New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday said India is firmly on the path to becoming the world’s third-biggest economy within next five years and that global investors are eyeing it as an investment destination, as he exhorted the domestic industry to seize the golden opportunity to be part of the journey of ‘Viksit Bharat’.
Addressing a CII post-Budget conference on ‘Journey Towards Viksit Bharat’, he said, wealth creators are the main driving force of the country’s growth story at a time when India’s policies, commitment, determination, decisions and investments are becoming the basis of global progress.
“Today, the whole world is looking at India and you (industry). Policies of the government and commitment and investment are becoming foundation of global development. Investors across the world are keen to come to India. World leaders are filled with positivity for India. This is the golden chance for the Indian industry and we should not lose this opportunity,” Modi said.
Pointing towards the growing interest in India among global investors, the prime minister informed the industry about his call in the recent NITI Aayog meeting to state chief ministers for creating investor-friendly charters, bringing clarity in investment policies and creating a conducive atmosphere for investment.
With high growth and low inflation, he said, India is a beacon of growth and stability in a world which is facing high inflation and low growth and other geopolitical challenges.
India is growing at 8 per cent and the day is not far when the country will become the third-largest economy globally from the current fifth position, he said.
The prime minister exuded confidence that this feat of becoming the third- largest economy will be achieved in his ongoing third term.
The Modi government does not lack political will and will take all decisions keeping in mind ‘nation first approach’, he said.
“The Commitment of ‘Nation First’ is reflected in the 5 trillion dollar economy goal, saturation approach, emphasis on Zero Effect-Zero Defect and pledge of Aatmnirbhar Bharat or Viksit Bharat,” he said.
The domestic industry, he said, should compete with the government to make India a developed nation by 2047 and also make it a global player in sunrise sectors.
He also recalled various measures announced in the Budget, especially for promoting the MSME sector which creates crores of jobs.
The prime minister said the government is highly focused on skill development and employment keeping in mind Industry 4.0 standards.
India is home to 1.40 lakh startups employing lakhs of youth, and more than 8 crore people have started new business with the help of Mudra Yojana, Startup India and Standup India schemes.
Referring to the much-praised PM Package worth Rs 2 lakh crore in this year’s budget, he said it will benefit more than 4 crore youth.
“PM Package is holistic and comprehensive. It is interlinked with end-to-end solutions. It aims to make India’s manpower and products globally competitive in terms of quality and value,” he said.
Modi also touched upon the Internship scheme introduced to enhance skill and exposure for the youth, thereby boosting their chances of employment, while at the same time incentivizing those generating employment on a large scale, he said.
Therefore, he said, the government has announced incentives in EPFO contribution.
Observing that the manufacturing ecosystem has transformed in the last 10 years, he said, Make in India and simplification of FDI rules in various sectors along with multi purpose logistics parks, PLI for 14 sectors are some of the measures taken in the past.
The Budget has announced plug-and-play investment-ready investment parks for 100 districts of the country, he said, adding, these 100 cities will become new hubs of Viksit Bharat.
The prime minister underlined some points in the budget such as increased allocation for nuclear power generation, Digital Public Infrastructure for agriculture, Bhu-Aadhar card for providing number to land parcels of farmers, Rs 1,000 crore venture capital fund for space economy, Critical Mineral Mission, and upcoming auction of offshore blocks for mining.
These new announcements will open new avenues of progress, he said.
Highlighting that opportunities are being created, especially in the sunrise sectors, he said, there is a need to make a name in the semiconductor value chain to play a crucial role in the future and therefore, the government is laying emphasis on promoting the semiconductor industry.
He also touched upon encouraging electronics manufacturing, especially during the present era of mobile manufacturing revolution.
Noting that the clean energy initiatives in this year’s budget are being highly discussed, the prime minister said that in today’s era, both energy security and energy transition are equally important for the economy and ecology.
“Our industries and entrepreneurs have always shown their commitment to the development of the country”, he said expressing confidence that they will play a key role in making India a global player in all the sunrise sectors.
Pointing out that the nation is moving forward with the resolutions of Viksit Bharat, he said 25 crore people have risen out of poverty in the last 10 years, and emphasized the government’s efforts to increase ease of living and boost quality of life.
PM Modi also drew a comparison with the Budget of the previous government and Budget presented during his government.
“In 2013-14, during the Manmohan Singh’s government’s last budget, it was of Rs 16 lakh crore. Today, our Budget has increased three times to Rs 48 lakh crore,” he said.
Prime Minister Modi highlighted that capital expenditure (capex) under the NDA government has risen to Rs 11 lakh crore, more than five times of Rs 2 lakh crore capex in 2014.
PTI