After cabinet reshuffle Modi govt shifts gears, focus back on re-booting the economy

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his team are shifting gears as the number of Covid 19 cases drop and the pace of vaccination picks up.</p>
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The immediate focus now will be to put the economy back on track. With the massive cabinet reshuffle, the Prime Minister is hoping to reboot the economic reform process pertaining to labour, railways, banking, disinvestment and ease of doing business among others to ensure that businesses can operate without hurdles while investments pour in.</p>
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“The government is pro-business and the effort is now to create an environment conducive especially in the post Covid phase for companies – both domestic and foreign — to operate in India,” Gopal Krishna Agarwal, BJP’s spokesperson on economic affairs told India Narrative.</p>
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“The thrust is on economic revival and reforms,” Agarwal said, adding that the government will not deviate from its “good economics is good politics” mantra.</p>
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The economic ministries including railways, labour, coal, heavy industries and public enterprises, micro, small and medium enterprises, tourism, power among others will be Modi’s new thrust as India aims to become more a dominant player in the world amid the rapid geopolitical shift.</p>
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Modi will depend a lot more on the new ministers to carry out the reform measures at the earliest, other analysts said. Besides, the reform measures are critical to attract foreign investments.</p>
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Modi, had earlier, highlighted the importance of the private sector in the country’s growth story and said that the government would only play the role of a facilitator.</p>
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Agarwal also said that “enough capital” will have to be spent to carry out the reform process.</p>
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However, going ahead, the newly appointed health minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who will play a critical role in the vaccination drive, will be watched.</p>
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Bidisha Ganguly, chief economist of the Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII) told India Narrative that the thrust of the economy will pay off only if a possible third wave of Covid 19 is averted.</p>
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“We are not completely out of the woods with the number of active cases showing an increase. We have to avoid a third wave to ensure that the economy picks up steam and for this, the vaccination drive has to be pushed,” Ganguly said.</p>
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She added that the co-operation of the state government will be crucial in creating the right environment for reforms.</p>
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“Finally the states have to be in sync with the Centre’s moves,” she said, adding that if states such as Haryana — it announced that 75 per cent jobs in the private sector will be reserved for people with domicile certificates — could dent the investment climate.</p>