"Global Bodies Now Say India Is World's Growth Engine": Jyotiraditya Scindia

Global financial organisations are now acknowledging that India, which was a bogey in the train of growth of the world, has today become the engine of growth for the world, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has said.

In an exclusive interview with NDTV on Thursday, in which he shared his thoughts on the Interim Budget presented earlier in the day, the Civil Aviation Minister claimed India is now producing 15% of the world's GDP growth and that a transformation has come about under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 

Asked whether there was enough in the Interim Budget to indicate that infrastructure development will remain a core focus for the government, Mr Scindia said, "What will remain the core focus is the rise of India. The move of India under PM Modi to become an Atmanirbhar (self-reliant) country... To become a Vishwaguru (world leader)... to become a Viksit desh (developed country) from a Vikassheel (developing) desh.  Everything as part of the Budget or policymaking... that is the core element around which everything revolves."

Reiterating what was said by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Budget, Mr Scindia said the government has identified four groups - youth, women, farmers and the economically deprived - and is focusing on empowering them. He said that India will see wholesome growth when these groups, and every single citizen, are empowered. 

Listing out the steps taken by the government for these groups, Mr Scindia mentioned the bill that was passed to reserve one-third of seats in the Lok Sabha and State legislative assemblies for women and also pointed out that Triple Talaq had been made illegal. He said women are also being trained to become drone pilots and skill development is taking place.

"There is innovation. There is a new way of thinking. There is bringing international technology right down to the grassroots. The application of drones in the agrarian sector. The application of drones for cadastral surveys (used to establish property boundaries) to get your rights on your property in rural India, which could have never been thought about before. The fact that a citizen in rural India can take a loan based on his cadastral survey (is) something that could never have been contemplated before," he said. 

The minister emphasised that, for youth, seven IITs and seven IIMs have been set up in the last nine years and a Rs 1 lakh crore fund has been set up for new funds and incubators. 

'France Wants Indian Tech'

Pointing to the "massive transformation" in India, Mr Scindia spoke about French President Emmanuel Macron being impressed with UPI technology. 

"That video of President Macron in Jaipur with Prime Minister Modi, where he buys the President a cup of tea using the UPI mobile app... President Macron then comments that 'can you give me this technology'. Here is a case of a Western leader asking for technology from India that is a made-in-India technology," he said.

Employment Creation

On criticism by the opposition that the government is not presenting the correct picture of inequality and unemployment, Mr Scindia said, "Employment has been created across the spectrum. The PLI (Production Linked Incentive) schemes that the Prime Minister has brought about have brought in a new era of value addition in each one of our sectors. Whether it's electronics, semiconductors, telecom, drones, steel or textiles."

"So India is no longer an exporter and a manufacturer of commodity alone. It is now a manufacturer and exporter of value-added products. And that's where the maximum margin comes in. That leads to greater employment," he added. 

Mr Scindia pointed out that India has now had the first final assembly line for the C-295 aircraft as part of a joint venture between Airbus and Tata. "You've got Boeing sourcing close to a billion dollars worth of products from India. You've got Airbus sourcing close to $750 million worth of products from India... So if that is not creating employment, then what is? India is the second-largest mobile producer for the world, the third-largest automobile producer for the world," he said. 

Despite the Covid hit, India has seen a GDP growth rate of 6.7%, the minister said, adding, "The IMF and the World Bank chief themselves are saying that India, which was a bogey in the train of growth of the world, has today become the engine of growth for the world. India today is producing 15% of growth of the world GDP alone as a country. That is the transformation that has taken place under Prime Minister Modi."