India must treat Trump’s tariffs as a wake-up call for structural reforms: Amitabh Kant

India should treat the sharp increase in US tariffs as a trigger for structural reforms and diversification of export markets, former NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said on Wednesday, calling it an opportunity rather than a setback.

Speaking at the BN Memorial Lecture organized by the IRS (C&IT) Association, Kant remarked, “This is India’s century, no matter what Trump’s tariffs are. In fact, this is a huge opportunity for India to push through reforms that come only once in a generation.”

He dismissed Washington’s justification of penalising India for Russian oil imports, pointing out that other nations import far more. “If Russian oil was truly the issue, then why not China, which imports much more, or Turkey which buys nearly as much as us? Clearly, this is not about Russian oil,” he said.

Kant, who also served as India’s G20 Sherpa, argued that the global supply chain turmoil highlighted the urgent need to improve governance and accelerate the creation of production infrastructure. In a post on X, he wrote, “Trump’s tariffs should serve as a wake-up call. The irony is stark—the US negotiates openly with Russia and China, the largest buyer of Russian oil, but targets India instead. Rather than be intimidated, India must seize this moment to undertake bold reforms and broaden its export footprint for long-term resilience.”