India PM Narendra Modi unveils 'Make in India' campaign

Mr Modi won the general election promising to revive India's slowing economy

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched an ambitious campaign which aims to turn the country into a global manufacturing hub.

It includes plans to cut red tape, develop infrastructure and make it easier for companies to do business.

The launch comes on the eve of Mr Modi's first visit to the US as prime minister.

Manufacturing contributes only 15% to India's gross domestic product; authorities want to raise it to 25%.

Mr Modi's 'Make in India' campaign comes a day after India sent its homegrown mission to Mars.

The Mangalyaan robotic probe, one of the cheapest interplanetary missions ever, was successfully put into the orbit of Mars on Wednesday morning.

"Whenever I met [business] people for the last few years they would tell me - we want to shift out... It pained me that people of nation are forced to leave," Mr Modi said while unveiling the campaign in the capital, Delhi.

"We do not want any industrialist being forced to leave India. I can say that we have been able to bring about a change in last few months."

The 'Make in India' campaign aims to turn the country into a global manufacturing hub

Mr Modi said India must "increase manufacturing and at the same time ensure that the benefits reach the youth of our nation".

A boost to manufacturing will create jobs, increase purchasing power and create a larger market for manufacturers, he added.

India has a huge pool of talented people, Mr Modi said, adding that it was because of this talent that India was able to send the indigenously-built Mangalyaan to the orbit of Mars.

Mr Modi won the recent general election, promising to revive India's slowing economy and in the three months to June, the country's economy grew by 5.7% , its fastest pace in two-and-a-half years.