Scindia Reveals Modi Govt Spent Rs 11 Trillion on Infrastructure in Just 1 Year

Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia highlighted the Modi government's massive investment in infrastructure, stating that Rs 11 trillion was spent in the last year alone, in stark contrast to the Rs 2 trillion spent annually during the Congress-led UPA administration. 

Speaking at a press conference to elaborate on provisions in the recently presented Union Budget, Scindia said that the budget aims to make India self-reliant and establish the country as a "Vishwaguru" (world leader) by 2047.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always said that he considers poor, farmers, women, and youth as the only four castes in our country, and this budget focuses on these four categories," Scindia said. "In the last one year, Rs 11 trillion have been spent on infrastructure. The UPA used to spend only Rs 2 trillion on this front," the Minister of Communications added.

According to Scindia, significant progress was made in railway and highway construction, with 2,031 km of railway lines laid and 6,000 km of national highways built. He also highlighted advancements in the telecom sector, with towers installed across 10,700 villages to improve connectivity.

"In the past, 90 percent phones in India used to be imported. Now, 90 percent phones are being manufactured in India and units of Rs 1.28 trillion are being exported," Scindia remarked, pointing out India's strong growth in manufacturing. He also noted that while global growth is stagnating at 3.2 percent, India has been maintaining an impressive 6.5 percent growth rate.

Scindia also addressed the issue of non-performing assets (NPAs) in the banking sector, which he attributed to the legacy left by the Congress-led UPA government. "In 2014, the NPA rate was 11.5 percent, which has now come down to 2.6 percent," he said, crediting the current government for improving the financial health of the nation.

The minister highlighted India's growing foreign exchange reserves, which now stand at $705 billion, making it the fourth-largest reserve holder globally. "India's exports have gone up to $600 billion," Scindia added.

In the agriculture sector, India achieved a 3.5 percent growth, with Madhya Pradesh contributing the highest at 6.5 percent. "Our aim is that India becomes the third-largest economy by 2027," he stated. Scindia expressed confidence that India would surpass Germany and Japan in the next two years, with the goal of becoming a $5 trillion economy by 2028 and a $6 trillion economy by 2030.

Scindia also highlighted the government’s initiatives to revamp the Indian Postal Department. "Nowhere else in the world will you find an establishment like the Indian Postal Department, which has 1.64 lakh post offices and four lakh postmen," he noted. These post offices will be transformed into logistics centers to enhance parcel and e-commerce services.

Moreover, Scindia referred to BharatNet, the government’s ambitious project to provide broadband connectivity to 2.45 lakh gram panchayats. "Currently, 2.12 lakh gram panchayats are connected, and the rest will also be linked in a similar way. An amount of Rs 1.39 trillion has been allocated for this," he said.

The Union Budget also offers relief to the middle class, as individuals earning up to Rs 12 lakh will be exempt from income tax. "We have provided relief to the middle class as individuals earning up to Rs 12 lakh will not have to pay income tax," Scindia stated.

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