Prime Minister Narendra Modi has shaken up governance, and has a direct connect with the citizens and understands their problems, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said.
Speaking at the launch of the book Modi @20: Dreams Meet Delivery, Ms. Sitharaman said “he [Mr. Modi] has shaken up governance. He often says he didn’t come here [to politics] to enjoy power, be in government or rule, but to change the fundamentals. He often says ‘there is a need to change governance, it is my goal…”.
The Finance Minister said in 2013-14, the Indian economy put the nation among the ‘fragile five’ countries. “The leaders at that time [in power] were shaken. They used to keep mocking Modi- ji and questioned him. But people who were in power at that time…they had studied at Harvard and other institutions were shaken due to the global economic crisis of 2008,” she said.
Ms. Sitharaman said compared to that period, there were a hundred times more problems now in the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “Due to the lockdown that we announced immediately, our economy went into negative growth but India is now on a progressive path compared to several other countries who are under the threat of recession,” she said.
She said the Jan Dhan Yojana of providing zero balance bank accounts, which was criticised by several opposition leaders, now has a balance of ₹1.60 lakh crore in those accounts.
Malini Parthasarathy, Chairperson, THG Publishing Private Limited, said Mr. Modi is evolving from a politician to a statesman in his handling of traditionally difficult issues. She said he had made government accessible and citizens no longer feel that authority is remote and aloof.
Ms. Parthasarathy said that among the incontestable successes of the Prime Minister were the launch of the Digital India initiative, empowering citizens with digital technology to access basic services, changing the perception of the government as an all-controlling authority in daily life, liberating citizens from restrictions and cumbersome procedures that limit their capacities to achieve their dreams, and his acknowledgment and respect for regional cultural sensitivities.
“He has been sensitive to the cultural assertions of States — Tamil Nadu, for instance. He has recognised the imperative of softening the traditional stridency of the BJP on Hindi as the national language. He has established cordiality with Chief Ministers, firmly putting away the confrontational tenor of past exchanges between the Centre and State governments. This indeed is a refreshing departure from past practice and augurs well for the health of the federal structure of our country,” she said.
Former High Court judge T.N. Vallinayagam said the book was equivalent to Raja Ravi Varma’s paintings. “Mr. Modi works for every single Indian without any discrimination,” he said.
Tamil Nadu BJP president K. Annamalai said the book was a multi-dimensional one on Mr. Modi’s career and his way of working. He called upon all the BJP cadres to work hard to ensure that Mr. Modi gets an even bigger majority in 2024 and to make India a ‘Vishwaguru’. H. Raja, convenor-Modi @20, south India, and S.G. Suryah, State secretary, T.N. BJP, also spoke.
