Chief Economic Adviser (CEA) V Anantha Nageswaran has said that as India tries to grow faster, the country needs to grapple with unfavourable factors like slowing globalisation, divisive world politics and the raging issue of climate change.
He stated China, which grew at almost double digits between 1980 and 2015, did not have to contend with these factors during its high growth phase. Between 1980 and 2015, China was blessed with very strong globalisation, global politics not being as divisive and polarising, and the world not being as conflict-ridden.
Making it clear that India has 'troubled relations' with China, the CEA asked the auto industry to reflect on the growing reliance on China, given the northern neighbour's strengths in electric mobility and the imports we have to undertake to feed the fashion of the day. He noted ‘We should not be substituting our dependence on Arab nations for crude oil to another country with which India has had troubled relations.’