Modi government Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has presented a white paper in the Lok Sabha on the economic mismanagement during the UPA coalition rule. The white paper said, ‘When we formed the government in 2014, the economy was in a fragile state, there was gross mismanagement and financial indiscipline, and corruption was rampant. It was a very critical situation. The responsibility of gradually improving the economy and bringing the governance system back on track was huge. At that time our government avoided bringing a white paper regarding the pathetic condition. That would have created a negative perception and would have shaken everyone’s confidence, including investors.
The condition of NPA in banks was bad.
The white paper said that the biggest economic mismanagement of the UPA government was in the form of banking crisis. When the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government took charge, the gross NPA ratio in public sector banks was 16.0 percent. And when he left office, it was 7.8 percent. In September 2013, this ratio had climbed to 12.3 per cent due to political interference by the UPA government in commercial loan decisions of public sector banks. The banking crisis in the year 2014 was quite big. Gross advances by public sector banks in March 2004 stood at only Rs 6.6 lakh crore. In March 2012 it was Rs 39.0 lakh crore. According to a Credit Suisse report published in March 2014, top-200 companies with interest coverage ratio less than one owed banks about Rs 8.6 lakh crore.
Took tough decisions for high GDP growth
The White Paper said that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government has successfully overcome the challenges inherited from the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in the last 10 years. Also, ‘tough decisions’ have been taken to bring India on the path of higher GDP growth. The 59-page ‘White Paper on Indian Economy’ states that when the Narendra Modi government took power in 2014, the economy was in a fragile state. “This was a critical situation,” the white paper said. The responsibility of improving the economy step by step and organizing the governance systems was huge.
The country has to be made a developed nation by 2047.
According to the White Paper, the UPA government failed miserably in streamlining economic activities. Instead, the UPA government created bottlenecks that held the economy back. It was also said in this document that in 2014, the NDA government had inherited a very weak economy. The white paper said that the Modi government understood the need to take tough decisions for broader economic betterment. According to this, “Unlike our previous government, our government invested in the foundation of the economy along with building a strong infrastructure.” The white paper said, “Looking at the work of the last ten years, we are humble and satisfied.” We can say with confidence that we have successfully overcome the challenges left by the previous government.” Describing the current period as a period of duty, the white paper said that miles still have to be covered and India has to be made a developed nation by 2047.
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