Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Saturday criticised the current state of India's manufacturing sector, claiming that under the "Make in India" initiative, the country is largely assembling rather than manufacturing products.
In a post on X, he cited that a significant portion—around 80%—of components used in TVs made in India are imported from China. He attributed this situation to inadequate policy support, high taxation, and monopolistic control by large corporations, which he said are hampering small manufacturers from thriving and contributing meaningfully to the sector.
"Until India becomes self-reliant in production, talks of jobs, growth, and 'Make in India' will remain mere speeches," he also said. "Ground-level change is needed so that India moves beyond the assembly line to become a true manufacturing power and can compete with China on equal footing," Rahul Gandhi wrote in a post in Hindi on X.
"Do you know that 80% of the components of most TVs made in India come from China? "In the name of 'Make in India,' we are merely assembling - not truly manufacturing. From iPhones to TVs - the parts come from abroad, we just put them together," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said. Gandhi tagged a 7-minute video of his visit to a local unit assembling TVs in Greater Noida.
In the video of Gandhi's conversation with the local TV unit, he is heard saying that 'Make in India' is actually 'Assemble in India'. He also talks about reducing margins due to a single big player's monopoly in supply of parts.
Gandhi further emphasised that until India becomes self-reliant in production, talks of jobs, growth, and "Make in India" will remain mere speeches. "Until India becomes self-reliant in production, talks of jobs, growth, and 'Make in India' will remain mere speeches. Ground-level change is needed so that India moves beyond the assembly line to become a true manufacturing power and can compete with China on equal footing," the Congress leader said.
Gandhi had earlier, during the winter session in the Parliament, alleged that the Modi government's 'Make In India ' initiative has failed to revive its share of manufacturing in GDP, which has come down from 15.3 per cent of GDP in 2014 to 12.6 per cent, which is the lowest in the past 60 years.
The Make in India initiative was launched by the Prime Minister in September 2014 as part of a wider set of nation-building initiatives. Rahul Gandhi earlier questioned the effectiveness of the "Make in India" initiative, highlighting that manufacturing in the country has fallen to a record low of 14 per cent of the economy since 2014.
He also pointed to rising youth unemployment and a doubling of imports from China, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of focusing on slogans rather than real solutions.
*With Agency Inputs
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