'No hope during Congress regime, PM Modi showed good economics can be good politics': Goyal

Piyush Goyal

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clearly shown that good economics can also be good politics, adding that the market recognizes that India is in safe hands.

Speaking in an interview to Network18 Group Editor-in-Chief Rahul Joshi, Goyal said that the market recognizes that a decisive and strong leader like Prime Minister Modi will always keep national interests ahead of everything else.

In a veiled jibe at the former UPA government, the commerce minister said that the whole nation is now confident that when they want to apply for a government job, they won't be discriminated against.

"Those who desire to have a government job either in the railways or a PSU, they won't be discriminated against. Nobody has to seek an influence or any rent-seeking to get a job."

He said that this "honesty in government has helped" the Modi government to earn the trust of the people, adding, that PM Modi has always trusted the businesses, entrepreneurs, the youth and the people of India.

"Therefore, throughout his tenure he has tried to decriminalize small misdemeanours," Goyal told CNN-News18.

He said that at one point of time if a sewage cleaning employee working with Delhi Municipal Corporation was absent for a month, he could go to jail for that. "Those kind of obsolete laws needed to be removed and we have removed about 1500 obsolete laws and have identified many more," Goyal he said.

Goyal pointed out that that no scandals has happened in Prime Minister Modi's regime, adding that he has simplified the process, pointing out that one of the early decisions of the Modi government was in the notary system.

The commerce minister said that for the PM ease of doing business is the pathway to a developed economy and ease of living is a commitment to the people of India to ensure wider prosperity and inclusive growth.

Attacking the UPA government, he said that in the past eleven years, decisions have been taken to make the "broken five economy to the top five economy of the world" which will soon become the "third largest by 2027" -- "an economy that was low on growth, high on inflation and starved off foreign exchange, completetly broken banking system, there was no hope, investments were falling and our passports had no respect anywhere in the world."

Stepping the attack further, Goyal said, "Inheriting that from Congress, our Prime Minister brick by brick, step by step, brought reforms and changes and showed that he trusted the people of India, and focused on the better quality of life of the poorest of the poor through various initiates."

The commerce minister said that the government brought social security to the people, got 25 crore out of poverty, faced the crisis of Covid pandemic admirably without letting the economy collapse as it happened in many other developed nations -- "in fact bouncing back to become fourth largest economy."

He said last quarter was 7.8% growth with only 1.55% inflation. "Who could have imagined that in a decade, the country will transform so rapidly and beautifully?", he told Joshi of CNN-News18.

He further said that a foundation has been created on which a $4 trillion economy aims to become a $30 trillion economy by 2047. "That I think is PM Modi's very astute handling of economy and the transformative steps alluded to in his 15th August address".

He added, "This a labour of love which has happened over months of hard work with finance ministry, Nirmala ji, the groups of ministers from the states, the groups of secretaries all recognizing that compensation cess is no more required and we got the elbow room to be able to give this huge bonanza and give the consumers an opportunity to spend more and give boost to our economy."

Goyal expressed confidence that the GST reforms starting September 22 will give a big leg up to the economy and the to GDP growth. He said that the reforms will ensure that Indian investments continue to power on. "When there is demand there will be interest to put more investments," he said.

Goyal said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi trusts industry and revenue will go up. Goyal said that the fundamentals of the economy is strong making sure we only power on and not slip.