Apple and Amazon Buy Into Push to Make India More Self-Reliant

India’s budget went paperless for the first time this year. That’s because the pandemic rendered unsafe the traditional practice of locking away dozens of Finance Ministry staff inside a government printing plant to ensure none of the blueprint’s secrets spilled out. Instead, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the spending plan to Parliament reading from a Samsung electronic tablet, which the media took pains to identify as “Made in India.”

“Our manufacturing companies need to become an integral part of global supply chains, possess core competence and cutting-edge technology,” said Sitharaman in her Feb. 1 address. Tucked into the government’s spending plan for the coming fiscal year, which starts on April 1, is a $28 billion program to persuade foreign manufacturers to set up operations in India. It offers cash incentives for meeting certain sales targets in industries including autos, electronics, and pharmaceuticals, aimed at luring investors from regional rivals such as China and Vietnam that have lower operating costs.