India stopped working in a routine, bureaucratic manner: PM Modi in Bangkok

The prime minister said it was the best time to be in India and that things such as foreign direct investment , ease of doing business, ease of living and productivity are rising and tax rates, red tapism, corruption and cronyism are declining.

India is undergoing transformative changes and has stopped working in a routine, bureaucratic manner, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told a group of influential business leaders in Bangkok on Sunday.

The prime minister also talked about his government’s economic initiatives to reform India’s tax regime and said the country is now starting face-less tax assessment to remove any scope for discretion or harassment.

Speaking at an event to mark the golden jubilee of the Aditya Birla Group’s presence in Thailand, PM Modi invited Thai business leaders to invest in India.

Lauding that India is one of the most people-friendly tax regimes, PM Modi said, “In today’s India, the contribution of the hard-working taxpayer is cherished. One area where we have done significant work is taxation. We are committed to further improving it even more.”

The prime minister said it was the best time to be in India and that things such as foreign direct investment, ease of doing business, ease of living and productivity are rising and tax rates, red-tapism, corruption and cronyism are declining. Stating that India is one of the world’s most attractive economies for investment, he further said that India received 286 billion US dollar FDI in the last five years, which is almost half of the total FDI in the country in the last 20 years.

Referring to India’s dream of becoming a five trillion dollar economy, the prime minister said, “When my government took over in 2014, India’s GDP was about 2 trillion dollars. In 65 years, 2 trillion. But in just 5 years, we increased it to nearly 3 trillion dollars.”

PM Modi arrived in Thailand on Saturday to attend the 16th ASEAN-India summit, the 14th East Asia Summit and third RCEP summit and related events.

“India has seen many success stories in the last five years in various sectors. The reason for this is not only the Governments. India has stopped working in a routine, bureaucratic manner,” PM Modi said.

Referring to the direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme, Modi said it has ended the culture of middlemen and inefficiency.

“You would be shocked to know that for years, money was spent on the poor which did not really reach the poor. Our Government ended this culture thanks to DBT. DBT stands for direct benefit transfer. DBT has ended the culture of middlemen and inefficiency,” he said.

The prime minister projected India as one of the very few attractive investment destinations globally and called upon the Thai business leaders to be part of the India growth story.

“For investment and easy business, come to India. To innovate and starting up, come to India. To experience some of the best tourist sites and warm hospitality of people, come to India. India awaits you with open arms,” he said.

“When India prospers, the world prospers. Our vision for India’s development is such that it also leads to a better planet,” Modi said.
In his over 20-minute speech, Modi also talked about India’s skilled human resources. “If there is one thing I am specially proud of, it is India’s talented and skilled human capital. No wonder India is among the world’s largest start-up eco-systems.”

The prime minister also briefly touched upon India’s deep-rooted engagement with Southeast Asian nations.

“In the spirit of our Act East Policy, we are paying special attention to enhance connectivity with this region. Direct connectivity between ports on Thailand’s west coast and ports on India’s east coast will enhance our economic partnership,” he added.

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