Govt committed to carrying out structural reforms: PM Modi

Modi said that the government has eliminated more than 40,000 compliances and decriminalised the Companies Act.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday that the Indian economy is undergoing transformational change to sustain high growth and the government is committed to carrying out structural reforms.

“India has made process reforms a part of the government's continuous activities,” Modi said at the Kautilya Economic Conclave, organised by the Ministry of Finance. He said that the government has eliminated more than 40,000 compliances and decriminalised the Companies Act.

He said the centre is focusing on modern infrastructure to reduce the logistics cost and time. The Prime Minister underlined the unprecedented increase in investments on development of infrastructure.

The centre’s capital expenditure target for the current financial year has been pegged at Rs 11.11 lakh crore, or 3.4% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). In 2014-15 it stood at Rs 1.97 lakh crore or 1.6% of GDP.

Elaborating on the reforms, Modi said India has opened many sectors like mining, defence and space for private players. He added that the government has liberalised the FDI policy to ensure creation of ample opportunities for global investors.

“Bold policy changes, a strong commitment to jobs and skills, a focus on sustainable growth and innovation, modern infrastructure, quality of life, and the continuity of rapid growth are reflected in the policies of our first three months,” Modi said.

“During this period, decisions amounting to over Rs 15 lakh crore have been made. In these three months alone, work on numerous mega infrastructure projects has begun. We have also decided to create 12 industrial nodes across the country. Additionally, we have approved the construction of 3 crore new houses,” the Prime Minister added.   

Earlier, addressing the conclave, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India's per capita income would nearly double in the next five years aided by structural reforms undertaken by the government in the past 10 years.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman addresses the third edition of Kautilya Economic Conclave (KEC 2024) in New Delhi.

She said the upcoming decade will see the steepest rise in living standards of the people of the country.

“While it took us 75 years to reach a per capita income of $2,730, as per IMF projections, it will take only five years to add another $2,000. The upcoming decades will see the steepest rise in living standards for the common man, truly making it a period-defining era for an Indian to live in,” the Finance Minister said.