Never in the history of India have we seen before such rapid change that made 20 million women get gas cylinders, 280 million bank accounts for those who were unable to access formal banking, Rs 3.25 trillion Mudra loans to the poor, and thousands of Jan Aushadhi stores selling medicines for 80 to 90 per cent less than the price at which pharmacies sold medicine. The government targeted 29.5 million houses for the poor between April 2016 and March 2024.
India is in safer hands, perhaps the safest in its post-independent history, economically and militarily. Never in the history of India have we seen such rapid change that made 20 million women get gas cylinders, 280 million bank accounts for those who were unable to access formal banking, 3.25 trillion Mudra loans to the poor, and thousands of Jan Aushadhi stores selling medicines for 80 to 90 per cent less than the price at which pharmacies sold medicines. The government targeted 29.5 million houses for the poor between April 2016 and March 2024. The target was precisely achievable on time. The budget for road transport and highways increased by 500 per cent since 2014. Every day, India sees nearly 40 KM of new roads, the fastest road expansion in any country. The infallible implementation of many schemes changed India’s socio-economic profile. The global economic superpower watched India’s stunning growth, making them praise India that otherwise they were stingy of. Within a decade, the number of airports doubled to 149. Food, shelter, electricity, water, bank account, cooking gas, etc., which they deserved long ago, reached them as a priority. Under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) commercial banks opened 510 million savings accounts to ensure that even the poorest hold an account with an aggregate deposit of 2.09 trillion. That was a major success in three ways. One, poor people who used to keep idle cash in hand as savings from their income got an account to park and have due interest on it. When money enters the banking system, it helps banks lend to businesses through business borrowers. This process ensures that money is not left idle with households but is instead channelled into various economic activities. Bank accounts generate data about individuals, providing the government with insights into who is living in poverty. PMJDY sealed the leakages of incentives reserved for poor people with proper accountability and helped the government transfer the benefits directly to the impoverished ones. As per the global measure of poverty, a person who sustains less than $2.15 a day is poor. In India, the share of this population has now fallen below five per cent from the 12 per cent that India had a decade ago. The success of the Indian economy depends on how well the system channelises idle wealth towards productive purposes. PMJDY showed the way.
The Indian economy is growing at well above six per cent, reflecting inclusive growth, while the world economy is not in as good shape. Last year the Indian economy superseded the British economy to catapult itself into the fifth position. Soon, India will surpass Germany, and by 2027, it will outshine Japan to rank third in the world. The boom is not accidental or due to the release of pent-up works during the pandemic. It is the outcome of a determined action, careful policy planning, effective implementation that ensures results, and strong political leadership with the willpower to move the machine. The government’s determination to beat down all stragglers and strict timelines for implementing well-calculated policies and schemes worked well. The changes have made the first-Modi decade an era of massive change, resulting in a spell binding metamorphosis into a modern state that left the legacy of corruption far behind. Today, India stands atop the world and sends the message that India is not the same country of six and half decades of the post-British. The world has rediscovered a new India that refuses to go by the narratives of superpowers. The hitherto buried enviableness of India is gradually silencing the howl of the fault finders and deep states. India has begun her journey on a superhighway of growth after the untiring homework.
