Governor of Karnataka Shri Thawar Chand ji Gehlot, popular Chief Minister of Karnataka Shri Basavaraj ji, my colleague in the Union Council of Ministers Pralhad Joshi ji, Ministers of Karnataka Government, MPs and MLAs, and all my sisters and brothers of Bengaluru, Namaskar,
Today all of us are once again witnessing the trust that the double-engine government has given you for the rapid development of Karnataka. Today, projects worth more than Rs 27,000 crore are either being inaugurated or their foundation stones being laid. These multi-dimensional projects will serve you in higher education, research, skill development, health and connectivity. In short, the emphasis of these projects is on both the ease of living and ease of doing business.
Brothers and sisters,
Before coming here, I was with the students of the Indian Institute of Science and Ambedkar School of Economics University to experience their enthusiasm in education, research and innovation and I came out with renewed energy. I also fully appreciate the private sector of the country involved in these programs. I am celebrating this festival of connectivity with you who are full of zeal and enthusiasm. As you know this is my last program in Bengaluru today as I am going to Mysuru where the campaign to accelerate this development journey of Karnataka will continue. A short while ago, the foundation stone of five National Highway projects and seven railway projects was laid in Karnataka. We have also witnessed the important milestone of 100 percent electrification of Konkan Railway. All these projects will provide more facilities and opportunities to the youth, the middle-class, our farmer and labor brothers and sisters and entrepreneurs of Karnataka. Many congratulations and best wishes to the entire Karnataka for these development projects!
Friends,
Bengaluru has become the dream city for lakhs of youth of the country. Bengaluru is a reflection of the spirit of ‘Ek Bharat – Shreshtha Bharat’. The development of Bengaluru is the development of millions of dreams, and therefore, it has been the constant effort of the Central Government in the last eight years to enhance the potential of Bengaluru. The double-engine government has worked relentlessly to make life of every partner working to fulfill their dreams in Bengaluru easy and comfortable by cutting down travel time and minimizing logistic cost. We are witnessing the same commitment even today.
Friends,
The double-engine government is working on every possible means to free Bengaluru from traffic jams by developing rail, roads, metro, under-passes and flyovers. Our government is committed to connect the suburban areas of Bengaluru with better connectivity. I am told that discussions have been going on since the 80s to connect the areas around Bengaluru by rail. Forty years in the discussion! What is this sorry state of affairs? Forty years have gone into discussion. I have come to assure the brothers and sisters of Karnataka that I will work hard to complete such projects and fulfill your dreams in 40 months. You will be surprised to know that these projects remained in the files for 16 years. I am happy that the double-engine government is working hard to fulfill every dream of the people of Bengaluru and Karnataka. The Bengaluru suburban railway will go a long way in expanding the capacity of Bengaluru. This project will lessen the compulsion of living in Bengaluru city. Friends, I am destined to accomplish the work that should have been done 40 years ago. Had these projects been completed 40 years ago, Bengaluru would not have faced this enormous pressure. Bengaluru would have bloomed further. But 40 years is not a short time. Friends, now that you have given me a chance, I don't want to waste time anymore. I spend every moment for your service.
Friends,
There is going to have a multiplier effect when the surrounding satellite townships, suburbs and rural areas are connected to the rail-based rapid transit system. Like the suburban railway, the Bengaluru Ring Road will also reduce the congestion in the city. It will connect six National Highways and eight State Highways. A large number of vehicles going to other parts of Karnataka will not need to enter Bengaluru city. As you are aware most of the industries are around this National Highway between Nelamangala to Tumakuru. There is a huge flow of traffic on this route. The proposed six-lane of this highway and the Tumakuru Bypass will make travel and transport easier in the entire region, boosting economic activity. The work being done to improve the connectivity of important centers of faith and tourism like Dharmasthala Temple, Surya Mandir and Jog Falls will offer new opportunities for tourism. This work has started today too.
Brothers and sisters,
Over the last eight years, we have worked on a complete transformation of rail connectivity. The experience of traveling in Railways today is completely different from what it was eight years ago. Indian Railways is getting faster, cleaner, safer and becoming modern and citizen friendly. We have taken the trains to those parts of the country where it was difficult to even imagine. In Karnataka too, more than 1200 kilometers of railway lines have been either freshly laid or have been widened in the last few years. Indian Railways is now trying to provide an atmosphere of amenities which was once found only in airports and air travel. The modern railway station in Bengaluru named after Bharat Ratna Sir M. Visvesvaraya is also a proof of this. I have been told that today people in Bengaluru visit this station as a tourist destination. They see the changes happening in the country through that railway station and people were telling me that the younger generation stands in a queue to take selfies there. This is the first such modern railway station in Karnataka and third in the country. This has not only modernized the facilities, but has also opened the way for more trains to Bengaluru. The modernization of Bengaluru Cantonment and Yesvantpur Junction has also started from today.
