Every credible voice in the world is optimistic about India’s economic growth, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while inaugurating the Uttar Pradesh Global Investors Summit-2023 in Lucknow on Friday.
“Every credible voice in the world is optimistic about the ascending course of India’s economy that has not only shown resilience but also rapid recovery in the face of the pandemic,” Modi said. “India is carrying out reforms not out of compulsion, but out of conviction,” he added.
Modi also referred to large allocations for infrastructure and opportunities for investors in health, education and social infrastructure sectors in the Union budget.
The Prime Minister used the occasion to welcome the guests as a member of Parliament (MP) elected from Uttar Pradesh and lauded the state’s initiatives for development, saying it has become a source of hope and inspiration.
Modi said UP, from being a ‘Bimaru’ state, is now giving leadership to India’s growth. (Bimaru is an acronym formed from first letter of the states of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh and indicated the poor economic conditions there.)
“Uttar Pradesh was known as a Bimaru state. There used to be scams of thousands of crores in UP. Everybody had lost hope. But in five to six years, Uttar Pradesh has established a new identity,” the PM said.
He said there has been a change in the government’s thinking in UP for ensuring ease of doing business. “Today UP has become a source of hope and inspiration,” he added.
“Uttar Pradesh has got benefits of the work done in the country on development of social, physical ad digital infrastructure,” Modi said.
“Don’t forget, you are in a state with a population with 25 crore. Uttar Pradesh has more potential than many other countries,” he added.
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath said the summit has led to signing of 18,645 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) involving investment proposals of about ₹32.92 lakh crore, and added that it will create 92.50 lakh job opportunities in the state.
He said UP will play the role of the growth engine of the country imbibing Prime Minister’s vision of “reform, perform, transform”.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh said any investment was considered a waste in UP in the past but the state has now become the best destination for investment. He said the state had turned red tape into a red carpet for investors.
Aditya Birla Group chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla, Reliance Group chairman Mukesh Ambani, Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran, Dixon Technologies chairman Sunil Vachani, and Zurich Airport Asia chairman Daniel Bircher were also present at the summit and spoke about their future plans of investment in Uttar Pradesh.
