Mon Dec 02 21:23:28 UTC 2024: **Congress Slams ‘Make in India’ as ‘Make-Believe,’ Citing Weak GDP Growth**
NEW DELHI, December 3, 2024 – The Indian National Congress on Monday sharply criticized the government’s flagship “Make in India” initiative, citing recently released GDP figures as evidence of its failure. Congress communications chief Jairam Ramesh pointed to a slowdown in manufacturing growth to a “shocking” 2.2% and export growth to 2.8% in the July-September quarter. He argued that this demonstrates the scheme’s ineffectiveness in boosting India’s manufacturing sector and global export competitiveness.
Ramesh highlighted a decline in manufacturing’s share of India’s Gross Value Added (GVA) from 18.1% in 2011-12 to 14.3% in 2022-23, and a drop in manufacturing jobs from 51.3 million in 2017 to 35.65 million in 2022-23. He further claimed that India’s share in global merchandise exports has stagnated, contrasting it with faster growth during the previous Manmohan Singh administration. He also blamed cheap Chinese imports and the success of competing nations like Bangladesh and Vietnam in sectors such as garment manufacturing for impacting India’s MSME sector.
The Congress leader declared that “Make in India has simply become Make-Believe in India.” This statement follows similar concerns raised by Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, on Sunday.
The BJP responded by dismissing the Congress’s criticism as misleading, highlighting India’s 5.4% GDP growth rate as one of the highest globally. BJP leader Amit Malviya accused the Congress of using selective data and half-truths to paint a negative picture of the economy.
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