Friends,
We cannot remain confined to rail, road, port, airport in the 21st century. Therefore, we are focusing on multimodal connectivity by connecting and supporting these modes of transport with each other. This multimodal connectivity is being supported by the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan. The Multi Modal Logistic Park, which is going to be built near Bengaluru, is part of this vision. The park will be connected to port, airport, railway and road facilities to improve the last mile delivery and reduce the cost of transportation. Such projects being made with the spirit of GatiShakti will give employment to thousands of youth and will also accelerate achieving the resolve of ‘AatmaNirbhar Bharat’.
Brothers and sisters,
The success story of Bengaluru inspires the India of the 21st century to become AatmaNirbhar Bharat. This city has demonstrated that opportunities given to entrepreneurship, innovation, private sector and the youth to showcase their real potential can create such a huge impact. During the Corona crisis, our youth in Bengaluru have helped the whole world to recover. Bengaluru has demonstrated that if the government provides facilities and there is bare minimum interference in the life of the citizen, then the youth of India can do anything and take the country to new heights. Bengaluru is the dream city of the youth of the country and behind it is entrepreneurship, innovation and the efficacy of public as well as private sector. Bengaluru also teaches those people to change their mindset who still address India's private sector, private enterprise, with crude words. These authoritarian-minded people underestimate the power of the country and its crores of people.
Friends,
21st century India belongs to wealth creators, job creators and innovators. This is the real strength of India as the youngest country in the world and it is also our wealth. The efforts that have been made in the last eight years to promote this power are discussed, but in a very limited manner. But when I have come to Bengaluru, which lives in this culture, I consider it my responsibility to discuss it in detail.
Brothers and sisters,
The biggest employer after agriculture is the MSME sector which is strengthening the economy of Tier-2, Tier-3 cities of the country. Crores of people of the country are connected with the MSME sector. But MSMEs were earlier defined in such a way that if they wanted to expand on their own, they would suffer. So instead of expanding their ventures, they used to move towards other smaller ventures. We changed this definition itself, so that MSMEs could move towards growth and increase employment. The opportunities for our MSMEs were very limited due to global tenders even in small government projects. We did away with the participation of foreign entities in tenders up to Rs 200 crore. This is our confidence towards AatmaNirbhar Bharat. All departments of the Central Government have been directed to procure 25 percent of their requirements from MSMEs. Moreover, MSMEs have been given an easy medium in the form of the Government e-marketplace to trade directly with every government department and government companies. Today more than 45 lakh sellers are providing their products and services on GeM.
Brothers and sisters,
India's start-up ecosystem, of which Bengaluru is a big center, is also being discussed a lot these days. The country’s significant progress in the last eight years can be comprehended if we look at the past decades. You can count on your fingers the number of billion-dollar companies in the last few decades. But in the last eight years, more than 100 billion-dollar companies have been created and new companies are being added every month. The valuation of these unicorns created in the last eight years is about 150 billion dollars today, that is, about 12 lakh crore rupees. Let me quote another figure to tell you how the start-up ecosystem is growing in the country. It took us around 800 days to reach the first 10,000 start-ups after 2014. Now I talk about the period after you sent me to Delhi to serve you. It took less than 200 days for 10,000 new start-ups to join this ecosystem recently. In the last eight years, we have grown from a few hundred start-ups to 70,000 today.
Brothers and sisters,
The path to start-ups and innovations is not very easy. And the way to accelerate the country on this path in the last eight years was also not easy. Many decisions and reforms may seem unpleasant at the moment, but over time the benefits of those reforms are felt by the country. Only the path of reform takes us towards new goals and resolutions. We have opened up every sector like space and defence, which for decades was monopolized by the government only. Today we are encouraging the youth of India in every cutting-edge technology, from drones to aircraft. ISRO is the pride of the country and DRDO has a modern infrastructure. Today we are asking the youth of the country to experiment with their vision and ideas in these world class facilities which the government has created. The Central Government is providing every necessary platform where the youth are working diligently. The government companies will also compete with the companies created by the youth of the country. Only then will we be able to compete with the world. I am of firm belief whether the undertaking is government or private; both are the assets of the country, so there should be a level playing field for everybody. This is ‘Sabka Prayas’ (everyone's effort). This mantra of ‘Sabka Prayas’ is the energy to build a self-reliant India in the ‘Amrit Kaal’, i.e., the next 25 years of independence. Once again, I congratulate all the people of Karnataka for these development projects. Under the leadership of Basavaraj ji, the Government of India stands with you to work shoulder to shoulder to make our Karnataka move forward faster. Thanks a lot to all of you with many best wishes! Namaskar!
