The Modi government “rescued economy from state of crisis”: Center’s white paper

The actions taken by the Narendra Modi-led government to “rescue the economy” from a “state of crisis, despair, and paralysis” are enumerated in the white paper on the economy, which was released by the Center on February 8 to highlight the alleged shortcomings in the economic management of the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.

The BJP-led government claimed that the economy was in turmoil due to several policy “wrong turns” and was on a “road to nowhere” when they took office.

“As soon as our government took over in 2014, we recognized the urgent need to revamp and overhaul systems and processes, to help India advance on the path of development while also bolstering its macroeconomic foundations,” the document laid on the lower house by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, mentioned.

Digital revolution

As per the white paper, the introduction of a new governance paradigm by Prime Minister Narendra Modi signifies a change from the previous decade that was typified by “inefficient policy design and implementation mechanisms, resulting in a stagnating economy.”

Since 2014, the administration has concentrated on streamlining and rationalizing the legal system, implementing “trust-based and responsive delivery machinery,” and reforming the ease of doing business to maximize the potential of all industries through “strengthened cooperative federalism,” according to the statement.

The government declared that “we have achieved saturation coverage for all deserving beneficiaries,” in contrast to the piecemeal delivery of the past.

A bright side witnessed amongst the investors 

The paper made a reference of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) report from 2015, and mentioned “India’s near-term growth outlook has improved and the balance of risks is now more favourable, helped by increased political certainty, several policy actions, improved business confidence, lower commodity import prices, and reduced external vulnerabilities.”

It added further: “Medium-term growth prospects have improved due to the implementation of key reforms, loosening of supply-side bottlenecks, and appropriate fiscal and monetary policies that enhance macroeconomic stability”.

Revitalized the stagnant financial sector

According to the white paper, over the last ten years, the Center has “revitalized the stagnant financial sector” and redesigned the credit ecosystem in the economy. Among the reforms mentioned were the introduction of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) and the steps taken by the government and RBI to fortify the banking industry’s balance sheets.