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By:

Akhilesh Sinha

25 June 2025 at 2:53:54 pm

Nadda's strategic meet signals urgency for chemical sector

New Delhi: As war simmers across the volatile landscape of West Asia, whether in the form of a direct confrontation between Israel, United States and Iran, or through Iran's hybrid warfare involving groups like Hezbollah and the Houthis, the tremors are no longer confined to the region's borders. They are coursing through the arteries of the global economy. India's chemicals and petrochemicals sector, heavily dependent on this region for critical raw materials, finds itself among the earliest...

Nadda's strategic meet signals urgency for chemical sector

New Delhi: As war simmers across the volatile landscape of West Asia, whether in the form of a direct confrontation between Israel, United States and Iran, or through Iran's hybrid warfare involving groups like Hezbollah and the Houthis, the tremors are no longer confined to the region's borders. They are coursing through the arteries of the global economy. India's chemicals and petrochemicals sector, heavily dependent on this region for critical raw materials, finds itself among the earliest and hardest hit by this geopolitical turbulence. It is in this backdrop that the recent meeting convened by Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers J. P. Nadda at Kartavya Bhavan must be seen not as a routine consultation, but as a signal of strategic urgency. India's ambition to scale this sector from its current valuation of $220 billion to $1 trillion by 2040, and further to $1.5 trillion by 2047, will remain aspirational unless the country confronts its structural vulnerabilities with clarity and resolve. India today ranks as the world's sixth-largest producer of chemicals and the third-largest in Asia. The sector contributes 6-7 percent to GDP and underpins a wide spectrum of industries, from agriculture and pharmaceuticals to automobiles, construction, and electronics. It would be no exaggeration to call it the backbone of modern industrial India. Yet, embedded within this strength is a paradox. India's share in the global chemical value chain (GVC) stands at a modest 3.5 percent. A trade deficit of $31 billion in 2023 underscores a deeper issue: while India produces at scale, it remains marginal in high-value segments. This imbalance becomes starkly visible when disruptions in West Asia choke the supply of key feedstocks, shaking the very foundations of domestic industry. Supply Disruption The current crisis has laid this fragility bare. Disruptions in the supply of LNG, LPG, and sulfur have led to production cuts of 30-50 percent in several segments. With nearly 65 percent of sulfur imports sourced from the Middle East, the ripple effects have extended beyond chemicals to fertilisers, plastics, textiles, and other downstream industries. Strategic chokepoints such as the Strait of Hormuz have witnessed disruptions, pushing shipping costs up by 20-30 percent and adding further strain to cost structures. This is precisely where Nadda's emphasis on supply chain diversification and resilience appears prescient. In today's world, self-reliance cannot mean isolation; it must translate into strategic flexibility. While India imports crude oil from as many as 41 countries, several critical inputs for the chemical industry remain concentrated in a handful of sources, arguably the sector's most significant vulnerability. Opportunity Ahead A recent report by NITI Aayog outlines a pathway to convert this vulnerability into opportunity. It envisions raising India's GVC share to 5-6 percent by 2030 and to 12 percent by 2040. If achieved, the sector could not only reach the $1 trillion mark but also generate over 700,000 jobs. However, this transformation will demand more than policy intent, it will require sustained investment and disciplined execution. The most pressing challenge lies in research and innovation. India currently spends just 0.7 percent of industry revenue on R&D, compared to a global average of 2.3 percent. This gap explains why the country remains largely confined to basic chemicals, even as the world moves toward specialty and high-value products. Bridging this divide is essential if India is to climb the value chain. Equally constraining is the fragmented nature of the industry. Dominated by MSMEs with limited access to capital and technology, the sector struggles to compete globally. Cluster-based development models offer a pragmatic way forward, such as PCPIRs and the proposed chemical parks.

An Open Letter to the Terrorists Who Attacked Pahalgam

You bunch of spineless cowards. It is well past midnight and I just can’t sleep. Not after hearing of your gruesome, senseless killing of innocent people in my motherland. You sick people.


