NaMo INDIA'S MOST PROGRESSIVE LEADER EVER

Modiji invited me to the Kutch festival through Tourism EME and we were asked to stay in the VIP enclosure. When we reached Kutch, we were taken aback to see the developments in the handicrafts industry. It was just remarkable. We reached a village and it was a Muslim dominated area. I got a chance to interact with the people there and I asked them “So what do you think about Modiji?” Their response surprised me though I was sure that they would say something very positive about our PM.

The first reaction to my question was “Modiji is like God to us!” When I asked them to tell me in detail about their experiences, they recalled the time when Kutch was hit by the earthquake. “When the earthquake struck, all the pundits, maulvis - they deserted us. We had no food and we were dying of starvation. Modiji arrived at the scene himself and the idea of the Kutch Festival was implemented. This was Modiji’s initiative as he wanted to develop the area. Also, he came up with the idea of interest free loans and encouraged the establishment of factories. He assured people of Income Tax rebates. Not just this, he got something from Israel that helped in the growth of grass in our region when it rained and we were saved from imminent death.” They further shared with me that Modiji did not indulge in any publicity and simply got on war-footing to implement relief measures in order to save our lives. He stayed with us and supervised all the relief activities at the grassroots level and from very close quarters.

“Modiji is a leader whose heart pains to witness the agony of the poor and the suffering. His love for people is beyond the distinctions of caste and religion. Be it Hindu or Muslim or Christian, he looks after everyone and makes sure that the best is done for them, especially in times of crisis.”

Another big thing that Modiji did for our people was the introduction of eVisa. For the last 20 years, we had been proposing and recommending the introduction of this facility to the Congress Government. But that did not happen. We then put forward our demand to the BJP and it was Mr Arun Jaitley who came forward to discuss this with us. We knew each other well, in fact we knew each other from college. So while he was preparing the budget, he invited me home and asked me “Tell me what can I do for tourism?”

I immediately suggested service tax and e-visa and told him that I had already appealed for the same to Modiji. He asked me what I thought were the advantages of eVisa. I told him that with the induction of eVisa, the number of tourists would increase drastically, at least by a million. To this, I remember, he responded that this was Home Ministry’s job. But I drove my point home and told him that unless he allotted the necessary budget for this, how would the Home Ministry implement it? Then he agreed to my proposal and said that he would speak with PM Modi and the Home Minister regarding this. Well, within a week’s time, I got this confirmation from him that he would be announcing eVisa in the upcoming budget.

Now if you look at it carefully, you will realize that the amount of corruption that was considered to be an integral part of the process has been curtailed to a great extent. There used to be brokers waiting to rob people of their money and get them India Visa. Today a full stop has been put to all of this. When I heard PM Modi’s speech from the Lal Quila, my heart was filled with joy and pride. He spoke about the 5 Ts such as tourism, technology and ever since, I have observed that PM Modi has been giving tourism a big push and has also been promoting the industry in his speeches.

In one of his recent speeches, PM Modi mentioned that if all the Indians got families from other countries to visit India - be it brown, or yellow or white or black, this influx of tourists would give a big boost to the tourism industry and poverty would be mitigated. In today’s global economy, agriculture has been mechanized, employment has gone down, computerization has increased manifold. One out of 9 jobs have been created in tourism industry. Now how is it labour intensive? You come to the airport and you need a porter, then you need an immigration officer, in the hotel you need a bell boy who can carry your luggage, you need the entire staff for your laundry, housekeeping, air conditioning, refrigeration, vegetable and grocery vendors, for your meals etc. So this has a multiplier effect on the economy and this is Modiji’s vision when we talk about domestic tourism in this country.

The first time I met Modiji, he showed us the convention centre in Gujarat and it was in a very poor condition. If it was another CM, he would have sat on it. But because it was CM Modi, he took instant action and gave us firm orders that a world class convention centre be done up in Gujarat! Such is the leadership of PM Modi - he wants good work done and in real fast time, with perfection. - Dr. Subhash Goyal, CEO, STIC Group

eVISA: MODI’S INITIATIVE FOR TOURISM GROWTH IN INDIA
Big thing that Modiji did for our people was the introduction of eVisa. For the last 20 years, we had been proposing and recommending the introduction of this facility to the Congress Government. But that did not happen. We had then put forward our demand to the BJP and it was Mr Arun Jaitley who came forward to discuss this with us. We knew each other well, in fact we knew each other from college. So while he was preparing the budget, he invited me home and asked me “Tell me what can I do for tourism?”

“MODIJI’S IDEA OF KUTCH FESTIVAL SAVED OUR LIVES!”
The first reaction to my question was “Modiji is like God to us!” When I asked them to tell me in detail about their experiences, they recalled the time when Kutch was hit by the earthquake. “When earthquake struck, all pundits, maulvis - they deserted us. We had no food and we were dying of starvation. Modiji arrived at the scene himself and the idea of the Kutch Festival was implemented. This was Modiji’s initiative as he wanted to develop the area. Also, he came up with idea of interest free loans and encouraged establishment of factories. He assured people of Income Tax rebates.

COMPILED AND EDITED BY SHWETA SHARMA AND SHASHIKANT SHARMA