"Freedom We Must Now Fight For Is The Freedom Of Self-Reliance": Gautam Adani

Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani on Monday urged the country to strengthen its technological and economic independence as its future security will depend on more than just protecting its borders.
Addressing students and faculty at IIT Kharagpur, the billionaire industrialist said the real battlefield today is about securing leadership in technology and not remaining low-cost participants in the global race.

"In terms of technology dependence, 90 per cent of our semiconductors are imported. One disruption or sanction can freeze our digital economy. In the case of energy vulnerability, we import 85 per cent of our oil. A single geopolitical incident can restrict our growth," Gautam Adani told the gathering.

"When our data crosses India's borders, every bit of this data becomes raw material for foreign algorithms, creates foreign wealth, and strengthens foreign dominance. And in the case of military dependence, many of our critical systems are imported, binding our national security to the political will and supply chains of other nations. This is the freedom we must now fight for the freedom of self-reliance - the freedom of Atmanirbharta - if we are to be truly free," the Adani Group Chairman emphasised.

Reflecting on rapid global changes, Gautam Adani said the ongoing technological revolution is unlike anything witnessed before.

With robotics and artificial intelligence reshaping industries, he warned that cost advantages could disappear overnight, putting India's competitiveness at risk.

Gautam Adani described this period as India's "second freedom struggle", where companies and institutions that fail to adapt may vanish, while new disruptors could rise to global dominance.

"Here is what I can tell you - Tomorrow's trillion-dollar valued disruptors will bend others to their will. And some of them will go on to dominate the world like no company has ever done before," the Adani Group Chairman added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)