"India is in a rare position of being optimistic and positive about its future growth," Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. She said that in nine years, India's economy "rose and saw economic development due to the policies of our government despite COVID. Today, we are the fastest growing economy of the world."

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"In 2013, Morgan Stanley had included India in the list of five fragile economies of the world. India was declared a fragile economy. Today, the same Morgan Stanley upgraded India and gave it a higher rating," Sitharaman said.

Sitharaman hailed India's global rank in various parameters, while emphasising the country's improvement in the maternal mortality rate. She said that today, India ranks 97th in the global Maternal Mortality Rate, up from 167th rank in 2013.

On violence against women

The finance minister agreed that women suffering anywhere — in Manipur, Delhi, Rajasthan — will have to be taken seriously. She went on to remind the Lok Sabha of one incident which happened on March 25, 1989 in the Tamil Nadu Assembly.

Recalling the incident, Sitharaman said, "...Jayalalithaa's saree was pulled in Tamil Nadu in the Assembly. She was the LoP (Leader of the Opposition). The DMK members who were seated there, heckled her and laughed at her...Has DMK forgotten Jayalalithaa? You pulled her saree, you demeaned her. That day Jayalalithaa took an oath that she will never come to the House unless she becomes the CM. Two years later, she returned as the CM of Tamil Nadu..."

On banking sector

The finance minister highlighted that the State Bank of India (SBI) has become the most profitable company in quarter one of the Financial Year 2023-24 and earned over Rs 18,000 crore as profit.

On the position of the banking sector in India, Sitharaman said the government realised that the banking sector needs to be healthy and therefore it took a lot of measures. "Banks are able to work without political interference, they are working with professional integrity. 'Banks mein failaya hua aapka raita hum saaf kar rahe hai' (we cleaned the mess you created)," she said.

On tomato price rise

She also listed out steps being taken by the government to contain tomato price rise while speaking in Lok Sabha.

"As on date, the NCCF has distributed 8,84,612 kgs of tomatoes in Rajasthan, Delhi-NCR and Uttar Pradesh and this will continue in the coming days and this will be increased also...Already the prices of tomatoes in the wholesale mandis in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka have started coming down below Rs 100 and we expect this to help us," she said.

No Confidence Motion | FM says, "As on date, NCCF has distributed 8,84,612 kgs of tomatoes in Rajasthan, Delhi-NCR and Uttar Pradesh & this will continue in the coming days and this will be increased also...Already the prices of tomatoes in the wholesale mandis in Andhra Pradesh… pic.twitter.com/hYhRQUOqSb

— ANI (@ANI) August 10, 2023

On UPA governments

Attacking the previous UPA governments, the finance minister said, "Today, we are living in the age of high growth and low inflation. However, during the UPA regime, it was low growth and high inflation.

She added that the transformation comes through actual delivery, and not through spoken words. "You (Opposition) show dreams to people. We make their dreams a reality. We believe in empowering all and appeasement of none," Nirmala Sitharaman said.

First Published:Aug 10, 2023 12:33 PM IST