Modi pushes to fulfil promises

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s third Independence Day address devoted considerable portions to those areas which critics say the government’s efforts are yet to be strongly visible.

As the prime minister put it, when the government is engulfed in expectations then it signifies hope and trust, which in turn generates those expectations.

“Expectations give pace towards good governance, invigorates and so the pledges are implemented ad continuum.”

Modi, however, emphasised  that he has tried to stay away from populism which, he said, the past regimes practised to get recognition while “”emptying the exchequer.”

On inflation, Modi mentioned the 4% inflation target, within a range of 2 % points either way, set for the next five years under the monetary policy framework agreement with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The government earlier this month notified the consumer price inflation target of 4% for the next five years, with an upper tolerance level of 6 % and lower limit of 2%.

Modi said 270 projects worth Rs 10 lakh crore that were inaugurated many years ago were stuck despite crores of rupees already spent on all of them, and he had to got them going.

Speaking about the practice of the PMO monitoring every project regularly, he said, “I myself sit and review all the on going projects. You would be amazed to know that almost 119 projects worth Rs 7.5 lakh crore started by the previous government were lying pending. I got all of them going. I came to know that some of them were started 20 years ago, the other were started 25 to 35 years earlier.”

Modi acknowledged that there was a time when the common man was satisfied if the government announced any plan or merely announced that this would be done as he used to think that something concrete would happen.