“Make in India” or “Make for India”? DIPP secretary Amitabh Kant on RBI Guv Raghuram Rajan’s idea

Kant with a copy of "arthniti" (File pic)

A FORTNIGHT ago, an economist of global stature and RBI governor Raghuram Rajan said that Make in India’s focus on manufacturing following the Chinese model of export-led growth is not intended. He argued, the world as a whole is unlikely to be able to accommodate another export-led China. So, why not “Make for India”, Rajan argued, asking for tapping the domestic market instead. DIPP secretary Amitabh Kant who is…
one of the key drivers in executing PM Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” campaign, encountered this issue in a recent television panel discussion. Kant says, “Make in India” is extremely inclusive. “It is make for India and when you make, you don’t only make for India. You also make for exports”, Kant, a 1980 batch IAS, said in a programme in CNBC-TV18. He then goes on to give the example of Hyundai which set up manufacturing centres in India initially for domestic market. But now, it exports 44% of its India production to 123 countries. “I don’t think anyone thinks in terms of manufacturing only for domestic market. So, Make in India is far more inclusive”, he adds.
Also, India’s share is just 1.7% of the global export market. In this backdrop of India having such a low share in global market, there is “no need to spread export pessimism at all”, he adds.
Kant, however, clarifies to the anchor’s query that he is not saying Governor Rajan is spreading any export pessimism. “All of us must be absolutely clear that India can become a great manufacturing nation if exports grow,” he says.