Today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a good case for the privatization of public sector units that he said saddled the taxpayer and emphasized that “no business to be in business”. He also stressed that to help people, he was working in the direction of “monetize or modernize”
The PM said the agenda of the center was to either monetize or modernize state-run units. He added that the 2021 budget offered a simple roadmap to bring India to a strong growth path.
Prime minister Modi was addressing a Webinar on privatization by the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management. He stated, “When a government engages in business, it leads to losses. The government is bound by rules and the lack of courage to take bold commercial decisions. It is the government’s duty to support enterprises and businesses. But it is not essential that it should own and run enterprises”.
“Asset monetization and privatization decisions will help empower Indian citizens,” he said.
“The government has many underutilized and unutilized assets and 100 such assets would be monetized to raise ₹ 2.5 lakh crore. The amount would be used for funding development projects”. Modi added.
“Fiscal support to sick PSUs puts a burden on the economy and public sector units should not be run just because of legacy”. the Prime Minister said.
More Words By PM Modi:
He continued that many PSUs are loss-making and are backed by cash from taxpayers. The proposal of PM Modi comes months after the government suggested that it would step out of non-strategic sectors and established 18 strategic sectors, including insurance, banking, fertilizer, steel, petroleum, and defense equipment. Here, only a small involvement would be retained.
Shout-out of PM Modi in parliament to the private sector received support from businessmen such as Anand Mahindra and Sajjan Jindal in the recent Budget session.
“If the country needs the public sector, the role of the private sector is also as important…If India is of any use to humanity today, our private sector has had a big role in it. Wealth creators are also important for the nation”. He added.
The Prime Minister further said, “India is proud of the role of the private sector in national progress and in enhancing India’s prestige globally”.
Anand Mahindra, Chairman of the Mahindra Group, said, “Welcome words of encouragement at a fragile time for private enterprise due to the pandemic. Now we have to live up to the expectations…both in performance & governance”.
