Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated iconic week celebrations of the Ministry of Finance today. This week is being celebrated as part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ (AKAM) from 6th to 11th June 2022. He also launched the National Portal for Credit Linked Government schemes – Jan Samarth Portal. He also inaugurated a Digital Exhibition which traces the journey of the two Ministries over the past eight years. The Prime Minister also released a special series of ₹1, ₹2, ₹5, ₹10 and ₹20 coins. These special series of coins will have the theme of the logo of AKAM and will also be easily identifiable to visually impaired persons.
Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister said whoever took part in the long struggle for independence, added a different dimension to this movement, and augmented its energy. Some adopted the path of satyagraha, some chose the path of weapons, some faith and spirituality, and some intellectually helped to keep the flame of freedom burning bright, today is the day when we acknowledge all of them.
Today when we are celebrating 75 years of independence, the Prime Minister stressed, it is the duty of every countryman to make a special contribution to the development of the nation at their own level. This is a moment to infuse the dreams of our freedom fighters with new energy and dedicate ourselves to new pledges, he said.
The Prime Minister noted that India has also worked on different dimensions in the last eight years. The public participation that increased in the country during this period has given impetus to the development of the country and empowered the poorest of the country’s citizens. The Prime Minister remarked that Swachh Bharat Abhiyan gave an opportunity to the poor to live with dignity. Facilities like pucca houses, electricity, gas, water and free treatment increased the dignity of the poor and improved facilities. The scheme of free rations during the Corona period freed more than 80 crore countrymen from the fear of hunger. “We are witnessing a new confidence among the citizens to come out of the mentality of deprivation and dream big”, he said.
The Prime Minister said the country has borne the brunt of government-centric governance in the past. But today 21st century India is moving ahead with the approach of people-centric governance. He said earlier it was the responsibility of the people to go to the government for availing benefit of the schemes. Now emphasis is on taking governance to people and free them from the rigamarole of doing rounds of different ministries and websites. Launch of National Portal for Credit Linked Government schemes – Jan Samarth Portal is a major step in this direction. This portal will improve the lives of students, farmers, businessmen, MSME entrepreneurs and will help them in realizing their dreams, he added.
The Prime Minister said that any reform, if its objectives and goals are clear and there is seriousness in its implementation then good results are assured. The Prime Minister emphasized that the youth of our country have been kept at the heart of the reforms the country has undertaken in the last eight years. This will help them to show their potential. “Our youth can easily open the company they want, they can start their enterprises easily, and they can run them easily. Therefore by reducing more than 30 thousand compliances, abolishing more than 1500 laws, and decriminalizing several provisions of the Companies Act, we have ensured that Indian companies not only move ahead but also achieve new heights”, he added.
The Prime Minister said that the in reforms Government is focused on simplification. GST has now replaced the web of many taxes at the centre and the state. The country is also seeing the result of this simplification. Now it has become normal for GST collection to cross one lakh crore rupees every month, he said. He said that the GeM portal has brought in new ease for procurement in government and made selling to the government very easy. Purchase figure for the portal has crossed 1 lakh crore, the Prime Minister informed. He also talked of portals that are bringing ease of doing business. He talked about Invest India Portal for information regarding investment opportunities, Single window clearance portal for business formalities. ‘In this series this Jan Samarth Portal is going to help the nation’s youth and startup ecosystem’ the Prime Minister pointed out.
“Today when we move with the power of reform, simplification and ease, we attain a new level of convenience … We have shown in the last 8 years that if India collectively decides to do something then India becomes a new hope for the world. Today the world is looking at us not just as a big consumer market but looking at us with hope and confidence as a capable, game changing, creative, innovative ecosystem” , the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister said a large part of the world expects India to solve problems. This is possible because in the last 8 years we have trusted the wisdom of the common Indian. “We encouraged the public as intelligent participants in Growth. We have always found that whatever technology is deployed for good governance is not only adopted by people but also appreciated by them”, the Prime Minister said referring to the achievement of UPI.
