Davos/New Delhi:
Maharashtra, one of India’s largest states, has a strong presence at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos. The team is led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who told NDTV that electric vehicles (EVs) are an area where the state is giving major focus. He also called for embracing AI and not ignoring impending disruption.
“Electric vehicles are the future. We are getting a lot of investment in manufacturing of electric vehicles. GSW, Mahindra and Toyota are building factories; many global players are planning to build electric vehicles in our state,” Mr. Fadnavis.
“Having said that, we are focusing on public transport and including a lot of electric vehicles. The BMC (civic agency) has placed an order for 5,000 electric vehicles. Pune already has a fleet of 1,000 electric vehicles. The MSRTC, which is our public transport, has placed an order for 5,000 electric vehicles, the entire transition of public transport to electric vehicles is underway,” the chief minister said.
He said he hoped to see the entire public transport fleet become completely green within three to four years.
Defense manufacturing
The defense sector is obviously important in a broader national perspective. Bharat Forge has a strong presence in Maharashtra. This is an area that is growing because India is now increasingly an arms exporter.
In this context, Fadnavis said that fortunately, Maharashtra has created an ecosystem for manufacturing of defense equipment.
“This huge ecosystem has been created in Nagpur and other parts of Maharashtra. We have signed MoUs with Bharat Forge and other companies that are bringing in FDI in defense manufacturing,” he said. declared.
The chief minister said the manufacturing industry had benefited from the import bond launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which required companies to get their parts manufactured in India.
“That started the ecosystem and now we are producing equipment and even exporting equipment,” he said.
Mr. Fadnavis announced that his government was planning to build a 100-hectare “Innovation City” near Mumbai.
“I can’t run away from AI”
With artificial intelligence (AI) being the buzzword at Davos, Fadnavis insisted that AI should be widely accepted and not worry too much about AI eliminating jobs.
“You see, the same argument was there when computers were introduced and a lot of our leaders were also saying that ‘we are ruining our country by accepting computers’. They were saying that we would be jobless and that we would never progress and many arguments have been put forward.
“But I still feel like you can’t turn away from technology. We are actually a globalized community and in such a community, if you say, ‘I don’t use AI,’ that doesn’t work. You have to do it. Technology is like a horse; you have to know how to ride it.
“I think we need to know that AI is reality. AI is going to change the job market. AI is going to create new jobs. AI is going to eliminate some old jobs. So upskilling and reskilling and Creating a human resource, which “Can increase these jobs is the primary responsibility of the government,” Fadnavis told NDTV.
The five-day meeting in Davos which began on Monday aims to explore ways to revive growth, harness new technologies and strengthen social and economic resilience, according to the World Economic Forum. The global meeting sees the participation of nearly 3,000 leaders from more than 130 countries, including 350 government leaders.
India’s participation in Davos aims to strengthen partnerships, attract investments and position the country as a global leader in sustainable development and technological innovation. India this time sent five Union ministers, three chief ministers and ministers from several other states to the WEF.