A push to make India a manufacturing hub is welcome both for economic growth and employment, but manufacturing that is divorced from design and development, as is largely the case today, cannot make India a global powerhouse. Our pharmaceutical sector is a telling example. India produces more than 20 per cent of the world’s generic drugs, yet remains heavily dependent on imported ingredients and contributes little by way of original R&D. Its role in the global value chain remains modest; manufacturing without design may create capacity, but it rarely creates influence.

Celebration of mediocrity is our weakness. Consider the Vande Bharat Express, proclaimed as a symbol of India’s design prowess. Perhaps only I, having led the project, can say frankly that it was indeed a proud first step t

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