Modi Builds Muscle

Realising Atmanirbhar Bharat calls for boosting government spending, attracting investments, supporting entrepreneurs, and resolving short-term difficulties to ensure long-term rewards. So how well has the government begun?

- K. Sunil Thomas

Eshah Panthah. Or roughly, ‘That is his only way forward’, in Sanskrit.

Addressing the nation on May 12, Prime Minister Narendra Modi used the obscure words to announce what would be the guiding principle of India’s post-Covid recovery—Atmanirbhar Bharat.

“The state of the world today teaches us that making India self-reliant is the only path,” said Modi, announcing an economic package of ₹20 lakh crore, the biggest in independent India’s history. “In times of crisis, ‘local’ has fulfilled our demand; local has saved us. Local is not just the need, it is our responsibility, too.”

After Modi’s speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled a slew of measures, ranging from structural reforms and easing of rules to pumping money into the system. The big moves included business loans at concessional rates, debt relief for micro, small and medium industries, allowing farmers to sell directly to private players, completing ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ scheme by March 2021, additional funds for creating and guaranteeing rural jobs, opening key sectors like commercial mining to private players, and raising FDI limits in defence and space.

Modi’s clarion call for Atmanirbhar Bharat generated paeans from industrialists and analysts, and a viral hashtag, #VocalForLocal. Detractors, however, soon pointed out that this export-oriented swadeshi drive was just the old ‘Make in India’ wine in a new bottle.