Modi pitches India’s growth as a shared global opportunity

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi used an address to the Bloomberg New Economy Forum on October 13 to present the country’s economic and technological growth as an opportunity for international partners, arguing that India aims to prosper alongside other nations rather than at their expense. Modi cited 7.8% growth in the April-June quarter and foreign-exchange reserves exceeding $700 billion as evidence of economic resilience. He also pointed to reforms involving taxation, insolvency and labour laws. The figures and policy claims were presented by Modi in his speech. A central theme was what he described as “Power to Empower”: the idea that technology, data, knowledge and innovation should be used to expand opportunity. Modi highlighted India’s digital public infrastructure, including digital payments and direct transfers of government assistance. He said the same payments system was used by street vendors and larger businesses, and that India shared its digital infrastructure experience with partner countries, particularly in the Global South. He also cited the CoWIN platform, developed during the COVID-19 pandemic, as an open-source initiative.