With the Narendra Modi government set to complete a year in office on May 26, 2015, Union Minister of Railways and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Suresh Prabhu on Friday spoke about 'Make In India', the flagship campaign of the NDA government at Network18's Modi Sarkar Year One Dialogue.
Complimented Prime Minister Narendra Modi for ushering in a new era of overall development and economic reforms, he said the government is doing its best to make India a success story across the world. Prabhu, who is known for plain speaking said, "The first challenge was bringing positivity. Nobody was ready to invest. We have created a positive atmosphere. Change is not an easy thing."
He added that except Germany, Europe is also in trouble and the domestic demand is growing in India. Talking about global economy, Prabhu said India is in a very good position and it is the best time for the country to grow. "This is a very favourable situation for India to take advantage of global scenario."
He said that India is growing faster than all major economies in the world. He said, "The United States of America (USA) not growing as strong as they should. China, the second largest economy is slowing down and maybe good for them."
He said that even the major economies facing slow down have the ability to invest and a big economy like Japan has the capacity to invest in India. "They will be looking out for opportunities to invest."
'Make in India' campaign was launched in 2014 by Modi. The campaign is expected to give a collective thrust to manufacturing in India and seeks greater foreign investment in the country.
He made it clear that the government is concerned about the farmers and the rural development is one of the core areas of his government. Taking a dig at the critics, he said “the PM has decided to focus not to create headlines, but to focus on basics. The first focus of the PM was banking sector".
He felt that once macro-economic management improves, Indian economy will do very well. "Our government in last one year has improved the banking system to manage the economic crisis. We have managed the fiscal deficit. Our biggest achievement has been strengthening the economy. It was in a way macro economic management success," he said.
The Railway Minister also talked about various other schemes of Modi government like Jan Dhan Yojana, social security schemes and Swacch Bharat Abhiyaan. Talking about the Jan Dhan Yojana announced by the PM on August 15, 2014, he said, "It was completely implemented by January 26 and virtually we have brought in all families under the banking sector. This shows the government’s commitment to deliver. This would not happen without the leadership of the PM and the support of Finance Minister. Now people can use this instrument for many things and government will able to transfer cash under various schemes and this will control the parallel back money economy as well."
"We have motivated the bureaucracy, worked on strengthening infrastructure. It has been a great year. The focus in the first year has been laying the groundwork for the years to come and progress has been steady," Prabhu said.
Prabhu said 'Make in India' is a huge opportunity to ensure more jobs, infrastructure and to transform India. Describing 'Make in India' as a game changer, he said, "It will change the overall picture."
He said, "We worked on macro economics and infrastructure. We invested $150 million in Railways. No economy can survive without infrastructure development, we took decisions on infrastructure which will give results in future."
Talking about the service sector Prabhu said, "We also need the service sector to grow. We need to develop tourism and travel industry, and should try to get more tourists to India. Swacch Bharat Abhiyan has the ability to attract tourism. This Swacch Abhiyan Campaign will take time, a long term issue and we are working on."
"Government is working not just for better today but also for tomorrow. Government is looking at present and also keeping in mind the future. The Prime Minister is one of the first PM's who has taken interest in foreign policy as he understands the relation between domestic market and foreign relation."
He attacked the critics who criticise PM Modi’s frequent foreign visits. Defending the Modi for his foreign trips, Prabhu said, "Our Prime Minister is not going out to enjoy. He works even on Sundays. He is one PM who takes great interest in foreign policy. Foreign policy is to make a secure place for Indians and we should be proud that he has visited so many countries. For India to grow we cannot ignore the global world."
Talking about his ministry he emphasised on semi-privatisation of some departments of the ministry, "We need investment to improve railways and the only two way to bring investment in railways is increase the fares, we are revamping the complete policy to bring in investment through Public Private Partnership model."
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