Prime Minister Narendra Modi Monday made a strong pitch for India as an investment destination and said this is “the best time” to invest in the country.
Addressing the World Economic Forum’s online Davos Agenda 2022 summit, Modi said India is committed to be a reliable partner in the global supply chain, and is saving countless lives by sending medicines and Covid vaccines to several countries.
He highlighted India’s “multi-lingual” and “multi-cultural environment”, which he said was a source of “great power not only of India but of the whole world”.
Welcoming the world to invest in India, Modi said: “Today, India has the third largest number of unicorns in the world. More than 10,000 start-ups have been registered in the last six months. India is promoting Ease of Doing Business, minimising government intervention. India has made it the most competitive in the world by simplifying, reducing its corporate tax rates. In the last year alone, we have reduced more than 25,000 compliances. The spirit of entrepreneurship, which has the capacity to adopt new technology in Indians, can give new energy to each of our global partners. That’s why this is the best time to invest in India.”
At the same time, the Prime Minister stressed that collective and synchronised action is needed to deal with issues such as climate change, inflation and supply chain disruption. He underlined the need for concerted action against cryptocurrency and a discussion on the ability of multilateral agencies to tackle emerging challenges.
“The challenges we have been facing are also increasing. To counter these, there is a need for collective and synchronised action by every country, every global agency. These supply chain disruptions, inflation and climate change are examples of these. Another example is cryptocurrency. The kind of technology that is associated with it, the decisions taken by a single country will be insufficient to deal with its challenges. We have to have a similar mindset,” he said.
In this context, Modi called for a discussion on the role of multilateral agencies in tackling such emerging issues.
“But looking at the global scenario today, the question is whether multilateral organisations are ready to deal with the new world order and new challenges, is that potential left? When these institutions were formed, the situation was different. Today, the circumstances are different. Therefore, it is the responsibility of every democratic country to emphasise reforms in these institutions so that they can be enabled to meet the challenges of the present and future,” he said.
Referring to India, the Prime Minister said policy-making is focussed on needs for the next 25 years for a “clean and green” as well as “sustainable and reliable” growth.
Speaking at length on Covid and India’s role in tackling the pandemic, he said the country is “coping with another wave of corona with caution and vigilance”.
“At the same time, India is also moving ahead in the economic field with many promising results. India is also excited to be marking 75 years of its independence and India is also full of confidence to give 160 crore corona vaccine doses in just one year,” he said.
“A strong democracy like India has given the whole world a beautiful gift, a bouquet of hope. In this bouquet, we Indians have an unwavering trust in democracy; in this bouquet, the technology that will empower the 21st century is there; in this bouquet, there is the temperament of us Indians, the talent of us Indians. The multi-lingual, multi-cultural environment in which we Indians live is a great power not only of India but of the whole world. This strength teaches not only to think for oneself in times of crisis, but also to work in the interest of humanity,” Modi said.
“In this time of corona, we have seen how India, following the vision of ‘One Earth, One Health’, is saving crores of lives by giving necessary medicines, vaccines to many countries. Today, India is the world’s third largest pharma producer, pharmacy to the world. Today, India is one of those countries in the world where health professionals, where doctors are winning the trust of everyone with their sensitivity and expertise,” he said.
Last year, too, while addressing the Davos Dialogue via video conferencing in January, Modi had spoken at length about the pandemic, saying that India was successful in tackling the pandemic and saved millions of lives despite dire predictions. Two months later, the country faced a devastating second wave.
