India has to strive every bit to become a part of the global value chain, says FM at TechSparks 2020

The intention of Aatmanirbhar Bharat is not to shut India down or make India look inwards or to stop imports. Whilst India has to definitely strive every bit to become a part of the global value chain, said Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at the 11th edition of YourStory’s flagship event, TechSparks 2020.

“Equally, we can't allow the strengths that India has to be eroded for whatever reason, and at least in those areas where we had strength, where we made a difference in the global supply chain, and where, because of those strengths, we have built certain capacity. Today, for whatever reason, which largely may or may not be appropriate, but still that may or may not be, I will put it under one word i.e predatory pricing,” the finance minister said.

The minister highlighted the strength India has in producing APIs (active pharmaceutical ingredients), based on which we became literally the pharmacists for the whole world.

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“India produces some of the best quality components - built by small and medium units that are big contributors to the export and the GDP, and led us to become the large manufacturer of mobile phones, automobiles, and so on.. and more importantly they create in-situ jobs even for people who’ve come out of schools/colleges/ITI,” she said.

According to the minister, Aatmanirbhar Bharat comes from the capacity to produce world-class products, in-situ, “where we don’t have to get it from somewhere else, we can get it from India - not just for domestic supply, but also international.”

"India can become self-sufficient not purely for itself but also bank on itself by producing locally - it’s a sure market,” she added.

For the country to truly become Aatmanirbhar, Sitharaman said, "The government is listening, so ask for what you want. Tell us what you want India to do for you. Nothing should hold us back from doing what we want to do.”

For more information on TechSparks 2020, check out our TechSparks 2020 website. Sign up here to join the event. 

TechSparks - YourStory's annual flagship event - has been India's largest and most important technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship summit for over a decade, bringing together entrepreneurs, policymakers, technologists, investors, mentors, and business leaders for stories, conversations, collaborations, and connections that matter. As TechSparks 2020 goes all virtual and global in its 11th edition, we want to thank you for the tremendous support we've received from all of you throughout our journey and give a huge shoutout to our sponsors of TechSparks 2020.