Once 'fragile', Indian economy now world's fastest-growing: PM
Mumbai, Jan 20 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the country had transformed from among the "fragile five" nations to the world's fastest-growing economy.
He was addressing the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) booth-level workers through video-conferencing and was speaking against the backdrop of the "#5yearchallenge" currently trending on social media platforms.
"Earlier, Indian governments used to remain in national and international headlines for scams. Nowadays, there is no discussion on scams, but on new schemes," Modi said, adding that the country had moved from scams to schemes in the last five years.
Five years ago, the world saw India as a nation from where news about scams, electricity shortage and financial crises emanated, the prime minister said.
This perspective, he added, had changed and the world now viewed the country with "vishwas" (belief and trust).
Touching on the topic of Maoist violence, Modi said the menace was once overpowering but now, had been contained and restricted to very few districts.
He added that the bravery of security forces and people's support over the last five years had ensured that the nation had won the battle against Maoist violence.
Five years ago, there used to be headlines that the country did not have enough toilets, causing embarrassment to women, Modi said.
Now, nine crore toilets had been constructed and sanitation coverage in the country had gone up from 38 per cent (when the National Democratic Alliance came to power in 2014) to 98 per cent, he added.
There was a time when 70 crore Indians had to go without electricity due to the failure of the northern (power) grid, he said, adding that today, several crore households had received electricity connection.
The prime minister said the country's economy, which had once faced the challenge of high inflation and low growth, was now witnessing a low inflation and high growth -- a transformation that had happened over the last four-and-a-half years.
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UP: Fake IAS officer marries woman, flees with Rs 15 lakh dowry
Gorakhpur (UP) (PTI): A newly married man fled with the Rs 15 lakh given to him as dowry by the bride's family, and it came to light later that he was an alleged serial scammer, police said on Sunday.
The accused, identified as Pritam Kumar Nishad from Etawah, allegedly posed as an IAS officer to deceive the woman into marrying him. He is currently absconding with his sister, and a case has been filed against him for cheating, dowry harassment, and forgery, officials said.
According to the police, the woman's family claimed that they spent nearly Rs 30 lakh for the wedding that was solemnised on March 11.
The match was arranged through a matrimonial group, where the accused introduced himself as an IAS officer, sharing purported interview clips, office visuals, and photographs with politicians to gain the family's trust.
Despite initially claiming he would marry without dowry, the accused allegedly demanded Rs 15 lakh shortly before the engagement. The bride's family paid Rs 10 lakh in cash during the engagement and the remaining Rs 5 lakh on the wedding day, the police said.
The fraud came to light on Saturday after the woman reached Etawah, and a wedding attendee informed the family that the accused was not a civil servant. When her relatives visited the address provided by him, they found her in a small rented room, while the accused and his sister had fled, the police added.
The woman has also alleged that the accused planned to take her to Goa and sell her, and accused him of inappropriate behaviour.
The police suspect that the accused may have been involved in multiple such marriages in the past. Based on a complaint lodged at the cantonment police station, an FIR was registered on Saturday evening.
Senior Superintendent of Police Dr Kaustubh said efforts are underway to arrest the accused.
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