Over the past few years, India has been slowly yet steadily becoming self-reliant and a global supplier. Be it companies like Foxconn investing $1,000,000,000 for the manufacturing of iPhone or be it Google making a $10 billion commitment. Recent years have witnessed, firms taking, special engrossment in the Indian market. With China slowly diminishing as a global supplier due to its deteriorating trade relations with various countries, India has an upper hand and a great opportunity to make itself Aatmanirbhar.Recently, the government identified 12 sectors like auto components, textiles, industrial machinery, furniture and electronics where focus would be given to make India a self-reliant country and a global supplier. These 12 sectors, if implemented with good employment can lead the global supply chain. This will lead to an increase in India's share in the global trade and would be a win for the 'Made in India' campaign.
Post the Indo-China border dispute, there has been a sudden demand for locally produced items. People have been caught throwing 'Made in China' items out of their houses as a sign of boycotting it's products. Many Indian brands have been following Prime minister Narendra Modi's 'vocal for local' or localization vision for a while now. Even the overseas companies are reluctant to manufacture their products in India, so to remain in the Indian market.
To attract more and more firms there needs to be improvement in quality and domestic supply chains. If this is to happen though, India will have to make major course changes in its in-development strategies.
India's digital economy also plays a big role in attracting overseas companies. With more than 70 crore internet users, it is simply too big a prize for Big Tech companies to ignore for long. The richest man of India Mukesh Ambani also has a big role in these investments. Jio platforms, the digital subsidiary of Mr. Ambani's conglomerate Reliance, has raised more than $20 billion from companies, ventures and sovereign wealth funds looking to use it as a quick conduit to India's massive digital economy. As the Trump administration increasingly closes the US economy off from the rest of the world, Silicon Valley will look afield to expand its reach. And India is ripe for the picking.
India may have missed the bus in many technologies in which the US, Europe and China have established a lead. Yet self-reliant capabilities in electric and fuel cell vehicles,electricity storage systems, furniture, textiles, pharma, aircraft are well within reach.
Shri Narendra Modi once said "There are 5 I's to build a self-reliant India- Intent, Inclusion,Investment, Infrastructure and Innovation." If we as a nation could implement these 5I's in our development strategy, no global market would be out of our reach. We have come along way since the self-reliance model of the Nehruvian era.
