Overview
- V Anantha Nageswaran told a think‑tank on Thursday that repeated shocks since the COVID pandemic have put India at an inflection point comparable in significance to 1991.
- He called for simultaneous import substitution and the creation of strategic buffers for key inputs such as crude oil, industrial metals, fertilisers, active pharmaceutical ingredients, rare earths and battery chemicals.
- The CEA said energy must be treated as a macroeconomic policy tool and urged targeted, performance‑linked fiscal support to cut input costs for manufacturers and small and medium enterprises.
- Nageswaran warned that tariff retaliation led by President Trump and others has weaponised supply chains and that AI and data‑centre build‑outs are adding new pressures for power, capital and fresh water.
- He argued the window to act is short and that selective, fast implementation of these measures could preserve competitiveness and limit higher costs for firms and consumers.