New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday chaired a marathon meeting of the Council of Ministers, where the focus was on deregulation, economic
reforms and reducing government interference in people’s daily lives. The meeting, which lasted over four hours, reviewed recommendations made by a high-level committee led by Rajiv Gauba as well as reform measures proposed by different ministries. According to people present at the meeting, PM Modi stressed that the government should not unnecessarily interfere in citizens’ lives and should instead step in to help when needed. He asked ministers and senior officials to focus on reforms that improve ease of living and reduce the compliance burden on people and businesses. Gauba is leading panels tasked with preparing reform roadmaps for India’s goal of becoming a developed nation by 2047 under the “Viksit Bharat” vision. While several recommendations have already been implemented, more reform measures are expected after Thursday’s discussions, which took place just hours after PM Modi returned from his five-nation foreign tour. “PM said Viksit Bharat by 2047 isn’t just a slogan, but a desire. The focus of the meeting was on reforms, reforms and reforms to push economic growth, ease of living and ease of doing business. He said public good should be the top priority of reforms and governance,” a person who attended the meeting told TOI.
Economy, Energy Shock And Reform Push
The meeting also took place against the backdrop of the ongoing West Asia crisis, which has increased pressure on global energy supplies and pushed up fuel prices.
Officials believe the rising energy costs and weakening rupee could increase inflationary pressure in the coming weeks.
The government is therefore looking at both short-term supply measures and long-term economic reforms to strengthen growth, attract foreign investment and boost domestic manufacturing under the self-reliance push.
According to a person present at the meeting held at Seva Teerth, PM Modi also suggested encouraging biogas production as several households continue to face issues related to cooking gas cylinder supplies.
The matter had reportedly also come up during a recent meeting of the informal Group of Ministers headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
PM Asks Ministries To Speed Up Work
Apart from Gauba, nine ministries and departments - including agriculture, environment, commerce, corporate affairs, health, power, road transport and DPIIT - gave presentations on reforms undertaken by them.
T V Somanathan also made a presentation on reforms carried out by other ministries.
PM Modi instructed ministers and bureaucrats to speed up pending projects, avoid unnecessary controversies and ensure quicker processing of files to reduce delays in decision-making.
Sources said the PM also referred to departments that had improved file-clearance speed as examples for others to follow.
“PM said Viksit Bharat by 2047 isn’t just a slogan, but a desire. The focus of the meeting was on reforms, reforms and reforms to push economic growth, ease of living and ease of doing business. He said public good should be the top priority of reforms and governance,” the attendee added.
