Ashwini Vaishnaw Says India’s Growth Anchored in Infrastructure, Inclusion and Manufacturing

Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said India’s economic growth is gaining global recognition, with the country maintaining a growth rate in the range of 6 to 8 per cent. He attributed the momentum to four key areas — investment in social, digital and physical infrastructure, inclusive development and a strong manufacturing push.

Addressing the Uttar Pradesh-Japan Investment Summit 2026 in New Delhi, Vaishnaw said investment remains central to India’s development journey. He noted that annual public investment, which was once relatively limited, has now reached around $130 billion.

Highlighting the expansion of infrastructure, the minister said 99.6 per cent of India’s railway network has been electrified. Around 38,000 kilometres of railway lines have been added over the past decade, while 162 semi-high-speed trains have also been introduced.

Vaishnaw further said India now has the world’s second-largest road network, with nearly 65,000 kilometres of highways added over the last decade. The number of airports in the country has also doubled during this period, he added.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the India-Japan partnership is built around shared growth, technological cooperation and prosperity. He highlighted Uttar Pradesh’s emergence as one of India’s three largest state economies and described it as an important engine of the country’s growth.

Adityanath said the state’s budget and per capita income have nearly tripled over the past nine years, with the government focusing on security, stability and faster development. He added that more than 96 lakh MSME units, over 35,000 large industries and more than 22,000 startups are contributing to the state’s economic expansion.

Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the government is working to accelerate India’s development while placing particular emphasis on farmers and the agriculture sector.

Chouhan said increasing agricultural production and positioning India as the world’s food basket are among the government’s key objectives. He stressed that greater farm mechanisation will be important for lowering agricultural production costs and improving farmers’ productivity.

The minister also underlined the need to ensure that research and technological innovations reach farmers directly, helping them adopt modern agricultural practices.

Calling Uttar Pradesh a state with significant investment potential, Chouhan said it has increasingly emerged as a hub for global investment. He also described India-Japan ties as a relationship that extends beyond government-to-government cooperation, calling it a convergence of two civilisations.

Source: News on AIR