I write to you as a furious, heart-broken Indian Muslim. A man whose soul is torn between unimaginable grief and blazing rage. When you attacked civilians in Pahalgam, you pierced through the heart of every Indian who still believes in unity, in peace, in justice.


I speak not just as an individual, but as the son of a family that has lived and breathed service to this nation. Patriotism runs through my veins. My father, Lt. Gen. Zameer Uddin Shah, retired as the Deputy Chief of Army Staff and later became a voice for the Muslim intelligentsia as the Vice-Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University. His younger brother, the celebrated actor Naseeruddin Shah and my father’s elder brother, a respected IITian, have all been honoured by the President of India for their distinguished contributions to this great nation.


My family has always been treated with dignity, and I have always been a proud Indian before being anything else. It is from this legacy of honour, service and nation-first values that I draw my strength. It is exactly this legacy that makes your actions even more revolting to me.


So many of the films I’ve acted in—stories that celebrated love, sacrifice, unity—were shot in the breathtaking valleys of Pahalgam and across Kashmir. National award-winning films like ‘Haider,’ ‘BajrangiBhaijaan,’ ‘Mojhi’ and the web series Avrodh (where I portrayed a Para Commando) were born in these very lands you’ve tried to desecrate. I’ve walked those serene paths and seen firsthand the harmony that lives in every fold of those hills. In my TEDx talks across the world, I’ve spoken of India’s soul, its strength in diversity, its unmatched spiritual and cultural richness. And today, you have tried to rip that soul apart.


But your bullets cannot silence beauty. Your hatred cannot erase harmony. Pahalgam is a living memory of what India truly stands for. And by spilling blood on its soil, you’ve not weakened us. You’ve reminded us of what we must protect with more resolve than ever before.


You claim to ‘fight’ for something. For what? For Islam? For Kashmir? Don’t insult our intelligence. You are not freedom fighters. You are butchers; cowards hiding behind guns, masks and false slogans. You targeted simple tourists, children, mothers, pilgrims, newlyweds—unarmed, defenceless human beings. And you dare to call this Jihad?


No, this is not Jihad. Jihad means “struggle.” What you did was ‘gunah’—sin, bloodshed and a betrayal of both humanity and God. You’ve dragged the name of Allah through the blood-soaked soil of Pahalgam. You’ve taken a religion of peace, twisted and misinterpreted it, and turned it into a weapon of terror.


I am ashamed that you and I were born into the same faith because we are nothing alike. My religion is humanity. The Islam I know teaches me to protect the innocent. Yours glorifies slaughter. My Islam teaches me to serve my country.


Today, because of you, I now carry a burden I never asked for. Every time someone hears a Muslim name or sees a skullcap, there’s suspicion in their eyes. All because of you. Right-thinking, patriotic Muslims who love their motherland are forced to explain, defend and apologize for crimes they never committed and beliefs they never endorsed.


You’ve taken lives. But worse, you’ve tried to take away trust. You’ve tried to make it impossible for an Indian Muslim to love his country openly, freely without being questioned. That is your real crime. And guess what? You’ve failed. You will always fail.


Because we, the real Muslims, the real Indians, are still standing. And we are furious. Not afraid, furious. We will not be pushed into corners. We will not be silenced by your bullets. We will not let you rewrite what it means to be one of us. To the people of India, please do not confuse these monsters with your Muslim brothers and sisters. We are bleeding with you. We are angry with you. And we are not your enemy. We are just as victimised by these cowards as every other Indian.


You are nothing but a blot, a rotting scar on the face of humanity. But this country, this unity, this idea of India is eternal. You tried to terrorize us. But you’ve only awakened us. To the families in Pahalgam, I offer not just prayers, but a promise: we shall not forget nor forgive. We will not rest until your loss echoes in the conscience of this country and justice is served. You terrorists are not ‘Muslims.’ The Muslim community around the world disowns you. You didn’t just attack Kashmir. You attacked all of us. And we will rise—as a nation, as Indians.


Jai Hind.


(The author is a former military officer, motivational speaker and actor.)

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