Govt to spend Rs 100 lakh crore for infra development
Emphasising the government focus on improving infrastructure, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said Rs 100 lakh crore will be spent on this sector.
Addressing the nation from the ramparts of Red Fort on the occasion of Independence Day, the PM said Rs 100 lakh crore will be spent on developing infrastructure.
Under various projects be it Sagarmala, Bharatmala, modernisation of railway stations or development roads, the government will spend money in coming days.
The government will develop modern airports, hospitals, rail lines, bridges. The government will also develop world-class infrastructure for the educational sector to make them world-class.
The mindset of the people has changed. They wanted the latest technology and 24-hour electricity to their houses. People now are not just happy with a rail line. They want a modern railway station, bus station or a good road. They ask when is the airport coming? We have to fulfil their aspiration, he said.
The prime minister said the era of policy paralysis has ended and his government was giving policy-based governance that has helped catapult the country from 142nd place among 190 nations on the World Bank's ease of doing business ranking in 2014 to 77th position this year.
Reforms will continue and procedures would be further eased to make it easier for companies to do business in the country, he said adding that efforts are on to increase the size of the economy to USD 5 trillion.
"The target is to break into top 50 nations," he said.
India was ranked 142nd among 190 nations when the Narendra Modi's government took office in 2014. Four years of reform pushed up India's rank to 100th in the World Bank's 'Doing Business' 2018 report. It was 130th in 2017 when India was ranked lower than Iran and Uganda.
In its annual 'Doing Business' 2019 report, India secured 77th position. New Zealand tops the list, followed by Singapore, Denmark and Hong Kong. The United States is placed at 8th and China ranked 46th. Neighbouring Pakistan is placed at 136.
India has improved its ranking by 53 positions in the last two years and 65 places in four years since 2014.
The World Bank ranks 190 countries based on 10 parameters, including starting a business, construction permits, getting electricity, getting credit, paying taxes, trade across borders, enforcing contracts, and resolving insolvency.
With PTI inputs
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