Mumbai, May 15 (IANS). Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, while talking to news agency IANS on Friday, said many important things regarding the global situation, fuel prices, aviation sector and the security of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Speaking to IANS, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said that due to the circumstances arising in the Middle East, several policy changes are under discussion and a final decision on these can be taken soon. He said that due to increasing tension in West Asia, there has been a huge increase in the prices of petrol and diesel in many countries of the world, but its impact in India has been relatively less.
The Union Minister said, “Due to the sensitive leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Central Government has itself borne the additional economic burden.” He said that the government reduced the excise duty by Rs 10 so that the impact of inflation on the common people is reduced.
Goyal said that in the fertilizer sector also, the government has spent an additional amount of about Rs 3,000 crore to provide relief to the farmers, but there was no increase in the prices of fertilizers for the farmers. He said that due to this the Central Government has to give subsidy worth lakhs and crores of rupees.
Regarding the decision to reduce VAT on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), Piyush Goyal said that this step will prove to be a big relief for the civil aviation sector and tourism industry. The government has decided to reduce VAT on ATF from 18 percent to 7 percent.
He said that the civil aviation sector is under a lot of pressure at present and this decision will strengthen the sector in the long run. Besides this, the tourism industry will also get a boost. Commenting on the opposition ruled states, Goyal said that now very few states are left and they too should learn from this decision.
On the question asked about the security of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Union Minister said that this is not the demand of the opposition, but the Prime Minister himself has cut his security arrangements.
He said, “We are concerned about the security of the Prime Minister. I would request that his security should not be reduced. Apart from being the Prime Minister of the country, he is also a big world leader.”
Goyal said that all the ministers and departments of the government are working together to reduce unnecessary expenses and especially to reduce the consumption of fuels like petrol and diesel. Besides, the public is also being appealed to save fuel and use resources responsibly.
–IANS
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