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K’taka should vote for stability and continuity of policies, says Sitharaman
The Union finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, has said that the Indian state of Karnataka is on a "good trajectory" of growth and requires "stability and continuity of policies" to ensure this continues. Karnataka is due to hold elections for its 224-member legislative assembly on 10 May, with results announced on 13 May. Sitharaman praised the development work of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which is seeking re-election, and criticised opposition parties for making costly poll promises.
Bengaluru: Underlining the development in various sectors during the Bharatiya Janata Party’s rule in Karnataka, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said the poll-bound state is on a “good trajectory” of growth and needs “stability and continuity of policies” to ensure that the developmental agenda does not derail.
Polling for the 224-member Karnataka legislative assembly will be held on May 10. The counting of votes will be held on May 13.
“Karnataka is going on a good trajectory of growth. It is definitely matching up with global standards on many of the infrastructure works… it is taking its leap forward. I honestly think that the state needs stability, continuity of policies and also, making sure that people who have failed the state repeatedly for whatever temptation should not be given an opportunity to lose this momentum,” Sitharaman said while speaking at the Thinkers Forum, an independent platform for intellectual activities, in Bengaluru.
The finance minister, who is also a Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, said the Union government has prioritised development in the state, referring to the financial help from the Centre. She added that it must be ensured that Karnataka is moving forwards and does not lose steam.
“These are critical times, (and) it is important for us to have stability,” she said, adding that the BJP government, unlike other regimes, ensures last-mile delivery of promises to the electorate.
While every government, not just in Karnataka, has had a dream and “somewhat” executed it, the Narendra Modi government ensures implementation, the Union minister said. “What I want to place emphasis on is that under PM Modi, execution is the typical difference. The last-mile delivery and what was promised happens during the tenure. We don’t give railway lines and say we have laid the foundation and again laid the foundation but after 50 years it still remains unconnected,” she said, taking potshots at rival parties.
The BJP, which is seeking to retain power in Karnataka, has made development the mainstay of its election campaign. The party claims credit for setting up industrial parks, expansion of roads and highways, giving impetus to farming and providing aid to farmers by way of an annual dole which is credited to their bank accounts.
Sitharaman further said it was the BJP government led by former Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa that first came up with an exclusive agriculture budget, which in time was emulated by other states. She also made a reference to the upcoming industrial parks, growth in the pharmaceutical sector, and the setting up for the country’s first toy manufacturing park, to buttress the BJP government’s claims of focusing on multi-sector development.
While the opposition parties, such as the Congress, have made poll promises of proving 200 free units of power, doles for unemployed youth under the Yuva Nidhi scheme and 10 kg of rice to low-income families, Sitharaman said people must question how freebies will be budgeted.
“The promises given by some will be a third of the state’s budget. Instead of freebies, based on entitlement, the state will have to give all kinds of provision for empowering people. We will have to be well within the budget,” she said.
In response to a question on whether the government intends to regulate influencers who tend to give advice on financial investment, the Union minister said while there is no proposal for doing so, the government is working on clamping down on illegal apps.
“Many of the financial apps are Ponzi… We are working with MeitY [ministry of electronics & information technology] and RBI [Reserve Bank of India] to clamp down on them like never before,” she said.
Urging people to show caution before investing, she said, “There are 3-4 people giving us objective advice, then at the same time there are 7 others out of 10 who are probably driven by some other considerations,” she said.
“Social influencers and financial influencers are all out there, but a strong sense of caution is required in each one of us to make sure we do double checking, counter checking, and don’t go as a flock into something and therefore protect our hard-earned money,” she added.
