Aatmanirbharta is about building capacity to have a stronger hand: Jaishankar

New Delhi: The message that ‘India at 75’ should send to the world are its qualities of creativity, energy, buzz, dynamism and talent, as these will attract the world to India. This was stated by Dr. S Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, Government of India at the PAFI 7th Annual Forum, 2020 today.

He added that we need to send out the message to the world that our democracy was built under most challenging conditions and India has also shown that we built development under equally challenging times and are now moving towards a much more human centric view of economic progress.

On the topic of Aatmanirbharta, Dr. Jaishankar said that, according to him, Aatmanirbharta is building the capacity to have a stronger hand when you go out in the world. He believes that Aatmanirbharta need not be in contradiction to global value chains and Japan’s story of development proves this. According to him, there are aspects of the Japan model, which has learnings for India, such as how to build the manufacturing, how to strategise and how to engage in global value chains, among others. He views Japan as one of our key partners that can directly drive the post-Covid recovery, resilience and reform.

Speaking about the QUAD, Dr. Jaishankar explained that the world is becoming more multi-polar, i.e there are now more countries with the ability to influence and shape global outcomes. In this fractured world, there would be many such ad-hoc combinations of countries with converging interests who would find it useful to consult on issues such as maritime security, counter-terrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster management, and resilient supply chains.

Sharing his views on the role of corporate sector in assisting government’s foreign policy, the Minister said that the corporate sector are employment creators and would contribute directly to India’s capability, creating demand and enhancing our reputation abroad. It would also facilitate in the flow of Indian talent to the global economy, because it is in our interest to make the world not only a marketplace, but also a workplace.

He also highlighted that trade cannot be at the cost of domestic economy but should expand domestic economy.

In his opening remarks, Mr Ajay Khanna, Forum Chairman & Co-Founder, PAFI & Chief Strategic & Public Affairs, Jubilant Bhartia Group welcomed the speakers. Mr Ishteyaque Amjad, President PAFI and Vice President, Public Affairs, Communications & sustainability at Coca-Cola India and South West Asia thanked the Minister for sharing his insights. Mr Virat Bhatia, Managing Director – Strategy & Policy, Apple introduced the panelists. The session was moderated by Mr Samir Saran, President, ORF