Atmanirbhar Bharat will strengthen globalization amid Covid-19, PM Modi said at the World Economic Forum event

While India was producing two Covid-19 vaccines at the moment, it would provide many more to the world in the time to come, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.

"Right now there are two made in India vaccines. The World Economic Forum will be relieved to know that in the time to come many more vaccines will come from India. These vaccines will enable other countries to speed up their vaccination process," he said while speaking online at the World Economic Forum’s Davos Dialogue.

Prime Minister Modi added that even as the Indian economy was hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat will make the country a hub of the global supply chain.

He said, “Our Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan is committed towards global good and global supply chain. India has the capacity, capability, and reliability to strengthen the global supply chain.”

As it is known that the digital wave during the pandemic has helped in boosting India’s economy, PM Modi noted India's digital drive has become a subject of interest even for WEF experts.

In December, 4 trillion rupees of transactions were enabled through the UPI systems. Many countries are looking to replicate the UPI networks. During Covid time, 1.8 trillion rupees were transferred to bank accounts of beneficiaries: PM Modi said.

Talking about the growth and development of the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), PM Modi said, "Digital lending platforms can help MSMEs get access to credit. Our effort is that MSMEs should benefit from AI and ML. Through the government e-Marketplace (GeM) 450,000 MSMES have joined in government procurement online."

Further, the Prime Minister noted that infrastructure has been the priority for the government in the past six years. India has added 36GW to production capacity, roads and real networks are being augmented. $1.5 trillion projects will be implemented in the next five years, he said.

“It is estimated that the infrastructure needs of the country would be around 4.5 trillion dollars by 2040. I believe that the government and industry would have to achieve this goal in unison. The government is continuously working towards providing a stable environment and all help,” PM Modi said.

Speaking about the vibrant startup system of India, PM Modi said, "We have a commitment to Ease of living, ease of doing business, and climate-sensitive development. We are working to converge the physical and digital worlds in our cities. Till 2025 India will have 25 cities with Metro services, India progressing fast on electric mobility as well.”

The Prime Minister also spoke about India’s effectiveness in containing the coronavirus pandemic. He assured that many more vaccines will come from India besides the two indigenously manufactured vaccines.

PM Modi said that India has been able to achieve rapid immunization on the domestic front as well. "In just 12 days, India has vaccinated more than 2.3 million health care workers. In the next some months, we will achieve our target of vaccinating 300 million elderly people and people with comorbidities," he said.

The Davos Dialogues agenda marks the launch of the World Economic Forum's great reset initiative in the post-COVID-19 world. More than 400 top industry leaders from across the globe will attend the session, wherein the prime minister will be speaking on the Fourth Industrial Revolution-using technology for the good of humanity.