‘Nation first, family first’: PM Modi slams rivals

New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday asserted that in a world filled with uncertainty, what is certain is that India will continue to grow rapidly.

Addressing a conclave organized by India Today, he said his motivation was “nation first” and did not name the opposition, but added that their guideline was “family first”.

Confident of the government retaining power in the Lok Sabha polls, Prime Minister Modi said people will see decisive policies and decisions in the next five years. Prime Minister Modi said he has been studying these issues.

In the next five years, India will become a stable, capable and strong guarantee for the world, and its development will reach a new level.

He said his government maintains “zero tolerance” for corruption and gives a hands-off approach to investigative agencies, which is why some people are feeling stomachaches, an apparent reference to opposition leaders who accuse the government of abusing the agency’s targeting of its rivals.

He said that while the Enforcement Directorate had seized only Rs 5,000 crore till 2014, it had seized assets worth over Rs 100 crore and arrested people in connection with cyber crime, drug crimes and terrorism.

Prime Minister Modi said some people are launching a campaign to abuse him, but questions remain about their intentions and commitment.

He told a popular parody show on a news channel that the country had clearly told them it was “very sorry.”

Prime Minister Modi highlighted in detail the numerous welfare schemes his government has launched over the years to help the poor sections of society, be it street vendors or the rural poor.

These issues do not make media headlines but affect people, he said, as he elaborated on the impact of schemes like Mudra and SVANidhi, which provide loans to the poor and street vendors respectively, on easy and simple terms. The business provides loans without guarantees.

Prime Minister Modi said his government is committed to improving people’s “convenience of life” and emphasized his governing philosophy of minimizing the government’s role in people’s lives.

He said an ordinary person should have the freedom to live the way he wants, noting that his administration has repealed hundreds of laws and regulations.

Prime Minister Modi said that before his government came to power in 2014, people had to pay tax on income of Rs 2 lakh, but now there is no tax on income of Rs 7 lakh.

The Prime Minister said he could have distributed taxpayers’ money to win applause, but that was not his way. He believed that by saving money, people’s lives could be made easier.

He said it was in the national interest in the long run and claimed he wanted to hand over a prosperous India to the next generation.

As the government wants more money in the pockets of common people, people have saved over Rs 250 crore through direct taxes, he said, adding that the poor have saved over Rs 100 crore due to the Ayushmann Health Insurance Scheme.

Modi said that although the northeastern states were the least important area for successive governments, he ensured that ministers and senior officials visited the region regularly.

Prime Minister Modi said his ministers have visited the remote region nearly 700 times, and that he has visited the region more times during his tenure than all previous prime ministers combined.

He said it was not done for the election but out of commitment.

Prime Minister Modi said he had even launched an animal vaccination program costing nearly Rs 15,000 crore.

The number of start-ups has increased from a few hundred to 125,000 and they come from nearly 600 regions, he said, adding that this highlights how young people from small cities are leading the start-up revolution.

He said that under successive governments, the powerful and resourceful were the first to monopolize facilities by hook or by crook, while ordinary people suffered.

Prime Minister Modi said his government has given “convenience of life” to the common people as its top priority, noting that the time taken to produce a passport is now only 5-6 days as compared to the 50 days it took earlier.

He said that before 2014, the average income tax refund took 93 days, but now it takes less than 10 days.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)