India’s present growth rate for decade or two reasonably certain: Arun Jaitley at HTLS 2018

Union minister Arun Jaitley was speaking at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit 2018 in New Delhi on Saturday.

India will maintain high economic growth for the next two decades and it will do better than China, said finance minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday.

Union minister Arun Jaitley speaks at the 16th Hindustan Times Leadership Summit 2018 in New Delhi on Saturday. (Burhaan Kinu/HT Photo)

“Brick by brick poor people are being pulled out of their substandard lives,” said Jaitley at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit in Delhi. The Narendra Modi government’s programmes are ensuring healthcare, food and housing for the poor, he said.

Jaitley said high oil prices and the Indian rupee weakening against the US dollar were related to global reasons and they were a temporary phenomena. “There are huge avenues for growth for Indian economy in the next 10-20 years,” said Jaitley. “I don’t think the sentiment with regard to Indian economy is negative.”

Jaitley accused the previous United Progressive Alliance government of doling out loans irresponsibly and mismanaging the economy. “On economy, nothing was worse than 2013,” he said.