"Strong Businesses Reduce National Vulnerability": S Jaishankar

Underscoring that Atmanirbhar Bharat or a self-reliant India was a critical aspect of India's foreign policy, Foreign Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday said that domestic businesses create jobs, strengthen capabilities, and reduce the vulnerability of a nation. He was speaking at the launch of former Niti Aayog CEO and G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant's book, Made In India, in Delhi. 

Mr Jaishankar said the improved ease of business has raised the global stature of India, and that the country has democratised the use of technology in the last few years. "We are moving towards the politics of delivery. It is delivery at the grassroots that is reshaping the thinking of the public," he said.

The Minister said Make In India, PM Modi's government's flagship programme to improve manufacturing, was not just an economic statement, but important to the country's strategic interests. 

"We hear the term wealth creators often, but that is gross injustice to reduce them to that. They are employment creators, they reduce the vulnerability of the nation. A strong business is not a business alone, but important to a nation's security," he said.

Mr Jaishankar said increased formalisation of formerly informal sectors, digitisation, and improved grass-roots delivery models are the most important aspects of India's growth story. 

"..It has to be an Atmanirbhar Bharat that the world is nirbhar (dependant) on," he said.

The Minister added that India has to grow in not just a much more volatile world, but in one that is decarbonised. Building a resilient supply chain is the great manufacturing opportunity for us, he stressed. 

"We need to get our focus back on manufacturing. Services was an elegant excuse for not being good at manufacturing. We have to be a great at manufacturing to be a great country," the Minister said. 

Calling for a strategic and careful regulation of government policy and not get carried away by advice given by others, Mr Jaishankar insisted on identifying the right partners globally. "We have to be careful not to de-industrialise India, in the name of globalisation," he said.

He added that the country is working on scaling up its manufacturing and the government was paying a lot of attention to that.

Global polarisation has made diplomacy difficult but is also a window of opportunity, he added, specifically pointing out that questions not answered in the past with regard to data and privacy are surfacing now. While the focus is on de-risking after the pandemic, Mr Jaishankar added India was focussing on devising its own solutions, because the story of its growth is also different from others. 

"Make in India is also about thinking...thinking through our growth strategy and devising solutions. Every time we have been confronted with a challenge, we have reflected upon it," he said, specifically giving the example of Covid-19.

Mr Kant said that if India has to grow at a higher rate, the private sector will have to play a very important role. He said India will need to fire on all cylinders, not just services but also manufacturing. The book, he added, has his experiences as the secretary of DPIT to bring in ease of business, get States to compete with each other and also build their investment potential.