Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the policy changes initiated by his government have made India to become the world's fastest growing country. "During the months of February, March and April (2014) the only news that came were scams, coal scam, submarine scam, scams on the air, water and land," said PM, Modi while dedicating to the nation the Rs 16,000-crore revamped and modernised IISCO Steel plant in the industrial town of Burnpur in West Bengal's Burdwan district. "It has been a year of this new government and today we don't have news about the coal scam, rather we have about coal auction," he said at the concluding session of his two-day maiden visit to West Bengal, after becoming the Prime Minister. "We have news about the government exchequer getting Rs 3 lakh crore instead of the coal scam of Rs 1.74 lakh crore," he added.
"Earlier, a leader would send a letter, saying give the coal mine to someone and without any procedures it was given. The government exchequer did not get a single penny. But we have shut that and initiated auction. We also decided that the money from the auctions will not go to Delhi but to that state's coffers, so that the government can initiate welfare of that state," said Modi. He said that West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and all the states that are having coal deposits were reaping benefits of the coal auction.
"Most of the coal and minerals are in the tribal areas, while the minerals were extracted, the tribes remained bereft of welfare. So, we have decided to set up a foundation from the money we get from the royalties of the mineral. That money will be used for the welfare of the districts," Modi said. "The irony is we kept exporting iron ore and imported steel. The country cannot run if we export wheat and buy back bread from foreign countries. If we have iron ore, we will produce steel," he stated.
"We are endeavoured to develop skill of our people, value addition of our mineral resources and increase in agricultural productivity by improving the fertility and providing assistance to farmers. A year ago, the entire world had written off India, but now within a year the entire world, be it the IMF, the World Bank or the credit rating agencies, they unanimously say India is the fastest growing country in the world," Modi added.
By Premji
