The Confederation of Indian Industry on Monday proposed a 5 per cent cess to develop railway infrastructure and exuded confidence that 7-8 per cent GDP growth was achievable in the next decade provided reform measures were on track which would lead to doubling of per capita income in the next 10 years.

"We propose a 5 per cent cess on passenger railways for upgrading infrastructure in the area. We believe that 7-8 per cent GDP growth was quite achievable which will help double per capita income from $470 now," the Confederation of Indian Industry President Sunil Kant Munjal told a news conference in New Delhi.

The Government should propose a 5 per cent cess on railway passengers to create 'Railway Regulatory Authority', he said that adding a minimum of 7 per cent sustained growth in the next 10 years could be realised.

Outlining the challenges of sustaining the requisite growth, he said the agriculture sector should grow at least at the rate of three per cent from the present level of 2.8 per cent while industry and services should post 9 per cent rise, respectively.

By giving proper thrust on manufacturing, the country would be able to generate millions of jobs which would help 230 million youth who would be in the age group of 15-24 by 2020. The 230 million young population would be on the threshold of joining jobs by then, he said.

On CII's eight-point agenda to ensure 8 per cent growth, Munjal said that the government would have to focus more on rural economy as 60 per cent of the Indian population was dependent on agriculture.

There should be adequate thrust on rural housing, introduction of farm policy based on public-private partnership and incentives to corporate involvement in agriculture production and processing.

Rural connectivity was another important element, he said, adding there was a need for creation of a mechanism to enhance skills of the Indian youth.

Manufacturing should be made globally competitive and sectors like textiles, drugs and pharma should be recognised as high potential area, he said.

On services sector, he said that the government should promote development of high potential service areas like retail and healthcare.

Chalking out its strategy for small and medium enterprises, the CII President suggested revamp of financing system and enactment of a Small Industries Development Bill would give a boost to the sector.

CII said bottlenecks must be removed for infrastructure development while in terms of global trade, CII called for facilitating greater market access for Indian products around the world.

It also suggested the adaptation of task force approach in key areas.