AMN / BANGKOK
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has invited global businessmen to invest in India saying India has improved its ranking in the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business. He said India is now pursuing the dream of becoming a five-trillion dollar economy by 2024. Mr. Modi said India’s GDP was about 2-trillion dollars when his government took over in 2014, but in just 5 years, it has increased to nearly 3 trillion dollars.
Stressing on innovations and start-ups, he said the businesses would be welcomed with open arms in the country. He was speaking at the 50-year celebrations of the Aditya Birla group in Bangkok today.
The Prime Minister said his government has done significant work in taxation. In today’s India, the contribution of hard-working taxpayers is cherished. Mr Modi said India is one of the most people-friendly tax regimes and is committed to further improving it. He said his government has ended the middleman culture and inefficiency through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system.
The Prime Minister said India is giving special emphasis to enhancing connectivity with Thailand and other ASEAN countries under its Act East Policy.
He hoped that direct connectivity between ports on Thailand’s West coast and India’s East coast would increase economic partnership. He said his government’s initiatives such as Swacch Bharat Mission and Smart City programme offer good opportunities for enhancing the partnership.
Speaking at the event, Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group, Kumar Mangalam Birla, said Prime Minister Modi has improved India’s stature in the world. He said Mr. Modi initiated several welfare schemes. Mr Birla said India is the third-largest country in the world after the US and China in the start-up ecosystem.