5 Quotes that Outline Modi's Worldview

“Destiny has favoured me to serve this great nation. Mahatma Gandhi said that we should not rest until we “wipe every tear from every eye”. Elimination of poverty is fundamental to me. This is at the core of my understanding of cohesive growth. To translate this vision into the reality of a New Age India, we must be clear about our economic goals and objectives.

“Reforms are not an end in itself. Reforms must have a concrete objective. The objective must be to improve the welfare of the people. Approaches may be many. But the goal is one.“

“At the same time, we need to take care of the poor, deprived and left behind sections of society.

I believe that subsidies are needed for them. What we need is a well targeted system of subsidy delivery. We need to cut subsidy leakages, not subsidies themselves.

“I have often called for Minimum Government Maximum Governance. This is not a slogan. This is an important principle to transform India.

Government systems suffer from two weaknesses. They are complex. And they are slow.

In life, people go on a चारधामयात्रा  (chaar dham yatra) to get मोक्ष  (moksha). In government, a file has to go to छत्तीसधाम (chattees dham), and yet not get मोक्ष (moksha)!

What is Maximum Governance, Minimum Government? It means government has no business to be in business. There are many parts of the economy where the private sector will do better and deliver better. In 20 years of liberalisation, we have not changed a command and control mindset. We think it is okay for government to meddle in the working of firms. This must change. But this is not a call for anarchy.

First, we need to focus government upon the things that are required of the State. Second, we need to achieve competence in government so that the State delivers on the things it sets out to do.”

“..we require competent, efficient and non-corrupt arms of government. We in government, must constantly ask the question: How much money am I spending, and what outcomes am I getting in return? For this, government agencies have to be improved to become competent. This requires rewriting some laws. Laws are the DNA of government. They must evolve with time.”

“Improvement in governance is a continuous process. We are making changes wherever acts, rules and procedures are not in tune with needs. We are cutting down on multiple clearances that choke investment. Our complex tax system is crying for reform, which we have initiated. I believe in speed. I will push through change at a fast pace. You will appreciate this in times to come.”

“Why do we need the State? There are 5 main components:

“We have always debated about social unity, national unity and so on. But we have never debated about financial unity. About bringing everyone into the financial system. This is one cause which both capitalists and socialists agree on. What, my friends, can be a bigger reform?”

“Economic development cannot take a nation forward on its own.

Development has many dimensions. While on one hand we need higher incomes, we also need a society which is cohesive. Which balances the stress and strain of a modern economy.

History is witness to the rise and fall of nations. Even now, many countries have become rich in an economic sense, but are poor in a social sense. Their family systems, value systems, social networks and other elements which hold a society together have broken.

Further, development seems to have become the agenda only of government. It is seen as a scheme. That should not be the case.

Development should be everyone’s agenda. It should be a people’s movement.”