Piyush Goyal Slams Rahul Gandhi’s Comments On India’s Manufacturing Sector

In Washington DC, Union Minister Piyush Goyal responded to Rahul Gandhi’s comments on job losses, expressing disbelief at the claim and criticizing the tendency to bring domestic politics to foreign lands. Goyal emphasized that India is united in its mission to become a developed and prosperous nation by 2047, working collectively for the betterment of its people. He also addressed the issue of China’s influence on Indian industry, criticizing past governments for allowing Chinese goods to flood Indian markets between 2004 and 2014, causing a significant trade deficit increase from $1.8 billion to $43 billion. Goyal described this as a failure to protect Indian manufacturing and warned of the negative impact it had on the country’s economy. Goyal further highlighted India’s withdrawal from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which he said would have forced India into an unfavorable trade agreement with China. He contrasted the growth rate of the trade deficit with China from 2004-2014 (42.85% CAGR) to the reduced rate from 2014-2024 (6.45% CAGR), blaming previous governments for the initial damage to India's growth story.