Government is caught in its own shallow slogans: Kamal Nath, AICC General secretary

AICC general secretary Kamal Nath , who has handled key economic ministries such as Commerce & Industry, Urban Development & Housing, Road Transport & Highways, Environment & Forests, speaks to ET on the emerging economic situation and the performance of some pet projects of the Union government. Excerpts:

Did you foresee this kind of economic situation emerging this soon?
The government’s failure to deliver jobs has turned the mood bitter. The disposable per capital income has declined; our 60-65% agriculturedependent population is in distress; investment has become nil on green field projects. When people are feeling betrayed, politics is bound to reflect this mood.

Is the government being negligent or, the situation being beyond its control?
The tragedy is that this government doesn’t listen to anyone and, those such as industry, experts and the media who should be showing the mirror to the government, are all scared.The government is working on ‘being feared’ and has started believing its own shallow style and shallow slogans. This government is caught in its own tricks. The finance minister said the government has taken ‘decisive steps’, including ‘cleaning up’ of the system, unlike the ‘policy paralysis’ during UPA rule.

What the FM is not telling is how the UPA regime’s vision helped the economy withstand the 2008 global meltdown and its aftermath and, how the UPA government had also reinforced all fundamentals of our economy. NDA government has run the economy to the ground despite riding a global boom and by squandering away the advantage of slump in global oil prices.

Worse, they are punishing people by mindlessly hiking prices of petrol, diesel, LPG and even kerosene. The so-called ‘decisive steps’ — demonetisation and implementation of the flawed GST — are only causing miseries to people. Those who claim ‘cleaning up the system’ better meet the people for a reality check.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/60905283.cms