The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, addressed a Post Budget Webinar on the subject of ‘Infrastructure and Investment: Improving logistic efficiency with PM Gatishakti National Master Plan’. It is the eighth of a series of 12 post-budget webinars organized by the government to seek ideas and suggestions for effectively implementing the initiatives announced in the Union Budget 2023.
Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister expressed happiness that hundreds of stakeholders are taking part in today’s webinar along with more than 700 CEOs and MDs by recognising its importance. The Prime Minister expressed confidence that all the sector experts and various stakeholders will make this webinar successful and effective.
The Prime Minister said that this year’s Budget will give new energy to infrastructure. The Prime Minister noted the praise for the Budget and its strategic decisions by the experts and major media houses. He informed that India’s Capex has increased 5 times compared to 2013-14 and the government is moving with a target of investing 110 lakh crore rupees under the National Infrastructure Pipeline. “This is a time of new responsibilities, new possibilities and bold decisions for every stakeholder”. The Prime Minister emphasized.
“Infrastructure has a significant role to play in the sustainable development of any country along with development while keeping the needs of the future in mind”, the Prime Minister remarked. He underlined that those who have knowledge of history related to infrastructure are well-versed with this fact. He cited the construction of Uttarapath by Chandragupta Maurya which was carried forward by Ashoka and later upgraded by Sher Shah Suri. He informed that it was the Britishers who turned it into G T Road. “The importance of highways has been acknowledged for centuries in India”, the Prime Minister said. Referring to riverfronts and waterways, the Prime Minister gave the example of the Ghats of Banaras which were directly connected to Kolkata via waterways. The Prime Minister also gave the example of the still operational, 2 thousand-year-old Kallanai dam of Tamil Nadu.
