- Wednesday, May 29, 2024
The PM slammed the opposition Congress saying it was content with the country’s slow economic growth while it was his government that fast-tracked things.
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi on Monday (5) delivered his final speech in the outgoing parliament ahead of the genera; elections in which he reiterated his promise of pushing the Indian economy forward. He said the South Asian country will be the world’s third largest in his third term commencing this year.
Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has exuded confidence that its National Democratic Alliance will return to power for the third consecutive term with a huge mandate.
The prime minister also took the occasion to target the opposition’s alleged naysaying culture saying they criticise every move that his government makes. Modi was responding to the Motion of Thanks on president Droupadi Murmu’s speech last week when the session began.
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“The world is influenced by India. G20 summit is a testament to this. In our third term…India will be the third largest economy in the world and this is Modi’s guarantee,’ the Prime Minister said.
“When we say that we’ll become the third largest economy, the opposition says it will happen on its own, nothing big. I want to tell the youth how it is done and what is the government’s role in this,” he added.
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He also credited his government for fast-pacing the growth of the Indian economy and accused the previous governments led by the Congress of not moving fast enough.
“In February 2014, when the interim budget came, then finance minister said and I quote, “I now wish to look forward and outline a vision for the future… I wonder how many… that India’s economy in terms of size and strength is the 11th largest economy. There are great things in store. There is a view that in the next three decades, India’s nominal GDP will take the country to the 3rd rank after US and China.” In 2014, they said by 2044 India will be the 3rd largest economy. That was their vision,” Modi said, without naming former finance minister P Chidambaram.
He also said jokingly that his government’s promise to take India to the third spot in the third term should impress the opposition since they were happy with the 11th spot.
