Renowned economist and former member of Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council Surjit Bhalla has recently expressed deep concern over the state of India’s economy. He said that poverty is not the biggest problem for India at present, but the investment situation in the country is very bad.
Bhalla, former executive director of the International Monetary Fund and former member of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council, said this in an interview to an English news channel. He said that poverty has been brought under control in the country due to the free ration and food aid provided by the government. But at the same time, he opposed the scheme to provide free food to 800 million people and advised the government to cut aid.
According to Bhalla, the real problem in India now is lack of economic growth and investment. He clarified that there has been no private investment in the country and foreign direct investment or FDI has become completely negative. India’s FDI rules are very different and surprising from other countries in the world. As a result not only foreign investors but even Indians have lost interest in investing money in their country. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has also shown a large deficit in the capital account over the past three years due to continuous withdrawal of funds from the country by foreign investors.
Economist warned of India’s slow pace of development and said the government should now change its slogan to ‘Unnat Bharat’ Also, India’s claim of being the world’s fastest growing economy is no longer true. On Social Media X, he said that foreign investment has declined since 2017 due to the cancellation of bilateral investment agreements and stricter regulations. As per the current rules, any foreign investment dispute will be heard only in Indian courts, which has disappointed investors. Because foreign investment not only brings money, but also brings new technologies and innovations to the country which are now limited.
Towards the end of the interview, Surjeet Bhalla also condemned the attitude of the Modi government. He said that the present government is feeling comfortable by winning one election after another very easily. With nothing to worry about winning the elections, the government does not feel any urgent need to improve the economic condition of the country or accelerate development. He said that the government’s action is very worrying for the future economy of the country. He warned that if the pace of development slows down, poverty will again become a serious problem for the country.
