 "PM Narendra Modi looks back with pride on 70th Independence Day")
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech, on the country’s 70th Independence Day, had the imprint of a smart chief executive offering a presentation to his shareholders about the progress made in his term so far, and how his record in implementing policies and schemes was far superior to the previous regime. Unlike his previous two speeches from the ramparts of the Red Fort, neither did Monday’s speech have any new big-ticket schemes nor policy initiatives that his government plans to take.
While the PM did announce that the government would cover hospital expenses of up to ~1 lakh of below-the-poverty line families, much of the 110-minute long speech focused on the change in the work culture that his government has brought about in the last two years.
Modi spoke at length about his government’s efforts at improving the ease of doing business, of its integrated approach to governance and its accountability and sensitivity. “Reform, perform, transform,” Modi said, stressing the need for a delivery of the government schemes to the poorest. “Now, people are not satisfied by mere announcements but want to see these implemented,” he said.
With Assembly polls to five states due in early 2017, including that of the key state of Uttar Pradesh, the PM spoke about his government’s efforts at helping the farmers. Modi said his government had been free of allegations of corruption, and it would take a week if he were to start listing its achievements. The governance provided by his government, the PM said, wasn’t just in its niti, or policy, but nirnaya, or quicker decision-making, and niyat (intent).
Interestingly, the passage of the goods and services tax constitution amendment Bill by Parliament, in its winter session, was mentioned cursorily – a mere two lines in the over 110-minute long speech – that, too, as something that will unify India. The PM did claim how his government had succeeded in keeping the inflation rate below six per cent. He spoke of how the National Democratic Alliance government has joined hands with the Reserve Bank of India, agreeing on a four per cent (plus/minus two per cent) inflation target till 2021, to enable the central bank to fight inflation and how India has emerged as the fastest-growing economy among major economies.
Modi indicated that his government didn’t favour disinvestment of public sector undertakings (PSUs), pointing out how such loss-making PSUs as Air India, BSNL and Shipping Corporation of India have been turned around to post operational profits. “Earlier PSUs were put in place either to be locked down or sold. Not anymore,” he said.
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There was also a strong nationalistic undercurrent to the speech, with the PM ending it by announcing a 20 per cent hike in pensions that freedom fighters get. Starting his speech by remembering Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel and even Jawaharlal Nehru, the PM said the challenge was to transform ‘swaraj’, or self-government, into ‘suraj’, or good governance.
The PM listed the innumerable steps his government has taken to ease the life of the common man. He said the Railways now issues 15,000 tickets a minute from earlier 2,000 tickets, tax terrorism is at an end and 17.5 million passports were issued without pulling strings in 2015-16. Modi said that the time taken to give clearances to factories has reduced from six months to 24 hours.
Modi said construction of rural roads has increased from 70-75 km a day to 100 km; there is a 40 per cent improvement in renewable energy; 120 per cent in solar energy; nearly 50,000 km transmission lines being installed each year from 30,000-35,000 km earlier and 3,500 km of railway tracks have been laid in the last two years when only 1,500 km were laid during the United Progressive Alliance’s 10-year rule.
The PM said that in his 2014 speech, he had called for construction of toilets in rural areas. Today, the PM said, 20 million toilets have been constructed and 70,000 villages are now free of open defecation. He also spoke at length about the schemes his government has taken for the welfare of farmers and how the Aadhaar card is ending corruption at the lower levels of bureaucracy.
He said his government has identified 9,000 posts of ‘C’ and ‘D’ category of government jobs where interviews have been done away with in the recruitment process. Modi said in the last 60 years only 140 million cooking gas connections were provided, while his government has given 40 million gas connections in just 60 weeks. “Compare 60 years to 60 weeks!” he said.
The PM said he had promised electricity to 18,000 un-electrified villages of the country in 1,000 days and 10,000 villages have already been electrified in less than half of those days. He said his government has reduced the cost of light-emitting diode bulbs from ~350 to ~50 and distributed 130 million bulbs, with a commitment to distribute 770 million. This, Modi said, will save 20,000 megawatt electricity worth ~1.25 lakh crore.
