Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman articulated her vision for Viksit Bharat 2047 during an interaction held at the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) premises in Ahmedabad on Saturday.

“Viksit Bharat is not a high-flying dream; it is an achievable goal,” said the Finance Minister, underlining the practicality of India’s economic aspirations.

Sitharaman stressed the significance of self-sufficiency, stating, “With the sense of ‘Atma Nirbhar Bharat’ we just can’t go on importing things. What we need we should be in a position to produce.”

Explaining the rationale behind pegging the target to 2047, Sitharaman elaborated, “Pegging it to 2047 is not because it is 100 years of independence but today we are in a position where with another 25 years of good solid ‘Sabka Pyaras’, we will be able to reach it.”

Highlighting Gujarat’s prominence in renewable energy and manufacturing, Sitharaman emphasized the need for India to achieve self-reliance and stand out in various sectors.

“Gujarat has one of the biggest renewable energy sectors in Kutch. Restoring the Indian economy in each one of this sectors and now making sure that India stands out not just in support of the service sector which contributes more than 62 per cent to our GDP but to get back to our manufacturing sector. Get manufacturing to come out and contribute more,” Sitharaman stated during her address.

Looking ahead to 2047, Sitharaman emphasized the need for both the service and manufacturing sectors to grow, lauding Gujarat’s policies and government ecosystem in facilitating this growth.

“So, in 2047 we need to have services grow, we need to have manufacturing growing well, Gujarat has that policy and government plus eco system ready for it”, she remarked.

Sitharaman further emphasized the importance of Gujarat in India’s manufacturing journey, especially in semiconductor manufacturing. “Semiconductor manufacturing for India comes as the first step in Gujarat,” she said.