Mukesh Ambani, Asia's second- richest man, today said India's GDP will double to USD 5 trillion in the next seven years and hit USD 10 trillion by 2030 as it will elbow out China by the middle of 21st century.


Speaking at the HT Leadership Summit, Ambani, Chairman and MD of Reliance Industries Ltd, recalled that he in 2004 had predicted that India -- then a USD 500-billion economy -- will get to the mark of USD 5 trillion in 20 years.


"Today, that prediction seems certain. Indeed, it will be achieved well before 2024," he said, adding that the Indian economy will triple to USD 7 trillion in the next 10 years to become the third-largest economy in the world.


He went on to say that by 2030, it can cross the USD 10 trillion milestone, and India can "most certainly" become the most prosperous nation in the world overtaking the US and China within this century.


"By the middle of the 21st century, India's rise will be higher than China's rise. And more attractive to the world," Ambani asserted. "India will provide a superior and different development model (which) creates equitable and inclusive growth based on technology, democracy, good governance and a society-wide culture of empathy."


Delivering a talk on the theme 'India will become a global economic leader', Ambani said the first Industrial Revolution used coal and steam power to mechanise physical activity, the second used electricity and oil for mass production and distribution and the third used electronics and IT to increase productivity and automation. -- PTI