3 Years of NDA?Govt: Opinion : Still a best bet

While Modi has achieved a lot in many areas and missed the ball in a few, there is no doubt that after three years, he by a long mile, continues to be India’s best bet

Shaurya Doval

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s third year comes to an end, it is probably a good time to sit back and reflect on the performance of his government. We now have enough patterns and data points to conclude not only what this administration has achieved or missed but also draw out an estimate of what the remaining two years of this administration bode for the nation. As I sit down to pen my thoughts, on the whole, I have more reasons to feel optimistic than pessimistic about India and her prospects.

First and foremost, the single most significant achievement of this government is that it has changed the national narrative from despondency to hope. By the winter of 2013 the national faith in the intentions and the capacity of the state was at its lowest. India was perceived, both by herself and the world, to be sliding downwards on all performance parameters and an average Indian was filled with both rage and helplessness at the state of affairs under the UPA regime. The mandate of 2014 to  Modi was a mandate of hope. On this single count, this government has delivered exceedingly well. There is hope and enthusiasm within India and about India globally today. Problems notwithstanding, there is a sense of direction and purpose  to governance.
Credibility of and expectations from this government are rising. This is a great departure from where we had been in the recent past. This is no mean achievement. Great countries don’t become great unless they feel that they are destined for greatness. In restoring this hope in India his leadership has done seminal national service for which his government deserves full credit.
The second big achievement has been improvement in quality of governance across the country. Both, in the intent and the capacity of the state executive and its institutions. We have had three uninterrupted years of a scam-free government. The  Government seems to be bold and relentless in its fight against corruption, both within the state and in the  society. There are no more holy cows and it seems that the government intends to treat all its citizens equally on matters of rights and duties. There has always been excessive lip service to the damage that corruption does to national capabilities and yet those entrusted with governance were its greatest abusers till Modi came around. His style of governance is a refreshing change from what an average Indian was used to in the past. This is a big achievement and if the government is able to sustain this momentum, it has the potential to change the nation in ways we cannot even imagine at this point.
Along with the above there are also concerted efforts to enhance the capacities of the state. The leverage of technology and the devolution of power are two guiding principles of the governance in the Modi Government. The introduction of GST, ushering in e-governance to delivery of basic citizen services or the massive deployment of technology to integrate the last man into the financial system are few of the many innovative ideas being applied in the governance system. This is a great capacity multiplier. Also, the continued devolution of financial powers from the Centre to the state and beyond, means that the decision making in government resources is coming closer and closer to the average citizen. From doing away with the wasteful expenditure in government due to mere inertia, dropping the archaic railway budget as a case in point is indicative of the government that is trying to conserve resources for their optimal deployment. The continued fiscal prudence, despite a challenging economic environment, is indicative of the government that is not populist but serious and prudent. In short there are continued improvements in both the efficiency and the quality of governance and the continuous raising of the bar on this count, which had been Modi’s hallmark in Gujarat.
One of the problems of the Indian economy is a large number of mis-designs that prohibit it from gathering long-term momentum. Some of these are intractably intertwined with our history, demographics, polity and even culture. As India transforms, these will also have to change, both, by design and default.
Modi’s Government can be credited with trying to redesign the basic layout of this economic architecture with a long-term view. This started with the symbolic act of the dismantling of the Soviet style planning commission and has since continued with a number of both big and small interventions. The fixing of national priorities with manufacturing as a growth engine, introducing seminal legislation like the bankruptcy code and real estate regulation law, focus on renewable energy on a mission mode and skill development at a mass level are some of these long-term capacity enhancers in our economic system. No contemporary government other than Narasimhan Rao had been as bold and dynamic as this one in recent past.
The change, if sustained, will feed on each other to
create a virtuous cycle of both growth and transformation. Last such growth cycle of India was abruptly disrupted in the early 2000s and the ability to maintain it until it reaches critical mass, will be the ultimate test of  Modi’s political and economic acumen and if he does succeed, it will indeed be a transformative experience in the material prosperity of an average citizen.
On the geo-political dimension too, both domestically and internationally, the Modi Government has been innovative and has challenged the status quo. The Indian state seemed to have slipped in a state of lethargy before the onset of Modi. On the international front the government has been able to project India as a rising power and increase her gravitas. It has leveraged both hard and soft power to signal India’s arrival on the high table of international diplomacy. It has demonstrated that India is willing to be a power player whether it is her push back to China on the OBOR issue or the ability to ensure the isolation of Pakistan when required. On the domestic front whether in Kashmir or the North-East, it is reclaiming the space back from the secessionists and the anti-national elements. There is bound to be a reaction, but the fact that there is one, is indicative that the Indian state is reasserting itself and creating a new normal for those who had come to assume the predictable and lethargic Indian reaction to her core interests. For the first time in recent past India seems confident in articulating and defending her vitals.
There is nothing so bad that cannot be improved. Also, there is no package deal that does not come with its good and bad. There are indeed areas where the Modi government has not been able to do as much as was expected from them. Their foremost failure has been in the area of job creation. The government has been bereft of both ideas and strategies that can lead to employment generation on the scale that the country needs. Not being able to do this can be counted as a strategic failure of this regime which will cost the nation dearly. The dangerous part is also that after three years this is not on the narrative of the government and it is not even clear whether it considers this to be a priority area in the first place.
Secondly the government has seen lacklustre performance in stimulating the investment climate in the country. Whether it is the delayed and muted attempt to tackle the non-performing asset problem of the banks or the slow movement in solving the problems of infrastructure. The government has displayed lack of vision, urgency and most importantly political will to fully stimulate the economy.
Finally, much was expected of Modi in curbing and eliminating  the red tape and laggardness of the Indian State. He had promised a government that was more leaner and more dynamic in the way it responded to challenges. As a matter of fact Modi, for most part of this campaign, had promised a more pro-active rather than a reactive government.
Assessments are always relative and have to be seen in the context of contemporary regimes and available political alternatives. While Modi has achieved a lot in many areas and missed the ball in a few, there is no doubt that after three years, he by a long mile, continues to be India’s best bet.
(The writer is Director, India Foundation and Managing Director, Zeus)