PM Modi: India will celebrate 100 yrs of Independence as Viksit Bharat

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that India is set to be the third-biggest economy in the world and asserted that the nation would celebrate 100 years of Independence in 2047 as Viksit Bharat, or developed Bharat.

“We achieved Independence as a poor nation and those who wished to exploit us did so until the very end. In 100 years after overcoming numerous challenges and meeting our goals, India will mark its 100th year of Independence as a developed country in 2047,” Prime Minister Modi said while addressing the inaugural session of the CII event, Journey Towards Viksit Bharat: A Post Union Budget 2024-25 Conference, held in Vigyan Bhawan, Delhi.

“India is currently the 5th largest economy in the world and soon it will be the 3rd. That day is not far when India will become the third biggest economy globally,” he added.

FOCUS ON VIKSIT BHARAT

In sync with his vision of a $5-trillion economy and Viksit Bharat, the Prime Minister stated that in the post-pandemic years the economy of the nation has been moving at an impressive rate.

“Our focus was on ‘getting growth back’,” Modi said about the target his government had set during the pandemic, and added: “I confidently predicted that India would soon embark on a path of rapid development. Today, we are witnessing that with an impressive growth rate of 8 per cent.”

“Now we are all discussing the journey towards a developed India. This change reflects not just a shift in sentiment, but a surge in confidence,” he said.

HIGH GROWTH, LOW INFLATION

Modi pointed out how India’s economy had maintained stability despite global financial uncertainties, geopolitical unrest and climate concerns.

“India is the only country with high growth and low inflation at a time when the world is suffering from the issue of high inflation and low growth,” he said.

The Prime Minister spoke of how capital expenditure, or capex, played a significant role in garnering resource investment. “Capital expenditure is the biggest productive medium of resource investment,” he said, adding that his government had progressively ensured growth in capital expenditure.

“In 2004, in the first budget of the UPA government, capital expenditure was around Rs 90,000 crore. It increased to Rs 2 lakh crore, and today the capex is more than Rs 11 lakh crore,” Modi said.

GLOBAL INVESTMENT HUB

PM Modi said that international investors were enthused about India right now and the domestic industry must make use of the opportunity.

“Today, the whole world is looking at India and you. The policies of the government and commitment and investment are becoming the foundation of global development. Investors across the world are keen to come to India. World leaders are filled with positivity for India. This is the golden chance for the Indian industry and we should not lose this opportunity,” he said.