India needs to invest in R&D to become a global hub in speciality chemicals, said DV Sadananda Gowda, Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers, Government of India speaking at Specialty Chem 2020.

Gowda said that going by the Prime Minister's vision for focused effort to make India a $5 trillion economy, the Indian chemical industry has a huge role to play with a potential to contribute $300 billion to the GDP by the year 2025.

"There is a need to make the R&D ecosystem stronger to come up with enhanced products aligned with the changing requirement of the industries," added Gowda.

Speaking on foreign investment in the chemical industry, Sadananda Gowda said that the ministry has set up an investment promotion cell in the department for providing one stop handholding and support for companies willing to invest in India.

Rajesh Kumar Chaturvedi, Secretary, Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, Government of India said, "The vision of the PM for Atmanirbhar Bharat and the right steps in this direction can help the industry record a massive growth and reduce import dependence on any nation. We are taking major initiatives to promote Atmanirbharta in the chemical and petrochemical sector as its development will have a positive effect on allied industries."

Speaking on Odisha as the ideal investment destination for the chemical sector, Hemant Sharma, Principal Secretary, Department of Industries, Government of Odisha said, "Odisha provides an attractive destination for chemicals with excellent port connectivity which helps the industry to serve the South East Asian market efficiently."

"We have the lowest tariff in industrial electricity in India, low cost of water and human resource. Even infrastructure and cost of doing business makes Odisha a competitive destination," added Sharma.

Deepak C Mehta, Chairman, Chemical Committee of FICCI and Chairman & Managing Director, Deepak Nitrite said, "The chemical industry is going through a positive transformation and the desire to be Atmanirbhar has brought a new dimension to the chemical industry."

Koushik Bhattacharyya, Director, Avendus Capital said, "The Indian speciality chemical industry has been a shining star in India amid all the challenges posed by the pandemic. He said that building leadership positions in molecules and chemistry and India's dominance in Chemical CRAMS (Contract Research and Manufacturing Services) are the two successful business models in the chemical industry.

Alan Gemmell, Trade Commissioner for South Asia and British Deputy High Commissioner for Western India said, "The chemicals and pharmaceuticals industry is UK's 2nd largest manufacturing industry and there is a potential to strengthen the trade relationship between India and UK through speciality and organic chemicals."

Rajendra Gogri, Chairman & Managing Director, Aarti Industries said, "India's per capita chemical consumption is very low but increased urbanization will lead to a significant increase in domestic consumption of speciality chemicals in the next 10 years."

With the disruptive global supply chain, India is the best and the only available choice for global partners, commented Gogri.

During the conference, FICCI-Avendus released a report on "Indian Specialty Chemicals Industry - Biggest Beneficiary of the Global Paradigm Shift".