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Modi for shift in development strategy

Special Correspondent

“In India, poverty and deprivation still remain the biggest challenge”

— Photo: Rajeev Bhatt

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi with Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum, and K.V.Kamath, Managing Director and CEO, ICICI Bank, during the India Economic Summit, organised under the banner of World Economic Forum and CII in New Delhi on Sunday.

NEW DELHI: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called for a paradigm shift in development strategy and advocated the need for a “mass movement” to take the process forward as poverty and deprivation still remained India’s biggest challenge.

Speaking on ‘New paradigms for securing inclusive growth’ at the India economic summit organised here by the World Economic Forum and industry chamber CII, Mr. Modi stressed the need for evolving a global model of inclusive growth wherein the traditional paradigms should give way to innovative and bold initiatives.

Inclusive growth

Laying emphasis on inclusive growth in which all sections of society benefit, Mr. Modi said: “Development needs a paradigm shift. For us in India, poverty and deprivation still remain the biggest challenge. Since the country is growing, the challenge to create conditions in which the poor can participate in the process of development is all the more important.”

The Gujarat Chief Minister pointed out that while considering inclusiveness, there must be a paradigm shift in the mindset of the rich and developed nations also. “The basic problem of world scenario today is that rich countries consider and dictate the poor and underdeveloped countries as others. They should not dictate but should create structures where everyone’s voice is heard,” he said.

Mr. Modi also lamented the undemocratic structure of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as these two financial institutions “are mostly playing the role of the representatives of developed countries.” Emphasising the need for a change in the new era, he said: “It is necessary to democratise the World Bank and the IMF as they do not have representatives from the developing countries.”

Stressing that the chasm between “India and Bharat” needs to be bridged, Mr. Modi pointed to what he called the rapid development of Gujarat in farm, industrial, health, judiciary and social sectors and explained how the State government had brought about effective governance in all spheres.

Mr. Modi said a shift had to take place from government to governance and then to proactive government and the people should say that the government is there for all their needs. “People are not interested in government but in governance,” he said.

Opportunity in crisis

Unveiling his strategy to convert the current economic slowdown into an opportunity, Mr. Modi said that since cement and steel prices were ruling at low levels, he would concentrate on building infrastructure and houses for the poor.

With this, he would address three issues — build infrastructure at low cost, create demand for steel and cement, provide employment to people and also ensure that workers of these two industries are not retrenched.

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