Painting a rosy picture of Maharashtra and Mumbai, PM Narendra Modi has invited global investors to the country's "most investor-friendly state"
PM Narendra Modi speaks during the opening ceremony of Magnetic Maharashtra Convergence 2018 in BKC on Sunday. Pic/PTI
Painting a rosy picture of Maharashtra and Mumbai, PM Narendra Modi has invited global investors to the country's "most investor-friendly state". In an address at the Magnetic Maharashtra Convergence in the city last evening that targeted both investors and voters, Modi highlighted several reforms and public welfare schemes that his government has undertaken to create "New India".
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Modi gave back-to-back speeches, one in Navi Mumbai where he laid the foundation for the much-delayed airport and inaugurated a facility at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust that was completed in record time, and the other at BKC in the presence of international and national industry leaders. What was common to both functions was how Modi foresaw Mumbai after four years.
Future vision
"Can you imagine how Mumbai will look by 2020-22? The airport will be ready to fly you, the trans-harbour link will ease your commute, double line railway corridor will make your travel faster and waterways will give you another commuting option," he said at Navi Mumbai, and then, expressed a similar thought, congratulating CM Devendra Fadnavis for fast-tracking projects.
Modi invoked Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at these functions, timing his appreciation and appropriation of the Maratha king a day before the state celebrates his birth anniversary, on Monday. He said the king's memorial in the Arabian Sea will be ready in four years.
The PM didn't forget to remind industry captains as well as public in Navi Mumbai how inefficient the previous governments were in clearing projects and completing them. "There will be people who will say this was done in their time. But we must understand that we have revived them, made resources available and will complete them in time," he said.
He added that Maharashtra was all set to be the strongest growth engine of the national economy. "It will soon be a trillion dollar economy, the first state to do so. The state is a global attraction because it has changed its governance through new work culture that takes timely decision and supports investors," Modi said.
Changing Maharashtra
He seemed impressed with Fadnavis's dream project of a super communications highway that, he said, offered immense investment opportunities in making development in the hinterland through 24 nodes (smart cities).
"Maharashtra has already attracted 51 per cent of the country's total foreign direct investment. There will be more to come," he said, adding that Fadnavis was responsible for transforming Maharashtra. "Maharashtra gets nine out of 10 in parameters of ease of doing business."
Modi credited Gujarat for showing other states a way to attract investment through such summits. "What started in Gujarat is now replicated everywhere. There is a healthy competition in the state for getting investors as per their respective USPs."
He said a transparent ecosystem that was people- and investment-friendly was the key to BJP government's success. "There was an atmosphere infested by scams, but now, we are talking of making us a 5 trillion dollar economy, thanks to our policy of ensuring outcome." The PM told industry captains how his government was trying for financial and social inclusion of the poorest of poor.
Here's what industry captains said...
Sir Richard Branson: Virgin hyper loop system will reduce travel time between Mumbai airport and Pune to a mere 20 minutes, with individual pods to take one to their destination.
Mukesh Ambani: Jio will connect each gram panchayat, school, college and hospital and set up the first-ever Integrated Industrial Area, in which 20 global partners have already shown interest; India is number in data consumption in the world, thanks to Jio's low pricing.
Anand Mahindra: A Bollywood-based entertainment hub would be built at Mahindra & Mahindra's land in Kandivli.
Baba Kalyani: Our company will set up two defence production units near Pune.
Ratan Tata: Tatas have always been there and appealed to global investors to change their outlook of Maharashtra, which has now changed under the dynamic leadership of CM Fadnavis.
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