A white paper published by Kearney published in partnership with the World Economic Forum (WEF) titled Shifting Global Value Chains: The India Opportunity said that there has been a large change across sectors within the manufacturing chain and supply chain paving the path for India to become a potential manufacturing hub.

According to the report, India has three key assets to capitalise on this unprecedented opportunity, the important domestic demand potential, the drive of the Indian government to encourage manufacturing, and a different demographic edge with a large working-age population.

These will place India in a significant position in the global value chains.

A growing manufacturing hub will also create extra benefits and help India to develop economic opportunities for nearly 100 million people in the coming decade. It will also assure an equal wealth distribution and hold its trade deficit burgeoning.

The five possible paths to reach the $500 billion objectives laid down in the white paper are coordination between the government, and private sector to create globally ambitious manufacturing companies, focus on building capabilities by workforce skilling innovation, quality, and sustainability.

It also includes reducing trade barriers to facilitate competitive global market access for Indian manufacturers, reducing cost compliance and setting manufacturing capacities, and concentrating infrastructure development on speed, cost, savings, and flexibility.

A thriving manufacturing sector could be the key building block for India's economic growth and prosperity in the following decade, said Viswanathan Rajendran, Partner at Kearney.

For India to become a global manufacturing hub, business and government leaders have to work collectively to understand ongoing disruptions and opportunities, and generate new strategies, said Francisco Betti, WEF's head of shaping the future of advanced manufacturing and production.