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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that economic reforms should be inclusive and broad based, and called on policymakers and economists to come up with ideas for “reforms to transform” the country.
Inaugurating the 6th Delhi Economic Conclave ‘Realising India’s JAM (Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile) vision’, Modi said JAM should be all about achieving maximum value for every rupee spent, maximum empowerment for the country’s poor, and maximum technology penetration among the masses.
This is the first time a Prime Minister has addressed the Delhi Economic Conclave.
Modi said that before becoming Prime Minister he had received many inputs about reforms from many experts. “However, none of them touched on the issue of cleanliness and sanitation,” he revealed.
“Our Swachh Bharat or Clean India campaign will impact not only health and sanitation but also uplift the status and security of women and above all create a powerful sense of well-being. If this reform succeeds, as I am confident it will, India will have been transformed,” he said.
Stating that India’s reforms are far broader and deeper than is recognised, Modi said that the country was doing better on all macro-economic indicators today than before he took office.
On the government’s financial inclusion initiative he said: “Accounts opened under the Jan Dhan Yojana today have a total balance of almost ₹26,000 crore or nearly $4 billion.”
Jaitley bats for Aadhaar Addressing the concluding session, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said: “You cannot have a situation where Aadhaar is accepted for some schemes and not for others. A universal system should be there.” (The Supreme Court has allowed Aadhaar numbers to be used only for a few social development schemes).
“Aadhaar and the JAM Trinity are here to stay. We have two options either to pursue it in the Court or pass an executive order. The draft UIDAI legislation is almost ready,” Jaitley added.
Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said: “We soon hope to bring kerosene under the direct benefit transfer scheme. There may be a ₹4,000-₹5,000 crore annual reduction in subsidies.”
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