The PM listed the measures his government has taken to double the income of farmers by 2022. He said 77,000 solar pumps have been distributed and 90 stalled schemes in the agriculture sector, to increase productivity, are being completed with the aim of ‘per drop more crop’. He congratulated scientists for developing more than 131 seeds suitable for Indian climatic conditions. Modi said his government has announced better minimum support price for dal.
Aware that people still see him as an agent of change, Modi took pains to talk about his own role in ensuring expeditious decision-making. The PM said the Pragati Group, he heads, has cleared 118 projects worth ~7.5 lakh crore that were stuck for years. Similarly, the Project Monitoring Group is looking at 270 stalled projects worth over ~2 lakh crore.
Many of Modi’s predecessors have used the Independence Day speech to hit out at Pakistan for sponsoring terrorism into India. The PM, however, didn’t launch into any war of words. Instead, Modi said he was overwhelmed by the gratitude the people of Gilgit, Balochistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir, or PoK, have expressed to him for raising their concerns.
At the all-party meeting on Kashmir on Friday, the PM, in his speech, had said that Pakistan should be exposed for the atrocities it perpetrates on its people. The threat, however, was unmistakable – Pakistan’s persistence with its Kashmir policy would force New Delhi to tell the world, just as it had done in the run-up to the liberation of Bangladesh in 1971, about Islamabad’s atrocities in these regions.
Neither did he refer to the recent turmoil in Kashmir. He said India will never bend to terrorists and appealed to youths that have taken the path of Maoism to join the mainstream. Modi did appeal at length about the need to maintain harmony and strengthen India’s unity in diversity. In the context of violence against Dalits, the PM said all needed to fight the curse of caste system and untouchability. Modi said mere economic prowess cannot make India a strong nation. “A strong India can be built on the foundation of social justice,” he said.
Senior Cabinet ministers, former PM Manmohan Singh and his wife, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal were present, apart from hundreds of diplomats and military attachés of foreign governments.
Later in the day, photographs of several ministers and others who had nodded off during the PM’s speech went viral on social media.
| A REALITY CHECK |
| What the PM said Rural roads: 100 km a day versus 70-75 km earlier Progress on ground Online monthly reports unavailable; the rural development ministry’s website shows paving of 44.7 km a day sanctioned during 2016-17 What the PM said 40 million people got LPG connections in the last 60 weeks Progress on ground In 2015-16, 23 million connections added. Officials say total number hasn’t exceeded 30 million till end-July What the PM said LED bulbs available at Rs 50. Commitment to distribute 770 million to save Rs 1.25 lakh crore Progress on ground One of the most successful NDA programmes; 130 million LED bulbs given out by the government What the PM said 15,000 railway tickets booked in a minute against 2,000 earlier Progress on ground The next-generation e-ticketing system, launched in April 2014, has increased speed to 15,000 tickets a minute What the PM said 50,000 km per day of transmission lines against 30,000-35,000 km in a year in the past Progress on ground According to the ministry of power’s website, 5,743 circuit km of transmission lines commissioned during April-June, which is 24.6% of the annual target for 2016-17 What the PM said Solar energy increased by 116%, wind by 40% Progress on ground Capacity addition in both grid-connected solar and wind was substantial in 2015-16 at 3,019 Mw and 3,300 Mw, respectively What the PM said One Nation, One Grid, One Price: Power available in Telangana at Rs 1.10, against Rs 10 earlier Progress on ground One Nation, One Price true on most days, but for minuscule amount of power sold in the spot market, which was just about 115 Gw at around 5 pm on Monday when the average market clearing price was Rs 1.70/kWh. Consumers do not pay same price across, as distribution companies bundle power generated from different sources What the PM said Turnaround of BSNL and Air India Progress on ground BSNL expected to report Rs 3,378 crore operational profit and Air India Rs 100 crore in 2015-16 |