Major policies.

"India is planning to lay out a road map for duty cuts on certain American imports when a US trade team arrives for discussions next week,..outlining a plan by which New Delhi hopes to avert retaliatory tariffs that US President Donald Trump has said will be imposed on April 2." HT. However, "The World Trade Organisation (WTO) trade framework prohibits any member from reducing tariffs for one country without extending the same benefit to other members, except through a free trade agreement (FTA)." HT. But India cannot afford to reduce duties on Chinese imports because our industries will be decimated. "China has mastered this tactic of weaponizing dumping to decimate domestic markets of other countries." "In 2024 alone, 79% of anti-dumping investigations (ADDs) filed by India's Director General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) were filed against Chinese producers." ET. In 2019, Union Finance Minister proposed hike in customs duty on 75 imported items to give a push to Make in India program of the Narendra Modi government." India Today. The government also started a Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme to pay companies to increase their manufacturing in India. wikipedia. But, India's Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran "called on the private sector that's been ramping up investments in overseas markets despite global uncertainties to also pour money into...India." Mint. All tactics failed. So now, the government "has decided to let lapse a $23 billion program to incentivize domestic manufacturing," and "The (PLI) scheme will not be expanded beyond the 14 pilot sectors." Reuters. "A decade after its launch, the government's Sovereign Gold Bond scheme (SGBs) has ended up" "as an unforeseen fiscal burden on the exchequer, eventually forcing the government to strike it dead." TNIE. The bonds were started in 2015 to take advantage of Indians' love of gold and borrow money cheaply at 2.5% interest. But gold prices have gone through the roof leaving the government with a bill of $13 billion or Rs 1.2 trillion. The bonds did not stop Indians from buying gold at an annual average of $37 billion in the last ten years, so the government increased customs duty on gold to 15% in 2022. That increased the domestic price of gold and the payout. The government panicked and slashed duties to 6% last year, wrote Andy Mukherjee. On 8 November 2016, Mr Modi announced the demonetisation of Rs 1000 and Rs 500 banknotes to eliminate cash hoarding to avoid paying taxes. wikipedia. But, "As per RBI data, it's safe to say that demonetisation has been a failure of epic proportions," wrote Vivek Kaul. The goods and services tax (GST) was introduced as a "good and simple" tax by Mr Modi in 2017. NDTV. Unfortunately, three fourths of goods and services are taxed at 18%, though the average rate has dropped to 11.6% at the end of 2023-24. The Hindu. Also unfortunately "US President Donald Trump says value-added taxes carry a lot of blame for America's near trillion dollar trade deficit with the rest of the world." Reuters. Which makes GST not so good, or simple. All major economic policies of this government have failed. That's some record. Celebrate.