New Delhi [India], February 3 (ANI): Noting that production is the foundation of India’s national security and is key to job creation, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday alleged that the Modi government’s ‘Make In India’ initiative has failed to revive it. He stated that the share of manufacturing in GDP has come down from 15.3 percent in 2014 to 12.6 percent, which is the lowest in the past 60 years.
Taking part in the motion of thanks on the President’s Address, Gandhi, who is the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, pitched for caste census and said applying AI to it would lead to a lot of possibilities. Gandhi, who spoke in detail on the need to boost manufacturing, also discussed competition from China and highlighted Indiaās opportunity in the revolution in energy and mobility.
He pointed out that China has been working on batteries, robots, motors, and optics for the last ten years, gaining at least a ten-year lead on India in this space. “As the world stands on the brink of a technological and economic revolution, India needs a new vision for growth, production, and participationāone that directly addresses our two biggest challenges: the job crisis and the lack of opportunity for 90 percent of Indians,” Gandhi posted on X later.
“Jobs come from production, which ‘Make In India’ has failed to revive. But we have an opportunity with the revolution in energy and mobilityāwith renewable energy, batteries, electric motors, optics, and AI to bring these together. India must master a central role in this revolution and boost production to give our youth hope for the future,” he said.
“Although China is 10 years ahead, we can catch upāwith the right vision. An INDIA government would realign education, enlist experts, widely spread finance, and align our trade and foreign policies. Production is also the foundation of our national security. In a world where wars are not fought between armies but between industrial systems, our dependence on Chinese imports like motors and batteries puts us at risk,” he added.
Gandhi further emphasized that India is fighting against inequality, which is increasing social tensions by excluding 90 percent of the population. “We must conduct a caste census to understand where Dalits, Adivasis, OBCs, and minorities stand today; and with the help of AI, understand how best to ensure they have a fair share in the nationās wealth and opportunities. It is only these two tracks in parallelāproduction and participationāthat will create a robust growth story for India and a bright future for all our youth,” he said.
Slamming the government over the Presidentās address, Gandhi noted that it was the same laundry list of things that the government has done. He mentioned that there are four key technologies driving change in mobility: electric motors, batteries, optics, and AI.
Gandhi questioned how an address from the “INDIA Gathbandhan” government would differ. “What type of address would an INDIA Gathbandhan government deliver, how would that address be different than the current one?” he said.
He continued, “A universal problem that we have faced is that we have not been able to tackle the problem of unemployment. No! Neither the UPA government nor todayās NDA government has given a clear-cut answer to the youth of India about employment. I donāt think anybody in this room will disagree with me.”
He explained that any country organizes two things: consumption and production. “The modern way of organizing consumption is through services, while organizing production is through manufacturing. But there is more to production than simply manufacturingāfor example, agriculture is also about production.”
Gandhi criticized the handling of production since 1990. “Every government has done a decent job with consumption, but we have handed over the organization of production to the Chinese. For instance, even though we say we make this mobile phone in India, the reality is that it is assembled here, but the components are made in China. The network that supports this phone is owned by China.”
He stressed that India must focus on production. “If we do not focus on production and continue to only focus on consumption, we will find ourselves running huge deficits, increasing inequality, and facing serious social problems due to unemployment. The numbers for internal security and police forces are spiraling, and social tensions are rising in India,” he added.
Gandhi described the ongoing global transformation, saying the world is moving away from the internal combustion engine to electric motors, from petrol to batteries, and embracing renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and potentially nuclear energy. “This change will affect everythingāwarfare, medical treatment, education, how we eat, and much more.”
He pointed out that the revolution now in progress is as significant as the computer revolution. “I want the youngsters in this country to think about this. The war in Ukraine is actually a battle between the internal combustion engine and the electric motor. The electric motor is inside the drone, and the engine is in the tank. Drones with electric motors and small batteries are destroying tanks and artillery.”
He elaborated further: “The revolution is driven by four technologiesāelectric motors, batteries, optics, and AI. AI alone is meaningless; it operates on top of data.”
Gandhi raised concerns about Indiaās lack of production and consumption data, both of which are crucial for AI. “Today, every piece of data used to make electronic products is owned by China. In India, consumption data is owned by companies like Google, Facebook, and Instagram, and we have no production data of our own.”
He argued that India must start building its own production network and teach children about electric motors, batteries, drones, and robots. “China has been working on these technologies for the last ten years, and we are behind. To catch up, we must choose critical areas in these technologies and build capabilities in them.”
Gandhi concluded by stressing that the banking system must not be dominated by a few companies but should be open and accessible to small and medium businesses and entrepreneurs who want to take part in this revolution.
“China is sitting inside this country is because ‘Make in India’ has failed”: Rahul Gandhi attacks Modi government
New Delhi [India], February 4 (ANI): Noting that wars are fought not only between armies but by industrial systems, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday alleged that “China is sitting inside this country because ‘Make in India’ has failed” and said that India has an opportunity with the revolution in energy and mobility.
Participating in the debate on the motion of thanks on the President’s Address, Rahul Gandhi said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has denied that Chinese forces are inside Indian territory “but for some reason, our Army keeps talking to the Chinese about their entry into our territory, and the Chief of Army Staff has said that the Chinese are inside our territory.”
“The reason China is inside our territory is important because people think that wars are fought between armies and their weapons. But the fact of the matter is that wars are fought by industrial systems. The fact of the matter is that China has an industrial system that is far stronger and far bigger than our industrial system, and that is why they have the guts to come inside this country. The reason China is sitting inside this country is because ‘Make in India’ has failed. The reason China is sitting inside this country is because India is refusing to boost production, and I am worried that India is going to give up this revolution to the Chinese once again,” Gandhi, who is the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, said.
“The reason I made this reference is because everything is connected. When, if, and when we fight a war with China, we will be fighting with Chinese electric motors, Chinese batteries, Chinese optics, and we will be buying Chinese motors, Chinese optics, Chinese batteries. It is a non-sustainable proposition. That is why, for our security, for the future of our children, for the future of our country, we have to build a production system and we cannot allow this revolution to go by,” he added.
Referring to the strategic partnership with the United States, Rahul Gandhi said the partnership should focus on how India and the United States can work together to take advantage of this revolution. “India is as important as the United States for the simple reason that they cannot build an industrial system without us. The Americans simply cannot do what India can do because their cost structure is much more expensive than ours. We can build things that the Americans would never imagine,” he said.
BJP members opposed Rahul Gandhi’s allegations against the government. Speaker Om Birla asked the Congress leader to substantiate his allegations. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju accused Gandhi of speaking lies and said “frivolous language” does not suit the position Rahul Gandhi holds. (ANI)
