Focussed activity is the hallmark of the Modi government

By Nalin S Kohli

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step“ says the Tao Te Ching. If there is no first step in the right direction, no matter how small, there will be neither journey nor destination.

Critics may seek to find fault, real or imagined, but none can counter India being visibly on the move since May 2014, when Narendra Modi took oath as prime minister. Positive change has become the dominant currency as critical course corrections have been undertaken.Firstly, the authority of the prime minister's office has been re-established. It is no longer a subservient appendage to the whims of a party leadership wielding totalitarian power devoid of accountability.Institutional lethargy, indecisiveness and paralysis have been broken through.

A welcome consequence is the government now functions as a cohesive single entity. It is no longer a coalition of ministries pressured by unchecked political manoeuvring to lord over departments as personal fiefs an approach that promoted crony capitalism. Undue benefit and favours that were routinely doled out to a select few at profuse cost to the national exchequer have been checked.

Scams have also been checked. A bill targeting black money and assets on foreign shores is a reality even as the Supreme Court monitored SIT is making progress against identified offenders. The prime minister has ensured policy decisions are free from corruption and personal motivation.The path to a society free of corruption begins with honest leadership honest in the person of the PM, and in his and his team's honest effort towards change.

At every level, focussed activity is the hallmark of the Modi government.Correcting the economy and expanding economic activity , controlling inflation, speedy decision making, working to provide a social security net to every Indian, financial inclusion to over 150 million citizens, are areas where much has been achieved.

120 million people are getting subsidies (for gas) directly into their accounts. Funding the unfunded is a mission, the creation of credit facilities for the 55 million self-employed is underway as are other pro-poor and pro-farmer schemes directly targeting rural and marginalised sections across the country. Under the Modi government, eliminating rather than alleviating poverty is the ultimate goal.

Between the auction of coal mines and the telecom spectrum, the central and state governments expect over Rs 3,00,000 crore. This is the beginning.More is underway .

Importantly , no longer is the government invisible, as it was in the last term ­ almost an apologetic entity at the time, rather than leading from the front.Under Modi, the government is visibly and constantly on the move.

While several major changes have been set into motion back home, the PM has visited 18 countries in 57 days, almost similar to Manmohan Singh's 14 countries in 42 days in the first year of UPA-II. Here, the similarity ends. Hectic schedules with back to back meetings and overnight travel are typical, to make the most of time, resource and opportunity. More has been achieved with less. The staff accompanying the prime minister has been halved, as has the media. Yet, more has been reported.

There is a shift in the tone of relationships that have been established. The dialogue is honest, direct and efficient.Yet at the same time, a new informality between leaders is noticeable as well. A recent selfie of the Indian PM with the Chinese premier had over 30 million hits.

The results are significant. Investment commitments aggregating tens of billion dollars are in the pipeline. In this first year, FDI inflows have shot up by 39% from $20.7 billion to $28.8 billion, in contrast to the 29% FDI inflow reduction that India suffered in 2009-10.

India is being hailed as the next big investment destination. Ten heads of state or government and 36 foreign ministers have visited India within this first year. As the world comes to India, India is looking to offer its traditional wisdom, amongst all other strengths and sharing, to the world as well. The support of 177 nations for declaring June 21 as International Yoga Day is the highest ever support for a resolution.

But beyond economics and culture, India has responded to grief. Wherever and whenever an immediate response is required, India has reached out. A thousand students were rescued from Ukraine in early June, 1,500 citizens from Iraq starting mid-June, over 3,000 from Libya thereafter. These were initial responses.

Whether for one (as in the case of a Christian priest released from Taliban captivity in Afghanistan) or for 6,500 stranded persons from war torn Yemen, the effort has been the same a testimony to the swiftness and scale of response operations. If in the past India routinely sought the help of others, today the reverse is happening. In Yemen alone, almost 2,000 citizens from 48 countries were rescued.The rescue and relief operation in earthquake ravaged Nepal was unprecedented in the swiftness and efficiency of response.

Yet naysayers continue to pick holes.Those who deny an effort towards acche din do so from an addictive, persistent derision. They forget, or are unwilling to accept, that progress is both a journey and a destination. It takes commitment and time. The journey has begun, perhaps not for those, though, who've enjoyed the benefits of unchecked power and privilege in the past. Theirs might actually be over.

The writer is national spokesperson of BJP