An eye on India and one on the world

For any new government, the first 100 days are regarded as the “honeymoon period”. Beyond that a government’s appeal, approval rating and attractiveness declines rapidly. So normally after 365 days, a government turns mundane, run-of-the-mill, disconnected and even disoriented. The challenge before a new government is how to prevent a sense of ennui and disappointment from setting in.More than building brick-and-mortar showpieces, a new government needs to keep hopes alive and people convinced that good times are indeed on their way. In his first year as Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has been successful in retaining not just political support but also ensuring that business and industry do not lose faith in his determination and ability to deliver transformational changes.

His biggest achievement in the first year has been to weave a social security net for all Indians through financial inclusion. The word “socialist” may have been forcibly inserted into the Preamble of our Constitution under cover of darkness during the Emergency, but the poor, easily amounting to more than 60 per cent of the population, were always bereft of the state’s welfare cover. Modi struck within weeks of assuming office with his all-embracing Jan Dhan Yojana, which has been a spectacular success, and incentivised the marginalised sections of the people to gain access to banks, often with zero balance accounts. On the eve of completing one year, this government introduced two more social security schemes aimed at providing accident and life cover to the poor through affordable insurance schemes. Taken together, these innovative programmes will ensure that government subsidies don’t get waylaid by middlemen, the poor avail themselves of bank loans and also feel assured that their families won’t starve in the event of disability or death of the bread-earner.

The skill development initiative may take some time to reflect in employment figures, but in a few years, more than a million persons will get sufficiently skilled to obtain jobs in diverse areas of manufacturing and services. The Opposition says that most of Modi’s schemes are re-packaged UPA ideas. While on paper this may have a grain of truth, the fact is that under previous governments, these schemes were just that — on paper.

Arguably, this government is yet to convince many that populist schemes need to be abandoned or curtailed, and programmes that generate sustainable jobs and produce durable assets activated. This ties up with the unfortunately named Land Acquisition Bill. The name conjures up visions of sarkari babus supported by coercive arms of the state swooping down on farmers and grabbing their land.In reality, the amended Land Bill is a vast improvement on the UPA’s earlier legislation. “Public purpose” has, for the first time, been categorically defined and narrowed.

Contrary to the public perception of Modi being an incorrigible hardliner, he has shown commendable flexibility in grappling with Parliament. Managing the Lok Sabha was never a problem given the BJP’s huge majority. But by accommodating the Opposition’s demand for scrutiny of reform Bills despite their passage in the Lok Sabha, the government showed remarkable dexterity. The Insurance Reform Bill, for example, got smooth passage in the Rajya Sabha, once cleared by the Select Committee. The Land Bill may face serious obstacles both within and outside the Joint Select Committee, but the government has shown its determination to get it passed while remaining open to amendments.

This Bill is crucial to the ‘Make in India’ vision. The essence is to provide a fillip to manufacturing, which has been sluggish for the last decade and more. By making a determined pitch for ‘Make in India’ during his foreign visits, Modi has generated a buzz over India’s projected double-digit growth.

On the whole, therefore, the ground for economic revival has been laid in the NDA’s first year and the cobwebs of inactivity have been swept almost clean. Paving the way for more FDI and efforts to create a business-friendly environment will go a long way in attracting investment in key economic sectors. Supplementing the government’s efforts, the buzz over investment has prompted Parliament’s Standing Committee on Commerce to set up a subcommittee to suggest further measures to encourage ease of doing business in India.

Infrastructure undoubtedly remains a bottleneck. By speeding up environmental and other clearances, Modi has significantly cut red-tape and the consequent delay in operationalising projects. Massive highway projects, mega power plants and new ports are also on the anvil. Funds have been allocated for most to ensure they don’t remain only on paper. Another dramatic change is to take States on board. The Fourteenth Finance Commission’s report, devolving more revenues to the States, the visionary GST Bill (which should get Parliament’s nod in the monsoon session) and the overall thrust to cooperative federalism will undoubtedly have positive political implications.

Already, the hostility earlier displayed by certain regional parties towards the NDA has lessened. This augurs well for getting legislative reforms through, although the Land Bill will require much more persuasion.

Two points require mention. The Prime Minister has been unduly criticised for visiting 18 countries and spending 53 days outside India in the last 12 months. The fact is that by reaching out to neighbours, the Indian Ocean Rim, and pursuing the ‘Act East’ slogan, besides re-connecting with the West, especially the US, Modi has put India firmly on the world’s radar, both economically and politically. His government has acquired a credibility in the world’s eyes that the previous government did not enjoy.

Unreformed Modi-bashers would still say he has failed to rein in hotheads in the Sangh’s extended parivar . But it is a fact that nobody else would have succeeded in making them as ineffective as Modi has within one year. There is no doubt that he has development right on top of his agenda. Those who wanted him tried by the European Court or petitioned governments not to grant him a visa, will never be satisfied. But as successive opinion polls reaffirm, few governments anywhere in the world have retained people’s confidence and hope after one year in office to the extent that Modi’s government has.

The writer is a BJP MP of the Rajya Sabha and editor of ‘The Pioneer’

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