checking inflation and creating jobs
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Hindustan’s Shashi Shekhar and Madan Jaira. Edited excerpts:
Many observers feel there is no worthy discussion on unemployment and inflation. What is your opinion?
Our government’s track record on controlling inflation and creating employment is excellent. Everyone knows that during the second term of the UPA government, yearly average inflation was in double digits. Where the UPA gave the public double digit inflation, the NDA government controlled inflation despite the churn of the Covid pandemic.
If we talk about employment generation, there has been very good work on this too.
Take the example of government jobs. The employment fairs that we are conducting are ensuring the creation of lakhs of jobs. I had earlier menthis tioned that campaign is to create 10 lakh government jobs. I am a part of many such employment fairs myself.
You also focus on the development work done in the last 10 years.
Earlier, we were nowhere in mobile manufacturing but today, we are the world’s second-largest mobile maker. The most important thing is that we have become an exporter of mobile phones from being an importer.
Whether you talk of Vande Bharat trains or toy manufacturing, many things are being made in India. In this time, many sectors such as start ups and elecflight. tric vehicles have taken Today, we are the world’s third-largest start-up ecosystem. In 2014, we only had 100-or-so start ups, today, the figure is close to 100,000. In all these sectors, there has been large-scale employment generation. Apart from this, we have run the biggest misdevelopment sion of infrastructure in independthere ent India. Every year, has been record investment in the infrastructure secnumber tor. The of airports has doubled. Highways are being constructed at a record pace. The number of cities with metros has quadrupled during our government’s tenure. The expansion of infrastructure at this large scale has boosted employment generation in several sectors.
We have also encouraged small and medium industries. Crores of people have used the benefits of Mudra loans to start their business for the first time.
Yearly PLFS data shows clearly that between 2017 and 2023, the number of workers increased by 56%. At the same time, unemployment remained at a historic low of 3.2%.
Today, our country is the world’s fastest-growing major economy. And this growth is due to sectors that are generating employment.
I am only sharing some facts and figures. I also want to remind you that if you look at the tenure of the Congress government before 2014, there was neither any sign of growth nor any jobs.
You have done several experiments in politics and administration. In your third term, what will be your first step?
This is an interesting question. But does anyone who runs a successful restaurant tell you what his recipe for success is? It’s always a surprise. So you wait a bit. The moment our government is back, we will be back to work, and not just the first step, but our every step will be dedicated to the public, the poor and the benefit of humankind.
One more thing, you have acknowledged that in the last 10 years, we have done several innovations and experiments, with great results. But as I have said before, this is a trailer. We have to take many big decisions in realising the dream of a developed India. A glimpse of that may be visible in the first 100 days of the third term.