India's 1.4 billion people need jobs and rising incomes to lift themselves out of poverty -- that's the reality. Strict labor laws and environmental regulations sound good on paper, but they scare away investment, slow factory construction, and force companies to go elsewhere. Countries like China grew rich by prioritizing development first; we can worry about fine-tuning regulations once we're wealthy enough to afford them.
We've seen what happens when countries sacrifice the future for quick growth: poisoned rivers, respiratory diseases killing thousands yearly, workers trapped in exploitative conditions with no recourse. India doesn't need to copy China's mistakes. Our constitutional promises of dignity and environmental protection aren't luxuries we defer -- they're the foundation of a society worth building. Economic growth that destroys our people's health and lands is not real progress.