“I Think We Should Stop Looking For A China Fix,” Says Foreign Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar

The external affairs minister said that India needs to get its focus back on manufacturing to take advantage in the post-pandemic world.

Written by Shruti Chaturvedi May 12, 2023

Foreign Minister S Jaishankar

In NEW DELHI: The foreign affairs minister, S. Jaishankar, said on Wednesday that Indian prosperity cannot be based on Chinese productivity and urged the development of strong domestic vendor chains for the manufacturing industry.

“I believe we should give up on finding a China cure. At the launch of the book “Made in India: 75 Years of Business & Enterprise,” written by India’s G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant, Jaishankar said, “If we are really to sustain and take the economy to a different level, we have to create a kind of domestic vendor chain that a serious manufacturing economy will do. According to him, the production-linked incentive programme (PLI) is an endeavour to increase the nation’s industrial capacity.

The external affairs minister claimed that for India to succeed in the post-pandemic world, manufacturing must once again take centre stage. “There is no major country in the world which has sustained or enhanced its global position without some commensurate build up of manufacturing. I have always believed that this focus on services was actually an elegant excuse for being incompetent in manufacturing.” said Jaishankar.

The external affairs minister claimed that for India to succeed in the post-pandemic world, manufacturing must once again take centre stage.

“In the name of opening the economy and globalising we should not end up de-industrialising this country. We should not allow level playing field in this country for others to subside their rich. That’s economic suicide. We need to be clear that every country must support its manufacturers, must support its businesses. We mustn’t allow other businesses enjoy advantages in our country at the expense of others,” said Jaishankar.

He also said there is a need to look at the economy from a strategic lens and identify the right partners. “I see ‘Make in India’ not as an economic programme, not as a manufacturing programme. I see it as a strategic statement,” he added.

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