Union Commerce Minister Shri Piyush Goyal Inaugurates 31st CII Partnership Summit at Visakhapatnam along with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Shri N Chandrababu Naidu

Addressing the inaugural session of the 31^st Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Partnership Summit 2026 in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh today, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Shri Piyush Goyal said India remains a predictable, reliable and high-capability destination for global investors even as the world faces volatility, conflicts and uncertainty.

The Minister correlated the sacred month of Kartika Masam, to the tradition of Deepa Dhanam i.e the selfless offering of a lit lamp. He said that “A lamp loses nothing by lighting another lamp” and it best illustrates the definition of a partnership. He described the Summit itself as another occasion of “lighting up lives and lighting up opportunities of trade and business.

Visakhapatnam’s Resilience on Display

Praising the Grit and Determination of Visakhapatnam and Andhra Pradesh, Shri Goyal noted that Visakhapatnam had faced two cyclones in quick succession (on 28 October and 3 November) yet was fully prepared to welcome international delegates, ministers and investors. He credited the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu for building strong disaster resilience.

Andhra Pradesh’s Leadership: From Vision to Delivery

The Minister praised Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu’s long-term foresight from visualising the IT revolution early to planning for AI, Quantum Engineering, Data centres and a Quantum Valley in Amaravati well ahead of time. He said that while the world still talks of “Ease of Doing Business,” Andhra Pradesh has moved the conversation to the “Speed of Doing Business.”

He specifically lauded the State’s escrow account mechanism for timely disbursement of incentives to investors. He said Team India works in tandem: the Centre opens global markets through trade agreements, while Andhra Pradesh converts those opportunities into factories, data centres and jobs.

Three Assurances to Global Investors

Shri Goyal highlighted that, In a turbulent world, India renews its charter for every investor and provides three clear assurances:

1. Open Market- The Minister stated that in the last four-and-a-half years, India has finalised nine Free Trade agreements or Preferential Trade agreements covering 38 countries that represent $60 trillion of global GDP. He said that with the ongoing engagements the total is likely to increased to  $85 trillion roughly three-fourths of the global GDP of $115 trillion. This opens vast opportunities for Indian businesses, products, services, talent and the country’s 2.5 lakh startups.
2. Capability - From steel to silicon in Visakhapatnam, a drone city at Orvakal, a space city at Tirupati and India’s first green hydrogen hub at Pudimadaka, the State and the country are building future-ready capabilities. Central R&D support allows global innovators to design and create in India at a fraction of the cost in Western countries, with full respect for intellectual property rights. The Minister emphasized that “India does not ask for transfer of technology and does not  steal anybody’s technology”.
3. Reliability - Trust is the scarcest commodity in the world today. Referring to the Baahubali saga, he said India offers a partner “who will not stab you in the back.” He recalled India’s support of vaccines, medicines and food grains to over 100 countries during COVID-19 as proof of reliability. The Minister added that “If the 20th century was dictated by cost arbitrage, the 21st century will be defined by trust arbitrage and the question is no longer who can make it cheapest, but who can deliver good governance, transparent governance, speed and scale.”

Calls to Action
In the auspicious month of Kartika, Shri Goyal made three appeals:

• To Investors: Make India the address for your next plant, R&D centre, global capability centre or design centre.
• To Industry: Stay ahead on sustainability, skilling and global quality standards.
• To Partner Nations: Invest in factories, hotels and data centres in India and Andhra Pradesh which is a safe harbour in a turbulent world.

He concluded by saying that with the blessings of Lord Venkateswara, partnerships forged in Visakhapatnam would be as sweet as the language of Telugu and bring lasting prosperity.

The two-day Summit, themed “Navigating the New World Order: Trade, Technology, Trust and Thought Leadership,” is jointly organised by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the Government of Andhra Pradesh and CII. It has brought together policymakers, ministers and business leaders from nearly 60 countries, with significant investment commitments lined up.

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