Page 34 - The Indian EYE 051724

BUSINESS EYE MAY 17, 2024 | The Indian Eye 34

How Modi’s leadership and initiatives of

Ambani and Adani are leading India’s growth

CNN report says both Ambani and Adani are often compared by journalists to John D

Rockefeller, who became America’s first billionaire during the Gilded Age

OUR BUREAU
Mumbai/New York
ndia is poised to become a
21st-century economic power-
Ihouse, offering an alternative
to China for investors looking for
growth and for reducing supply chain
risks with Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi and industrialists Mukesh
Ambani and Gautam Adani playing
a fundamental role in shaping the
economic superpower the country
will become in the coming decades,
according to a CNN report.
The report says to spur growth,
the Modi government has begun a
massive infrastructure transforma-
tion by spending billions on building
roads, ports, airports and railways.
It is also heavily promoting digital
connectivity, which can improve
both commerce and daily life. “Both Modi with Gautam Adani (ANI)
Adani and Ambani have become key
allies as the country embarks on this sectors prioritized for development thing that America and lots of other roads and energy make it “a unique
revolution,” it said. by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, countries have already gone through. long-term investment opportunity”,
Worth USD 3.7 trillion in 2023, currently campaigning for his third Britain in the 1820s, South Korea in The report notes that while both
India is the world’s fifth largest consecutive term to lead India. The the 1960s and 70s, and you could ar- the barons built much of their for-
economy, jumping four spots in South Asian country is poised to be- gue China in the 2000s,” said James tune from fossil fuels, they are now
the rankings during PM Modi’s de- come a 21st-century economic pow- Crabtree, the author of The Bil- investing billions in clean energy.
cade in office and leapfrogging the erhouse, offering a real alternative lionaire Raj, a book about India’s Notably, their green energy pivot
United Kingdom. “It is comfortably to China for investors hunting for wealthy. comes at a time when India has set
placed to expand at an annual rate growth and manufacturers looking The report says that Mukesh itself some ambitious climate goals.
of at least 6 per cent in the coming to reduce risks in their supply chains,” Ambani’s ambition and breathless The report also notes that de-
few years, but analysts say the coun- the report said. pace of expansion is matched by spite India’s success in terms of
try should be targeting growth of “As a result, these three men Adani, “a college drop-out who now growth rate, soaring youth unem-
eight per cent or more if it wants to -- Modi, Ambani and Adani -- are helms businesses ranging from ports ployment and inequality remain
become an economic superpower. playing a fundamental role in shap- and power to defence and aerospace”. stubbornly persistent problems. In
Sustained expansion will push India ing the economic superpower India A first-generation entrepreneur, 2022, the country ranked a lowly 147
higher up the ranks of the world’s will become in the coming decades,” the 62-year-old began his career with on gross domestic product (GDP)
biggest economies, with some ob- it added. diamond trading, before setting up a per person, a measure of living stan-
servers forecasting the South Asian The report also pointed out that commodity trading business in 1988, dards, according to the World Bank.
nation to become number three be- the kind of power and influence which later evolved into Adani En- The report says India has other
hind only the US and China by 2027,” being enjoyed by the two Indian ty- terprises Limited (AEL). conglomerates as well. The 156-year-
CNN analysis said. coons has been seen before in other According to a January note by old Tata Group wields immense pow-
Reliance Industries and the countries “experiencing periods of American brokerage firm Cantor er over various key sectors ranging
Adani Group - the two sprawling con- rapid industrialisation.” Fitzgerald, AEL “is at the core of ev- from steel to aviation, but it often
glomerates having valuations worth It said both Ambani and Adani erything India wants to accomplish.” does not invite the same scrutiny as
over USD 200 billion each, have es- are often compared by journalists The company functions as an the newer conglomerates, mainly be-
tablished businesses in sectors rang- to John D Rockefeller, who became incubator for Adani’s businesses. cause it is controlled by philanthropic
ing from fossil fuels and clean energy America’s first billionaire during the Many have been spun out and be- trusts and not run as a family dynasty.
to media and technology. Gilded Age, a 30-year period in the come leading players in their respec- India has been the fastest-grow-
“Investors have been cheering last decades of the 19th century. tive sectors. According to Cantor, ing large economy in the last three
the duo’s ability to adroitly bet on “India is in the middle of some- the firm’s current focus on airports, financial years.

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