Acknowledging that much needs to be done in the banking sector, BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra has said that the government was working on the nitty-gritties.
“As far as the Indian banking system is concerned, a lot is still to be done and rest assured work is under progress. The government is monitoring the nitty-gritties,” he said.
Patra was in live webinar with Kailashnath Adhikari, MD, Governance Now, on Wednesday as part of the Visionary Talk series organised by the public policy and governance analysis platform.
Patra said the recent merger of a slew of public sector banks and the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) 2016 are some of the very important banking reforms and more reforms are being are brought to the fore gradually.
Speaking on prime minister Narendra Modi’s Atmanirbhar package and how it is going to help the MSME sector which has been badly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, the BJP leader said that the package is diligently dealing with the MSME sector. “Through the Governance Now webinar I would request all the participating audience [to] just be patient. We are moving in the right direction under the right leadership,” he said.
He said that with many manufacturing companies in the world looking to move out of China they are today coming to India which has now become the worlds’ green pasture and chosen destination. “We now need to facilitate this welcome change, particularly in the rural areas. The Rs 20 lakh crore Atmanirbhar package will prove to be a big impetus for infrastructure in rural and semi-urban areas and will, in turn, will bring in huge employment.”
Asked how India can ensure better health facilities to its people, Patra, who is also a general surgeon, acknowledged that India needs to increase its health budget. “Like the developed world, allocation of a good chunk of GDP to health infrastructure on the ground level only can improve health facilities in the country,” he said.
He hailed the Ayushman Bharat Yojana and said the scheme has insured 50 crore people across the country for free health treatment of up to Rs 5 lakh. He said that the number of medical seats and medical colleges, tertiary care centres like AIIMS and Jan Aushadhi Kendras have also been increased. Some of the most essential medicines are being made available at the village level through Jan Aushadhi Kendras. Costs of heart and knee transplants have come down by 90% and prices of diabetes, cancer, hypertension and essential medicines have been drastically cut down.
Asked if India’s “draconian” lockdown could have been implemented systematically, Patra said, “Initially you had to kill the 21-day cycle of pandemic and prepare for the resources because India is a resource-dearth country.
“When the country which never manufactured a single ventilator started manufacturing ventilators and became self-sufficient, when the country did not have a single Covid-19 testing laboratory, it is now doing 15 lakh tests daily, manufacturing 7-8 lakh N-95 masks per day and become self-sufficient and manufacturing and even exporting PPE kits now when it did not have any earlier… All this was done during the lockdown. It was well thought out. The lockdown was not planned by a single man but 11-12 experts groups consisting of medical, resources, manufacturing and others were part of the lockdown-and-unlock strategy. For that reason, despite the population density, India has the lowest mortality rate across the world," said Patra.
Prime minister Narendra Modi has linked the dream of a Viksit Bharat with US president Donald Trump’s slogan, ‘Make America Great Again’, or ‘MAGA’, saying that when these two democracies work together, i.e. ‘MAGA’ plus ‘Make India Great Again’ (‘
The government`s move to implement ‘One Nation, One Election’ (ONOE) has ignited widespread debate. On one hand, it offers tangible benefits, such as removing the possibility of a governance paralysis and reducing election costs. On the other hand, the opposition and sections of civil society s
On February 13, 2025, the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSGMBY) will mark its first anniversary, celebrating a year of empowering households with affordable solar energy and accelerating India’s transition to a sustainable future.
Launched by prime minister Narendra Modi on Febru
The world seems to be hurling towards World War III in all the possible scenarios: hot war, cold war, and proxy war. The battleground seems to have expanded beyond physical to digital or virtual/mixed reality with technology like drones. Moreover, the line between civilian and military targets seems to hav
The Union Budget 2025-26 outlines India`s vision for economic and social growth while also reflecting the country`s commitment to sustainable development. As India moves closer to the 2030 deadline for the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this budget presents a balanced approach
Visionary Talk: Amitabh Gupta, Pune Police Commissioner with Kailashnath Adhikari, MD, Governance Now