated in a few products—and in the wrong products. We trade stuff that the rest of the world doesn’t trade in large quantities. Maybe we were dominant long ago in certain products that were once globally traded, but the world has moved on—and India didn’t move on,” Subrahmanyam remarked.

The NITI Aayog CEO also revealed that several committees led by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba have submitted their first set of reports on proposed reform measures, signalling that the government’s structural reform push is gaining momentum.

Subrahmanyam further said that the government is in the final stages of launching the National Manufacturing Mission, a flagship initiative aimed at enhancing India’s manufacturing competitiveness and diversifying industrial capabilities across sectors.

“The focus is clear—we need to strengthen and diversify India’s manufacturing ecosystem,” he said. “India must not shield or protect any specific sector in terms of trade. Instead, we should focus on improving productivity, innovation, and competitiveness.”

The fresh wave of reforms, coupled with the upcoming Manufacturing Mission, is expected to play a critical role in aligning India’s industrial and trade strategy with global value chains—an essential step toward achieving the government’s long-term growth vision.