Sanjay Dalmia: Who says India is not making progress?

As the 2019 Lok Sabha polls approach, a new wave of political unrest has taken over the country. Politicians have started blame-games, alleging that the country has been stuck in a standstill position, in terms of economic growth and overall progress from the past four years. However, renowned industrialist and philanthropist Sanjay Dalmia has a different take on the much-heated debate.

“Be it GDP, inflation, Sensex, FDI, exports, or the Forex reserves of the country – everything has made great improvement in the span of last 3-4 years. The last three years’ growth, on an average, has been over 7 per cent. It might surprise some people, but India has, in fact, beaten China to emerge as the fastest growing economy,” says Mr Dalmia.

According to him, the record-breaking spree of the stock market demonstrates the economic growth of our country. With investor wealth surging by 56 per cent, reaching at about Rs 45 lakh crore, the BSE market capitalization is now more than $2 trillion.

Sanjay Dalmia doesn’t rest his case here. He further argues that the remarkable flow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), over the last four years, also vouches for the economic growth that India is currently experiencing. “The country has seen nearly $149 billion worth of investment from overseas companies in the last four years. During 2011-12, the aggregate FDI flow was of $117 billion,” he stated.

He further says, “Another important milestone that our country has achieved during the same tenure is a massive improvement in the ‘Ease of Doing Business’ rankings. While in 2014-15, India ranked 142 among the 160 nations considered for the list, its position improved in 2016 when the country ranked at 130^th position. However, the biggest achievement has remained the 2017 rankings, in which India was able to secure 100^th position for the first time ever.”

Mr Dalmia is of the opinion that a nation’s progress couldn’t be determined by relying solely upon its economic achievements. He believes that policies like Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna, Beti Bhachao Beti Padhao, Swachch Bhaarat Abhiyaan, Grameen Vidyutikaran, Ujjwala Yojna, Make in India, Startup India and Digital India etc., have also played a great role in transforming India for good.

“Inflation in India has been reduced from a whopping 11 per cent in 2014 to a mere 4 per cent in 2017. Railways have been making a great progress too, with super trains like Mahanama, Gatiman, Tejas and Humsafar running on the tracks. Zero scam administration is a bumper bonus. If this is not what the vikaas politicos are seeking, what else is?” adds Sanjay Dalmia.