On Monday, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh criticized the Indian government for not helping private investment in manufacturing. He made this statement after a report showed that the Indian economy grew by only 5.4% from July to September 2024. This is a big drop compared to last year when it grew by 8.1%.
Ramesh pointed out that the government’s promises, like tax cuts and incentives for production, do not match reality. He said, “Make in India has turned into Make-Believe in India.” He also mentioned that manufacturing growth has slowed down to just 2.2%.
Exports are also troubling, growing by only 2.8%. This shows that the Prime Minister’s goal of making India a global manufacturing hub has not been achieved. According to Ramesh, the “Make in India” program started ten years ago, but manufacturing and exports are still struggling.
He highlighted that the share of manufacturing in India’s economy has dropped from 18.1% in 2011-12 to 14.3% in 2022-23. Ramesh raised concerns about unemployment too, pointing out that jobs in manufacturing have decreased from 51.3 million in 2017 to 35.65 million in 2022-23.
In specific sectors like garments, exports fell from $15 billion in 2013 to $14.5 billion in 2023. Meanwhile, countries like Bangladesh and Vietnam have passed India in garment exports.
Ramesh also linked the problem to cheap imports from China, stating that many small businesses in India have closed because they cannot compete. He said that over a third of small businesses making stainless steel in Gujarat have shut down due to these imports.
Lastly, Ramesh compared the current situation to when Manmohan Singh was Prime Minister, noting that India’s share of global exports grew much faster during that time. The latest reports show that India’s GDP in the second quarter of the current financial year is estimated at ₹44.10 lakh crore, a moderate growth compared to last year’s figures, but much less than the Reserve Bank of India’s prediction of 7%.
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