Deepinder Goyal has urged India to embrace its potential and become an unapologetic superpower
Reacting to the tariff hikes by the United States (US) on India, Zomato’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Deepinder Goyal has urged India to embrace its potential and become an unapologetic superpower. Goyal noted that global powers will always bully us, unless we take our destiny in our own hands.
“Every few years, the world reminds us of our place. A threat here, a tariff there. But the message is the same: stay in your lane, India. Global powers will always bully us, unless we take our destiny in our own hands. And the only way to do that is if we collectively decide to become the world’s largest most unapologetic superpower. In economy, in technology, in defense, and most importantly, in ambition. There is absolutely no other way,” Goyal wrote on LinkedIn.
Goyal’s reaction came amid growing tensions between India and United States. The White House on Wednesday said US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order imposing an additional 25 per cent tariff on imports from India, doubling the total duty rate to 50 per cent. The move follows Washington’s conclusion that India continues to directly or indirectly import oil from the Russian Federation.
“I find that the Government of India is currently directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil,” Trump said in the order. “Accordingly, and as consistent with applicable law, articles of India imported into the customs territory of the United States shall be subject to an additional ad valorem rate of duty of 25 per cent,” it stated. The new tariffs are set to go into effect in 21 days, according to the order.
Voicing concerns about the potential adverse impact of the effective 50 per cent United States (US) tariff rate for India, the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (Citi) has stated that the government should fast-track the introduction of measures to limit the hardship likely to be faced by local textile and apparel exporters.
“The US tariff announcement of 6 August is a huge setback for India’s textile and apparel exporters as it has further complicated the challenging situation we were already grappling with and will significantly weaken our ability to compete effectively vis-à-vis many other countries for a larger share of the US market,” said Rakesh Mehra, Chairman, Citi.
Citi also looks forward to the bilateral trade agreement (BTA) between India and the US becoming a reality soon. Mehra pointed out that a well-rounded BTA with the US, which takes proper care of India’s sovereign interests and is also fair and balanced, could be a win-win proposition for both nations.
