Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, well considered plan by the Central government seeks to transform the Indian economy. The article analyses its potential and suggests the ways to achieve the aims.

Vocal for local

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave a call to fellow Indians to be “Vocal for Local” in May.
• This includes not only to buy and use local products but to also take pride in promoting them.

Challenges

1) Imports from China

• Serious challenge to Atmanirbhar mission is country’s $65 billion worth of imports from China alone.
• Most of these imports are of essential items — raw materials, components and intermediates required in producing finished goods.
• For example, the pharmaceuticals sector imports nearly 70 per cent of its raw material and drug intermediates.
• It may not be feasible to replace all Chinese imports in the near future.
• It may also be debatable if the end goal is to replace the entire chain of imports from a country.
• Nevertheless, experts and industrialists do assert that the ANBA is an excellent initiative and gives India the opportunity to embark on the self-reliance drive.

2) Struggling MSMEs

• A major part of the Vocal for Local mission rests on the MSMEs, which has been seen as struggling for survival.
• But the reforms announced as part of the ANBA should put them on a stronger footing.
• One immediate fallout of these measures will be creation of large scale employment opportunities for both the skilled and unskilled workforce.
• A stronger manufacturing base will also lead to positive spinoffs related to the supply-purchase of local raw material and capacity building of allied manufacturing units.

Way forward

• First, an umbrella action plan should be drawn by the Niti Aayog listing all targets under the ANBA and the Vocal for Local Mission.
• A monitoring agency will review and suggest course correction to ensure that no delay is allowed to build.
• Second, each state/UT will develop an action plan in consonance with the umbrella plan.
• A separate organisation created by each state will be responsible for the implementation of the action plan
• Such organisation should also conduct regular studies to identify local and global market trends and invite competitive solutions to meet market demands.
• Third, each district (or a group of districts) will work out a more detailed action plan, and charter of responsibilities for ground level officers and departments.

Conclusion

The ANBA is a mission to empower the people of India. It will in all likelihood become a benchmark of how governments and their various organisations can work in a mission mode.

Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor for UPSC 2024

Attend Now