Narendra Modi claims victory as India's new Prime minister
Eight months after the BJP(Bharatiya Janata Party) named him its prime ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi, 63, proved he was worth the opposition the party originally encountered over its decision. Mr Modi has delivered the BJP's best result ever, giving it more than the 272 seats it needs to form a government. This is the first parliamentary majority by a single party since 1984.
India has won, good days are coming, Mr Modi said at a rally in Vadodara in his home state of Gujarat, where thousands chanted his name. In a clear message to those who have tagged him a polarising leader, he said, "Even if we've clear majority to run the government, it's our responsibility to take everyone along in running India."
Through his campaign, Mr Modi had vowed to reboot the economy and deliver efficient governance -he said today "development for all" would be his mission.
This afternoon, after it became clear that he was the indisputable champion of the election, Mr Modi, who has been governing Gujarat for 13 years, drove to his mother's house to seek her blessings, promptly tweeting a selfie of their meeting.
He has been elected to parliament from Vadodara and the holy city of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, which he is expected to choose as his constituency.
Modi has promised to unblock stalled investments in power, road and rail projects to revive economic growth that has fallen to a decade low of below 5 percent.
Here are Narendra Modi's 10 To-Do list as PM of India:
1) GOODS AND SERVICES
TAX (GST):
India's most ambitious indirect tax reform would replace existing state and
federal levies with a uniform tax, boosting revenue collection while cutting
business transaction costs. GST, which could boost India's economy by up to two
percentage points, has so far faced resistance from various states, including
those governed by the BJP who fear a loss of their fiscal powers. The BJP aims
to address state concerns and implement GST in an "appropriate
timeframe". The Congress party would back the reform in opposition, a
senior party member told Reuters earlier this month. The reform needs broad
backing because it requires a change in the constitution.
2) RESERVE BANK OF
INDIA:
A Reserve Bank of India panel in January proposed key changes including
targeting consumer price inflation and making a committee responsible for
monetary policy, and not the RBI governor alone. This would require changes to
the RBI Act. The BJP top brass has not spoken widely on the issue, but it will
likely be a tough sell for RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan. He has the backing of
some global agencies like the International Monetary Fund. Modi's government
may also look to eventually separate the debt management function from the RBI,
on the gounds that debt management sometimes conflicts with the central bank's
monetary policy stance.
3) PRIVATISATION: The new government is
likely to focus on selling its holdings in state-run firms that could raise
much-needed revenues to trim India's ballooning fiscal deficit and boost
economic growth. The rising stock market helped New Delhi raise more than $3
billion via stake sales in the fiscal year to March 31 - but that was only a
third of the government's original target. The outgoing government announced
plans to raise 569 billion rupees ($9.62 billion) through asset sales in
2014/15. This could help achieve a lower fiscal deficit target of 4.1 percent
of GDP. These estimates may be revised by the next government.
4) SUBSIDIES: Modi's government
needs to examine how it subsidises basic commodities if it is to contain the
fiscal deficit and avoid a ratings downgrade. Subsidies cost an estimated 2.2
percent of India's GDP in 2013-14. The BJP in its manifesto said it will
seek greater fiscal discipline without compromising on the availability of
funds for development.
5) LABOUR: The BJP wants to
reform labour laws to boost job-intensive manufacturing and create as many as
10 million jobs a year for young Indians entering the workforce. Changing the
law would be politically tricky, though, and Modi may seek to encourage
competition between India's states to boost job creation.
6) DEFENCE: More foreign
investment in defence would help India reduce imports, modernise weapons
systems and speed up deliveries of hardware it needs for operations and
training. India, the world's biggest arms importer, now allows 26 percent
foreign ownership in defence, and proposals to exceed that limit are considered
only for state-of-the-art technology. The BJP has said it would allow some
greater foreign investment in defence industries.
7) INSURANCE: Attempts to raise the
cap on foreign investment in India's $45 billion insurance sector, to 49
percent from 26 percent, have met resistance from employees at state-controlled
insurers and their political backers. A BJP leader said in March the party had
held talks with Congress to break the deadlock.
8) BANKING: The next government
will need to help state-run lenders battling rising bad loans caused by the
slowing economy, rising interest rates and project delays. Stressed loans in
India - either bad and restructured - total $100 billion, or about 10 percent
of all loans. Fitch Ratings expects that ratio to reach 14 percent by March
2015. Rising bad loans threaten to choke the gradual recovery in Asia's third-largest
economy, according to the OECD. The interim budget in February set aside 112
billion rupees ($1.89 billion) to help the sector meet key capital ratios, but
analysts say more money is needed.
9) POWER: A BJP-led government
may implement the so-called Gujarat model of distributing electricity that has
been widely praised for delivering reliable 24-hour power supplies in the
state. Modi provided different power feeds to farmers, households, and
companies instead of a uniform feed in his home state.
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