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Union Parliamentary Affairs and Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said a concerted campaign was being carried out to create an impression that the Narendra Modi-led government was unfairly favouring select corporate houses.
Addressing industry leaders at the annual session of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Naidu said: “It is a conspiracy to say this government is for Ambanis and Adanis.” Hitting out at the Opposition, primarily the Congress, he said the Ambanis and Adanis “aapki meherbaani hain, hamari nahi (they are your doing, not ours)”.
Without naming anyone, Naidu hinted at double-speak and said some people condemned industry by the day and comforted them by night. On the current government’s criticism for being seen as pro-industry, he said industry was an important component of a country’s growth. “Agriculture and industry are like two eyes; one needs both.”
The minister took on the media, too. Pink papers and television channels (referring to business media) are getting impatient, he said. ‘’It’s only been 10 months for this government and it must be given time…..’’ Without naming HDFC Chairman Deepak Parekh, Naidu said, “A leading banker also called the pace of reform by this government slow.’’ To that, Naidu said, ‘’While we are focusing on urgency, we don’t want an emergency.’’ Reiterating that processes must be followed for reforms to kick in, the minister said, “Things must go to the Lok Sabha and then the Rajya Sabha. Otherwise, it will go to parlok sabha (the other world).’’
Naidu also spoke about the recent controversy over a Supreme Court judge refusing Modi’s invite on Good Friday. Dismissing the view that this was because of the thinking that secularism might be in danger under the Modi government, the minister said courts had been working on festivals and days of religious significance such as Ram Navami, Makar Sankranti and Ugadi.
Pointing that the government was not elitist, Naidu said: “I have not had the good fortune of attending the Doon School.” Even so, there had been no scam in the 10 months of the Modi government, he said, adding coal and telecom spectrum auction showed how these resources could fetch crores of rupees to the national exchequer.
Smart cities
On smart cities, Naidu said the proposal to set up 100 such centres in India will come up for the Union Cabinet’s approval this month. The smart city project was formally announced in July 2014 in the current government’s first Union Budget.
All consultations had been spoken to and the policy was likely to be cleared by end of the month, the minister said.
The urban centres for development as smart cities will be selected through a ‘City Challenge’ competition later this year. States will propose the names of cities, and those will be judged on many parameters like creditworthiness, power supply, water, revenue generation and partnerships they can form. The final selection will be done through a process of elimination.
The Centre will be a facilitator in the project and will have a hand-holding role, according to Naidu. States will get into PPP arrangement with industries.
As for foreign partnerships, 14 countries, including the US, France, Spain, Singapore, Germany and Netherlands, have already expressed interest.
Addressing industry leaders at the annual session of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Naidu said: “It is a conspiracy to say this government is for Ambanis and Adanis.” Hitting out at the Opposition, primarily the Congress, he said the Ambanis and Adanis “aapki meherbaani hain, hamari nahi (they are your doing, not ours)”.
Without naming anyone, Naidu hinted at double-speak and said some people condemned industry by the day and comforted them by night. On the current government’s criticism for being seen as pro-industry, he said industry was an important component of a country’s growth. “Agriculture and industry are like two eyes; one needs both.”
The minister took on the media, too. Pink papers and television channels (referring to business media) are getting impatient, he said. ‘’It’s only been 10 months for this government and it must be given time…..’’ Without naming HDFC Chairman Deepak Parekh, Naidu said, “A leading banker also called the pace of reform by this government slow.’’ To that, Naidu said, ‘’While we are focusing on urgency, we don’t want an emergency.’’ Reiterating that processes must be followed for reforms to kick in, the minister said, “Things must go to the Lok Sabha and then the Rajya Sabha. Otherwise, it will go to parlok sabha (the other world).’’
Naidu also spoke about the recent controversy over a Supreme Court judge refusing Modi’s invite on Good Friday. Dismissing the view that this was because of the thinking that secularism might be in danger under the Modi government, the minister said courts had been working on festivals and days of religious significance such as Ram Navami, Makar Sankranti and Ugadi.
Pointing that the government was not elitist, Naidu said: “I have not had the good fortune of attending the Doon School.” Even so, there had been no scam in the 10 months of the Modi government, he said, adding coal and telecom spectrum auction showed how these resources could fetch crores of rupees to the national exchequer.
Smart cities
On smart cities, Naidu said the proposal to set up 100 such centres in India will come up for the Union Cabinet’s approval this month. The smart city project was formally announced in July 2014 in the current government’s first Union Budget.
All consultations had been spoken to and the policy was likely to be cleared by end of the month, the minister said.
The urban centres for development as smart cities will be selected through a ‘City Challenge’ competition later this year. States will propose the names of cities, and those will be judged on many parameters like creditworthiness, power supply, water, revenue generation and partnerships they can form. The final selection will be done through a process of elimination.
The Centre will be a facilitator in the project and will have a hand-holding role, according to Naidu. States will get into PPP arrangement with industries.
As for foreign partnerships, 14 countries, including the US, France, Spain, Singapore, Germany and Netherlands, have already expressed interest.
