Chips or ships, they should be made in India: PM

Modi unveils big port reforms, says large ships will now be recognised as infra, a policy shift aimed at positioning India as global shipping hub

- DILIP SINGH KSHATRIYA eee OA cxanecsens

PM Narendra Modi on Saturday declared that large ships will now be officially recognised as infrastructure, a landmark policy shift aimed at revolutionising India's maritime sector and positioning the nation as a global shipping hub.

Describing India's coastlines as "gateways to national prosperity," Modi stressed that peace, stability, and global growth depend on India's selfreliance, boldly asserting, "Chips or ships, we must make them in India." Capping the event with a massive development push, Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for projects worth ₹34,200 crore at the 'Samudra se Samriddhi' event, giving Gujarat's Bhavnagar a major boost as a maritime hub.

The PM exhorted the people to be independent, saying, "Today, India is moving forward with the spirit of 'Vishwabandhu'. We have no major enemy in the world. Our biggest enemy is our dependency on other countries. This is our biggest enemy, and together we must defeat this enemy of India, the enemy of dependence. We must always reiterate this." Greater the dependency on other countries, the greater would be India's failure. For global peace, stability, and prosperity, the country with the world's largest population must become self sufficient. "If we remain dependent on others, our self-respect will be hurt. We cannot leave the future of 1.4 billion countrymen to others.