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Informist, Tuesday, Apr. 28, 2026

 

NEW DELHI – India is no longer standing on the sidelines of global affairs but is helping shape solutions on trade, technology, climate security, health, supply chains, and development, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said Tuesday. India has emerged as a trusted partner to carry out trade even amid volatility, all while keeping its own interests above all, Sitharaman said while speaking in her address at NITTE University in Mangaluru.

According to the finance minister, Viksit Bharat, or developed India, must have the confidence to work with the world, speak for the global south, protect its citizens, and help shape the future.

 

"In the light of the global VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity), we are putting our interests above all and making sure Indians don't suffer for the want of something even if it is a matter we import 100%," Sitharaman said. "Prime Minister and the government of India are making sure that Indians put India's interests on top and do not get agitated on any issue." 

 

The finance minister said that India must grow, but it must grow responsibly, ensuring clean energy, strong public transport, water security, waste management, green jobs and climate-resilient farming, among others, stay at the core of its growth. "Climate action must be fair...poor families and developing countries cannot be asked to carry an unfair burden," she said.

 

India cannot, however, become a developed economy by simply importing from others. Instead, it must manufacture domestically to build economic resilience, according to Sitharaman. "Manufacturing creates steady jobs and national resilience. To compete globally, Make in India must mean high quality and efficient," she said.  

 

India's manufacturing sector activity had fallen to a near four-year low in March as the war in West Asia pushed up prices and increased market uncertainty. Data release last week, however, showed that the manufacturing sector activity has improved in April. The Flash Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 55.9 in April from 53.9 in March, led by notable rebounds in rates of increase for output and sales.

 

The Indian economy grew 7.6% in FY26, and the Reserve Bank of India has projected India's GDP to grow 6.9% in 2026–27 (Apr-Mar).  End

 

Reported by Priyasmita Dutta

Edited by Deepshikha Bhardwaj

 

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