Demonetisation was tough decision but people supported it: PM

27/05/2017

Guwahati, May 26: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said the demonetisation drive was a "tough decision" to take in view of the opposition parties' constant efforts to turn people against it.
In the end, however, the people stood by the decision of his government, he told a rally here on the occasion of the BJP-led NDA government's completion of three years in office.
"Demonetisation was a tough decision. Political leaders tried to create anger and provoke people," Modi said.
He said, "Demonetisation has brought 90 lakh people into the tax net. People stood by me shoulder to shoulder in this big decision".
Modi thanked the 1.25 crore people of the country for standing by him on every decision his government took.
On black money, the prime minister said, "We decided to take strong steps against black money. I know that for this I will face problems, but I won't hesitate as I have promised this to the people".
Indirectly criticising the previous governments at the Centre, Modi said that an Act was passed against "benami properties" in 1988, but it was never notified.
"What kind of governance was this? For the first time in India, honesty is getting a chance. An honest person is thinking of living peacefully for the first time," he observed.
The prime minister said that because of his honest decisions, he had faced huge problems, but he would always stand by it as promised to the people.
"Once black money was everywhere, now it became 'Jan Dhan' everywhere. From now on, it should be 'Digi Dhan' everywhere," he said referring to his government's drive for a cashless economy.
Highlighting some of his government's achievements, Modi referred to the setting up of OBC Commission, Swachch Bharat campaign, surrender of LPG subsidy by people, spread of Internet to villages, transforming post offices into banks, irrigation system and providing LED bulbs to common people.
He took a dig at previous governments for slow speed of work, saying there was a big mismatch between people's expectations and implementation of schemes or projects.
He took credit for trying out new things, saying, "Everyday there is a new initiative. There is a change in the work culture. The country is feeling the change. In the last three years, there was not a single day when we did not take a step".
Talking of a new India he wants to see, Modi said, "We have to build a new, developed India. There should be respect for all work and workers. Women will travel equally. There will be no discrimination to anyone and all will be equal".
During his day-long tour of Assam, Modi said projects worth Rs 3,500 crore had been either conceived or commissioned in the state in a single day.
Prime Minster Narendra Modi on Friday said that the Dhola-Sadiya bridge will bring economic change in the northeast region and it will be named after renowned singer Bhupen Hazarika.
He was addressing a public rally after inaugurating the country's longest river bridge, the Dhola-Sadiya bridge in Tinsukia district. The Dhola-Sadiya bridge connects Assam with Arunachal Pradesh.
"We have decided to name the bridge after Bhupen Hazarika, the son of Brahmaputra and Assam's voice," said PM Modi.
He said the bridge will bring economic revolution in country.
"This bridge will not only save time and money but also bring about an economic revolution in country," said PM Modi, adding that this will open new avenues for the opportunities.
The 9.15 km-long bridge built over the Brahmaputra River will reduce travel time between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh by at least four hours.
The Prime Minister said that the Centre and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led Assam government was committed to connect whole of northeast with India and whole northeast with India.
"The works which were not being done in 15-20 years are now being completed very fast. Within one year of BJP rule in Assam, the state is getting rid of a lot of problems," he said.
He further noted that Assam would have gotten the Dhola-Sadiya bridge much earlier had Atal Bihari Vajpayee Government returned to power in 2004.
"In 2003, one of our MLAs Jagdish Bhuyan wrote to Vajpayee ji requesting for such a bridge. He approved. Then soon Government at Centre changed and the work on the bridge kept on getting delayed," said the Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Modi will also lay the foundation stone of the proposed Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) at Gogamukh in Dhemaji district and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Sarusajai in Guwahati.
As the Modi government completed three years in office today, it received both ovation and opprobrium, with the opposition accusing it of bringing the country to "the verge of strife" through "divisive" politics and the BJP insisting it laid the foundation for a "new India".
Prime Minister Modi received praise from President Pranab Mukherjee, who called him one of the "most effective communicators". Mukherjee also lauded Modi for giving a "new direction" to India's economy.
Modi took to microblogging website twitter to claim in the three years that his government has been in power, it took "concrete" steps that "transformed" the lives of people.
"Sath hai, vishwas hai, ho raha vikas hai (There is cooperation, there is confidence and progress is being made)," the prime minister tweeted.
"Last 3 years have seen concrete steps that have transformed people s lives," said in another tweet.
Along with the tweets, he posted graphics related to various sectors like agriculture, mobile banking, tele- density, women empowerment, Make-in-India , tourism, electrification, solar energy and distribution of LED bulbs.
Referring to Make-in-India , the graphic said that there has been a giant boost to investments in electronic manufacturing.
BJP chief Amit Shah said, with Modi at the helm of affairs, "The authority of the prime minister's office has been restored."
The BJP leader said India's self-confidence, pride and scale of ambition grew manifold in three years of the Modi government.
India, he said, became the fastest growing major economy in the world after the government took a slew of measures, including economic reform, which tamed inflation and boosted GDP.
Drawing a contrast between the 10-year UPA rule and the Modi government, Shah said the former was marked by a scam almost every month, while even the rivals of the BJP-led dispensation have not been able to level a single charge of corruption against it.
Taking a swipe at the UPA, he said every minister was a prime minister in its government, while nobody took the real prime minister seriously.
However, the opposition would have none of it.
Leaders of 17 opposition parties congregated for a luncheon meet hosted by Congress president Sonia Gandhi and tore into the good governance claim of Modi backers.
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi attacked the Modi government, saying it had "failed to deliver" and instead "divided and distracted" people.
"When they fail to deliver they divide and distract. But anger and hatred will not convert into jobs or solutions," he tweeted.
The Congress demanded a white paper on the government's employment strategy.
Senior Congress leader Kamal Nath said the hallmark of the Modi government in the last three years has been "bravado, rhetoric and hyperbole".
"The future of this country is dark from the economic point of view and from the social point of view. The country had never been so undivided. The country is on the verge of seeing strife in the future," he said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, a strident Modi critic, told journalists after the opposition meeting that all parties criticised the government's handling of Kashmir, caste clashes in Saharanpur, demonetisation and incidents of cow vigilantism.
JD(U)'s Sharad Yadav and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad said the government had "failed on all fronts".
"Modi has failed on all fronts. He has been successful only on one front and that is that the Pakistan flag is fluttering in Jammu and Kashmir," Lalu said.
CPI's D Raja asked "What is there to celebrate?", adding the government was a "failure".
As the opposition leaders poured scorn on Modi and his government, president Mukherjee said," No doubt in the contemporary period, prime minister Modi is one of the most effective communicators and perhaps can be compared with other illustrious prime ministers like pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi who communicated on their principle, on their ideas accepting the parliamentary form of government and particularly to have a secular Constitution."
"Indian economy is moving steadfast. The prime minister has given a new direction, no doubt. Various initiatives which he has taken clearly indicates the onward movement of India," Mukherjee said at a book release function at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Addressing a press conference, Amit Shah said the Modi government had laid the foundation of a "new India" and described it as a decisive and transparent dispensation which had achieved what past governments could not.
"In 2014, the BJP replaced a government suffering from policy paralysis and gave people a decisive and transparent government," Shah said.
National Conference leader Omar Abdullah also acknowledged the achievements of Modi, but said Kashmir remained a "dark blot" for him.
"PM Modi has many achievements to boast of after 3 years and it would be petty to deny them but J&K remains a dark blot that's getting darker," Omar wrote on Twitter.

Photo Gallery

BSE Sensex

NSE Nifty