The 'Make in India' Program

In September 2014, the government launched the Make in India campaign, focusing on initiatives to facilitate investments in India and promoting it as a global manufacturing hub.¹⁰ The program aims to improve the ease of doing business in India by reducing red tape, improving infrastructure, opening up more sectors to FDI, and most importantly, changing the image of the government from a 'permit-issuing authority' to a true business partner. The program has been a stellar success with India reducing dependency on imports and turning many sectors into domestic manufacturing hubs that cater to global demand. The Make in India program dismantled outdated frameworks and brought in transparent mechanisms that disbanded investor complaints and helped drive investment in the Indian market.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Prime Minister announced his vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat (translated to Self-reliant India). In line with the Make in India program, the government has appealed to the citizens to focus on being self-reliant and vocal about local products. The Atmanirbhar Bharat program has five pillars, namely economy, infrastructure, system, vibrant demography, and demand.

The Atmanirbhar Bharat program aims to achieve self- reliance through a five-stage plan:¹¹

• Phase-I: Businesses including MSMEs
• Phase-II: Poor, including migrants and farmers
• Phase-III: Agriculture
• Phase-IV: New Horizons of Growth
• Phase-V: Government Reforms and Enablers

Broadly, this program provides thrust in the form of government reforms relaxing state borrowing limits, plans to privatize Public Sector Units (PSUs), redefining Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to be more inclusive, reducing tax deduction rates and support in managing working capital amongst others.

Atmanirbhar Bharat is not intended to promote protectionism or isolationism by erecting trade barriers but instead seeks to make the Indian economy robust in the long run by scaling up manufacturing, accelerating infrastructure development, attracting investments, and promoting consumption-led growth.

• 10.About, Make in India, https://www.makeinindia.com/about, as accessed on 16 July 2023
• 11. Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan, Invest India, https://www.investindia.gov.in/atmanirbhar-bharat-abhiyaan, accessed 16 July 2023