NEW DELHI: Ahead of his meeting with Elon Musk, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said investment from across the globe is welcome but should generate employment for Indians.
“I want investment to come in India because in India, it doesn’t matter who has invested money, (but) the sweat put into the work must be of our own people. The product should have the essence of our soil, so that our youth will get employment opportunities,” Modi told ANI, while responding to a question on Tesla and Starlink’s possible entry.
He also said India is moving rapidly on EVs and sought investment from companies. “We have told the world that India is moving very fast on EVs. If you want to do manufacturing, you should come.” Modi had met Musk in the US last year, and the PM recalled visiting the Tesla factory in 2015.
On being asked about Musk telling Modi when he met him in America that he is a fan of the Indian PM, Modi said, “Look, the first thing saying that Elon Musk is supporter of Modi is one thing, basically, he is a supporter of India. And I just met him. It’s not like that. I went to see his factory in 2015. He showed me everything in his factory. And I understood his vision from him. I went there just now (to the US in 2023) and met him again. And now he is about to come to India.”
Musk is expected in India later this month for another meeting with Modi and is widely expected to unveil Tesla’s production strategy after govt’s decision to lower the import duty on electric cars to 15% for companies that line up production in India.
Outlining the growth in India’s EV sector, Modi gave a gist of how sales in electric vehicles rose from 2,000 in 2014-15 to 12 lakh in 2023-24. “Not 2,000 units, but 12 lakh units were sold in 2023-24. This means a network of such a big charging station has been created. It has helped the environment and we have made policies regarding this,” the PM said.
“I want investment to come in India because in India, it doesn’t matter who has invested money, (but) the sweat put into the work must be of our own people. The product should have the essence of our soil, so that our youth will get employment opportunities,” Modi told ANI, while responding to a question on Tesla and Starlink’s possible entry.
He also said India is moving rapidly on EVs and sought investment from companies. “We have told the world that India is moving very fast on EVs. If you want to do manufacturing, you should come.” Modi had met Musk in the US last year, and the PM recalled visiting the Tesla factory in 2015.
On being asked about Musk telling Modi when he met him in America that he is a fan of the Indian PM, Modi said, “Look, the first thing saying that Elon Musk is supporter of Modi is one thing, basically, he is a supporter of India. And I just met him. It’s not like that. I went to see his factory in 2015. He showed me everything in his factory. And I understood his vision from him. I went there just now (to the US in 2023) and met him again. And now he is about to come to India.”
Musk is expected in India later this month for another meeting with Modi and is widely expected to unveil Tesla’s production strategy after govt’s decision to lower the import duty on electric cars to 15% for companies that line up production in India.
Outlining the growth in India’s EV sector, Modi gave a gist of how sales in electric vehicles rose from 2,000 in 2014-15 to 12 lakh in 2023-24. “Not 2,000 units, but 12 lakh units were sold in 2023-24. This means a network of such a big charging station has been created. It has helped the environment and we have made policies regarding this,” the PM said.
