Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave a forceful speech in Bhavnagar, Gujarat, on Saturday. He said that India’s “real enemy” is its dependency on other countries and that self-reliance is the way to national strength and worldwide respect.
The Prime Minister’s comments come at a bad moment, only a day after US President Donald Trump approved a law that makes H-1B visa applications cost a lot of money—$100,000. India has 71% of all H-1B visa holders, therefore this change is likely to have a big effect on Indian professionals and the IT sector. This new policy, along with the 50% tariffs on Indian imports that are already in place, has made the government’s campaign for self-reliance more urgent.
“We don’t have any big enemies in the globe. “Our only real enemy is our need for other countries,” Modi stated. “This is our biggest enemy, and we must all work together to defeat this enemy of India, the enemy of dependence.”
The Prime Minister linked the idea of “Atmanirbhar Bharat” (Self-Reliant India) directly to national pride. He said, “The more we depend on other countries, the more we fail as a nation,” and “If we stay dependent on others, our self-respect will be hurt.”
Modi also used the chance to blame past governments, especially the Congress, for their policies that he said caused India’s indigenous shipbuilding sector to fail. He said that by putting foreign ships first, India grew dependent on foreign shipping services, which now cost the country about ₹6 lakh crore a year—almost as much as the country’s defense budget.
The Prime Minister opened and lay the foundation stone for development projects worth more than ₹34,200 crore during his trip to Gujarat. These projects will focus on the maritime, energy, and urban transport sectors. He also virtually opened the Mumbai International Cruise Terminal, which shows how serious he is about making India’s marine capabilities stronger.