‘Didn’t have time to prepare for note ban’
The Centre did not have enough time to prepare the logistical groundwork before the note ban, said coal minister Piyush Goyal.
The government didn’t have enough time to prepare the logistical groundwork before scrapping `1,000 and `500 notes in order to maintain the secrecy of a move that aims to flush out illegal cash from the economy, power minister Piyush Goyal said on Saturday.
Since the demonetisation decision was announced three weeks ago, millions of people have lined up outside banks and ATMs and opposition parties have attacked the government for a move that they say has hurt the poor, farmers and small traders.
Speaking on the final day of the 14th Hindustan Times Leadership Summit, Goyal defended the government’s decision to recall the high-value bills, saying the people of India had shown tremendous support for a move that had “changed mindsets”.
“We don’t claim everything we do is right the first time. We acknowledge it and take steps to mitigate it,” Goyal said.
The power minister went on to divulge that apart from PM Narendra Modi and finance minister Arun Jaitley, no one knew about the move to ban high-denomination notes.
“I had no idea that such a big move is going to be announced when I went for the cabinet meeting. The finance minister smirked at me. That’s when I realised something is on,” Goyal said about the cabinet meeting on November 8, just hours before Modi announced the demonetisation move on live national television.
Goyal said people were with Modi and also defended a series of changes in bank withdrawal and exchange norms, which has been criticised as proof of poor planning by the administration. “This decision will have a long-lasting impact on the economy. It makes the honest feel respected for the first time,” he said.
India is the world’s most attractive destination in the energy sector that has the potential to attract a trillion dollars in investment, he added.
The minister of state with independent charge for power, coal and renewable energy said that his optimism stemmed from the Modi government’s climate commitment.
The government has set an ambitious target of setting up 175 GW of renewable energy by 2022. “Solar is a major focus. From 2,500 MW in 2014, installed renewable energy is now 8500 MW. We have done three times in two years of what was done in the past many decades,” said the minister.
Of India’s total installed power capacity of over 300 GW, about 46 GW is renewable including solar, wind and small hydropower projects.
NEW DELHI: