Piyush Goyal urges industry to let go of protectionist mindset

The domestic industry must focus on becoming competitive and efficient instead of leaning on "crutches" such as subsidies, incentives and high import duties, Piyush Goyal, the minister for commerce and industry said on Thursday.

Industry players must let go of their protectionist mindset, he said at an event in the city. "Ultimately, competitiveness in an industry will depend on our innovativeness, on the way we build up our capacity to adopt innovation, to upgrade our manufacturing practices, upgrade our skill sets, upgrade our efficiency," he said.

Goyal's comments come at a time when the US government, under President Donald Trump's leadership since January, has announced several tariffs across the world, with the protectionist measures aimed at defending the world's largest economy.


"There is a point of time in every nation's history when that nation decides that I will work on my competitive strengths, I will engage in the world with confidence, I will not be weak-kneed, I have the capacity to take on the best in the world, anywhere in the world," he said.

India's export to the US stood at nearly $53 billion between April-November 2024, according to the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), a body under the commerce ministry. Engineering goods, drugs and pharmaceuticals, electronic goods and gems and jewellery were among the major exported items from India to the US in this period.

While the local steel industry is not a big exporter to the US, it is seen indirectly impacted by these tariffs as excessive steel from China, which is the world's largest producer of steel, could make its way into India at sharp discounts. The Indian government is considering a safeguard duty for steel basis a probe that it initiated in December last year.

Apart from honing competitiveness, focusing on quality, sustainability, being inclusive on growth and a focus on development of skills can help India become a developed nation, Goyal said.