Dawn of a bright future!

 

One of the many  facets of  Narendra Modi’s  personality  happens to be his forward-looking ability. He is a true visionary and he knows how to best exploit every sector to reap the desired results. He coined the  next 25 years period as ‘Amrit kaal’, which is so apt. On the occasion of Amrit Mahotsav of India’s independence, he envisioned ‘Viksit Bharat’ and is fast progressing to achieve this goal in terms of development of the country. This is a testimony of his farsightedness. People noticed the visionary in him when he chalked out a detailed plan about all that the country needs to do over the next 25 years to be one of the top 5 nations.

The recently presented interim budget is a reflection of Modi’s vision for the future. When we look at the decisions he took in the last 10 years, ever since becoming the Prime Minister, we realize his commitment  to achieving his goal of ‘Viksit Bharat’. The recently launched Vikas Bharat Sankalp Yatra is a step in this direction, where information about how many people have  benefitted  from the different welfare schemes and how many more people are yet to be reached is collected. The Modi government  is committed to making our country a $ 3 trillion economy and only after achieving this goal will India be one of the top 3 economic superpowers in the world. The recently presented interim budget by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman is a testimony of the fact that steps are being initiated keeping this goal in mind. This budget emphasizes that while prioritizing inclusive development and economic progress, the government has always kept all its policies ‘people-centric’.

Lok Sabha elections will be held in the next couple of months. Usually, the election budget has a host of populous announcements. But no such announcements were made in this budget. The fiscal deficit is better than expected. In this financial year, the Modi government is trying to keep the fiscal deficit at 5.1 per cent. This will significantly help to increase capital expenditure in the private sector. The provision of Rs 11.10 lakh crore for infrastructure proves continuity of policies by the Modi government. This record provision of capital expenditure will give the desired impetus to employment generation.

The budgetary provision for rural employment has been increased by 43 per cent to Rs 86,000 crore. No changes have been proposed in taxes and duties, thus bringing stability in the market and benefitting  businesses. Modi government has proposed the ‘Suryodaya Yojana’ in this interim budget in which solar panels will be set up atop roofs of nearly one crore houses which will help reduce the annual expenditure on energy by nearly Rs 15,000 to Rs 18,000 for the poor. Provisions have been made to ensure that all ‘Asha’ and ‘Anganwadi’ workers get benefitted from the Ayushman Bharat Yojana. Three railway corridors and decisions like port connectivity corridors, dense traffic corridors will considerably reduce the cargo handling and transportation costs in the future. Modi government’s emphasis on infrastructure development is reflected in its decision of providing Rs 1.30 lakh crore for giving interest-free loans to states for infrastructure development. In short, this isn’t a ‘populous budget’ but there are provisions made to guarantee a better future for the people. PM Modi government’s intent also comes across clearly when he conducts interactive sessions with the beneficiaries of different schemes. He constantly monitors if every person from the deprived sections of the society is reaping 100 per cent benefits of the schemes. If the GDP has to increase and development needs to be all-inclusive, the incomes of people from the deprived sections also has to increase correspondingly which will then make us a $ 5 trillion economy. 

During one such interaction held in June 2022 at Bharuch in Gujarat, Ayub Patel, a physically challenged narrated how the central government’s Scholarship scheme had benefitted his family. He said that his elder daughter, the 12th grader at that time, could pursue her aspiration to become a doctor. She had got emotional while speaking with PM Modi. In 2016, a 6-year-old Vaishali Yadav from Pune had written a letter to the Prime Minister informing him about her heart ailment and that she needed a surgery. Prime Minister immediately took cognizance of this letter, issued orders to the respective government departments and in the next 15 days, that girl underwent heart surgery. Later, during his visit to Pune, Modi made sure to meet Vaishali’s family. 

These incidents are a fitting reply to all those so-called intellectuals who keep ridiculing and criticizing the personality traits of this leader. These instances also testify why Modi is so popular and loved by  the common people. Those who keep ranting that Modi government is leading a mission of taking India to annihilation, need to revisit these instances. Those who have suffered because of red talisman the past, will definitely find this appealing. Some might also argue that many people have been similarly benefitted and patients have received medical aid even in the past, but it was never glorified by those Prime Ministers. They might also say that Prime Ministers are not supposed to be involved in such activities; their focus must be to only strengthen the financial, foreign affairs and defence policies of the country.

The reason these instances like the one narrated by Ayub Patel need to be underlined is because Prime Minister Narendra Modi is always criticized and called ‘Maut ka Saudagar for the Minorities’. Mr. Modi asked Ayub if he had celebrated Eid and whether he had got any gifts for the girls for Eid. While targeting Modi in this manner, this congregation fails to realize the repercussions it will have on the society, especially on those who lead a hand-to-mouth life or those who want to stay away from religious indifferences. 

These people think that after they succeed in painting Modi’s image as ‘anti Muslim’, the Muslim leading a hand-to-mouth sustenance will never cast their vote to Modi government. That is the reason why they make certain allegations and try to put words in the mouths of the analysts to satisfy  themselves. These critics need to be told that the Modi government is implementing its vision of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’ and the benefits are reaching the underprivileged sections of the society. This is called ‘Modinomics’. Every year, budgetary provision of thousands of crores is made but since there is no ‘chowkidar’ there is  no  watch on whether the schemes remain only on paper or whether it reaches the people who need it. But I will assert that this budget definitely has a bright future in store for all of us.

 

(Article Pre-Published in Times of India Online – 05 February 2024)

Keshav Upadhye, Chief Spokesperson