20 September,2025 11:46 PM IST | Bhavnagar | mid-day online correspondent
PM Narendra Modi addresses the gathering during the `Samudra se Samruddhi` event at Gandhi Maidan, in Bhavnagar, Gujarat. PIC/PTI
Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi on Saturday said that India's main adversary is its dependence on other nations as he made a strong pitch for âAatmanirbharta (self-reliance)' and called for indigenous production of everything from semiconductor chips to ships, news agency PTI reported.
Speaking at the âSamudra se Samruddhi' event, where he inaugurated and laid foundation stones of projects worth Rs 34,200 crore, PM Modi said all the problems of India have only one solution, and that is self-reliance.
"India is moving forward with the spirit of global brotherhood and India has no major enemy in the world today, but in true terms, India's biggest adversary is dependence on other nations," the PM stated, emphasising that this dependence must be collectively defeated.
He asserted that greater foreign dependence leads to greater national failure, reported PTI.
"For global peace, stability, and prosperity, the world's most populous country must become self-reliant," PM Modi said, cautioning that reliance on others compromises national self-respect.
"The future of 140 crore Indians cannot be left to external forces, nor can the resolve for national development be based on foreign dependence. The future of the coming generations cannot be left to others. If the country with a population of 140 crore is dependent on others, it compromises national self-respect," he added.
Drawing an analogy, the PM remarked: "As per a popular saying, pain of 100 kinds has only one remedy; similarly, all problems of India have one solution, and that is aatmanirbharta (self-reliance)."
He also took a jibe at Congress and said that the talent of young people was suppressed after Independence by the then ruling party which brought in the "license raj".
"As a result of consistently ignoring inherent strengths of India, the country couldn't achieve the success it truly deserved even after six to seven decades of freedom," Modi said. He blamed "prolonged entanglement in the license-quota regime and isolation from global markets" as the main factors, reported PTI.
PM Modi said when the era of globalisation began, the then governments focused solely on imports, which led to scams worth thousands of crores of rupees.
Citing India's shipping sector as an example of the damage caused by flawed policies, the PM said the country once had a very vibrant ship-building industry.
"Ships built in India's coastal states once powered domestic and global trade. Even fifty years ago, India used domestically built ships, with over 40 percent of its import-export conducted through them. Till 50 years ago, our trade was carried out by 40 per cent ships made in India, but this has now come down to just 5 per cent," he pointed out.
PM Modi also stated that India pays a staggering USD 75 billion or Rs 6 lakh crore every year to foreign shipping companies for their services.
"Can people imagine how much money has been paid in freight to other countries over the past seven decades? This outflow of funds has created millions of jobs abroad. If even a small portion of this expenditure had been invested by earlier governments in the domestic shipping industry, the world would have been using Indian ships today, and India would have been earning lakh of crores in shipping services," said Modi.
"Chips (semiconductor chips) or ships, we must make them in India," he declared, adding that domestic ports are the backbone of India's rise as a global maritime powerhouse.
The PM stated that India's maritime sector is now moving towards next-generation reforms, and announced that from now, all the major ports in the country will be freed from multiple documents and fragmented processes.
"The implementation of One Nation, One Document and One Nation, One Port process will simplify trade and commerce," he said.
Modi also asserted that a series of reforms have been initiated in the maritime sector, with five maritime laws being introduced in a new form. A historic decision has been taken to strengthen the sector, with large ships now accorded infrastructure status, he added.
"Ship-building companies will now find it easier to secure loans from banks and will benefit from reduced interest rates. All benefits associated with infrastructure financing will now be extended to these ship-building enterprises," said Modi.
According to the PM, his government is working on three major schemes to make India a major maritime power.
"These initiatives will ease financial support for the shipbuilding sector, help shipyards adopt modern technology, and improve design and quality standards. Over Rs 70,000 crore will be invested in the coming years," he said.
During Saturday's event, Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for maritime development projects worth more than Rs 7,870 crore. He also unveiled and laid the foundation stone for multiple projects of the Central and state governments worth more than Rs 26,354 crore across various sectors in Gujarat.
Later, the PM conducted an aerial survey of Dholera Special Investment Region, a greenfield industrial hub located around 100 km south of Ahmedabad. He also reviewed the progress of the under-construction National Maritime Heritage Complex at Lothal in Ahmedabad district, which seeks to showcase India's maritime legacy.
Earlier in the morning, Modi participated in a roadshow upon his arrival in Bhavnagar.
(With PTI inputs)
