"Trump making decisions for his own country, we have to make for ours": Ajit Pawar gives 'Swadeshi' call

Pune (Maharashtra) [India], September 26 (ANI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday said that India has to make its own decisions for the benefit of people here, just as the US does for itself, adding that the use of swadeshi goods needs to be increased.

The remarks come after the Trump administration decided to impose a 100 per cent tariff on branded and patented pharmaceutical products by the US on India beginning October 1.

Speaking to reporters here, Pawar stated that it was India’s responsibility to respond to decisions concerning the country in a dignified manner and to solely increase the use of swadeshi goods.

“Alright, we can make decisions about our own country, just as they are making decisions for theirs. If Trump or any other country’s leader has made a decision, it is because the people in that country have elected them, and thus they are exercising their right to make such decisions. Our responsibility is to respond to any decision concerning our country in a dignified manner and to increase the use of products made in our own country (swadeshi goods),” he said.

Remembering Mahatma Gandhi’s call for Swadeshi, Pawar said, “Now it has been reiterated by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It has been 75 years since our country gained independence, and now many items in our country are available in even higher quality than those imported from abroad. In fact, there are many things, such as clothes and others, that are manufactured here, but they sell them abroad by labelling them as made in their country.”

The Indian pharmaceutical sector supplies over 50 per cent of global demand for various vaccines, 40 per cent of generic demand in the US and 25 per cent of all medicines in the UK. India’s annual drug and pharmaceutical exports touched a record USD 30 billion in FY25, bolstered by a 31 per cent year-on-year surge in March.

According to a government release, drug and pharmaceutical exports increased by 6.94 per cent from USD 2.35 billion in August 2024 to USD 2.51 billion in August 2025 alone.

According to a separate government report, India’s pharmaceutical industry is a global powerhouse, ranking third in the world by volume and 14th in terms of production value. It supplies over 50 per cent of global vaccine demand and nearly 40 per cent of generics to the US. The industry is projected to grow to USD 130 billion by 2030 and a USD 450 billion market by 2047. (ANI)

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