Last Updated on August 29, 2026 11:03 pm by INDIAN AWAAZ
AMN / BIZ DESK
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman pitched India as a premier long-term investment destination during a high-level business roundtable in Chicago, urging global investors to leverage the country’s vast market scale, robust economic momentum, and a decade of continuous policy reforms.
Organized by the Consulate General of India and the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum, the gathering focused heavily on the “Manufacture in India” initiative, highlighting expanding opportunities across artificial intelligence, advanced electronics, defense, and global capability centers.
Ms Sitharaman also emphasised that India’s investment appeal lies in the convergence of scale, sustained economic growth, skilled talent, world-class infrastructure, technological advancement and a decade of consistent reforms.
A key focus of the meeting was “Manufacture in India – for India and for the world”, with opportunities across manufacturing, AI and digital, financial services, infrastructure, food processing, defence and advanced technologies. Ms Sitharaman noted that India’s Digital Public Infrastructure, including Aadhaar, UPI, DigiLocker, ONDC and India Stack, has created platforms operating at population scale. She added that the country’s next phase of growth lies in building high-value businesses in AI, engineering, analytics, product development, semiconductors and electronics, with Global Capability Centres increasingly evolving into global innovation hubs.
Ms Sitharaman underlined that GIFT IFSC is emerging as an international financial centre connecting global capital with Indian opportunities. Referring to the reconfiguration of global supply chains, the Minister said India combines a large domestic market with globally competitive manufacturing capabilities, with the focus now shifting beyond assembly to deeper component manufacturing, engineering and advanced technologies, supported by Production Linked Incentive schemes.
Highlighting initiatives such as Atmanirbhar Bharat and iDEX, Ms Sitharaman said India is strengthening domestic capabilities in drones, autonomous systems and other advanced technologies. She also invited global partners to co-develop, co-produce and build for global markets, urging them to view India not merely as a market to serve but as a platform from which to build for the world.
The Roundtable was organised by the Consulate General of India in Chicago in association with the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum.