Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi criticised the UPA government for its “faulty policies” which are leading to the loss of credibility of the country in international markets. Mr Modi was speaking at the centenary celebrations of the Pune Gujarati Bandhu Samaj, which awarded him the “Gujarat Ratna”.
Referring to the recent ban on cotton export, Mr Modi stated that it had caused a loss of Rs 15,000 crores to the cotton farmers in Gujarat. He said that such policies make the international markets raise doubts on India’s reliability. “It was an insult for the Indian trading community. You cannot ignore the impact on the world market because of such a move. The credibility of India was reduced to zero,” he said.
Attacking Prime Minister Manmohan Singh he said, “Recently I got an SMS that Dr Singh should be awarded the Oscar for the best acting (sic) of a Prime Minister. Criticising the union budget, Mr Modi said, “Only 30 percent of the budget is reserved for development work. How can a country run like this?”
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Mr Modi, who features on the cover of Time magazine’s forthcoming issue, sought to compare the progress of Gujarat with that of India on every count, thus challenging the UPA government yet again. “The agricultural growth for India has remained stagnant at 3 percent, while the government strives to push it to 4 percent. In Gujarat, I have achieved 11 percent growth for agriculture alone,” he stated. He added that Gujarat has a share of 73 percent of employment provided to youth, in the last five years.
Claiming the success of providing 24 hour electricity in all villages across Gujarat, along with handling a power sector that registered profits as opposed to deficit, he questioned why it could not happen in the rest of the country. “Other states can make it happen, only if they want to,” he stated. “Our policies, finance and discipline is what makes the world look at Gujarat with surprise,” Mr Modi said.
Advocating that numbers are needed for economic progress in the world, he said, “You cannot depend on emotions alone. Progress is brought on the basis of the truth,” he said.
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