India's household debt-to-GDP ratio lower than peers: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

New Delhi: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India's household debt-to-GDP (gross domestic product) ratio is lower than that of other emerging market economies and many advanced nations.

"Our debt-to-GDP is far low compared to our peer group and some of the advanced economies," she said, replying to the discussion on supplementary demands for grants and Manipur budget in the Rajya Sabha.

The Upper House, subsequently, returned the four bills to the Lok Sabha, marking Parliament's approval for the supplementary demands for grants, which entails ₹51,463 crore additional spending in the current financial year and the Manipur budget for 2025-26.


Sitharaman brushed aside the opposition's criticism of the 'Make in India' programme, asserting that it was yielding "good results" as the government had taken multiple steps to strengthen the manufacturing sector, including defence production.

She said production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes had attracted investments worth ₹1.5 lakh crore and created 950,000 jobs.

"Make in India has actually given us good results. We took step after step, after step, to strengthen the manufacturing of this country," she said.

The government had launched the Make in India initiative on September 25, 2014, to facilitate investment, foster innovation, build best-in-class infrastructure and make the country a hub for manufacturing, design and innovation.

"Believe in Make In India. It is giving you results," Sitharaman said, citing data.

The finance minister said the best example is 'Made in Bihar' boots, which are now part of the Russian Army's equipment, marking a significant milestone for Indian products in the global defence market and showcasing the country's high manufacturing standards.

"Make in India made (the) defence sector become (a) net exporter and earn (₹)30,000 crore," Sitharaman said.

She criticised the Congress for taking a lot of time in formulating the national manufacturing policy.