PM hails EU FTA as a major step toward ambitious India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the India-EU Free Trade Agreement is a "major step toward a confident, competitive, and productive India" and emphasised that the government's focus on "last mile delivery" ensures that reforms under the "Reforms Express" translate policies from files into tangible benefits for citizens, setting the stage for next-generation reforms.

India and the European Union have concluded negotiations on a long-awaited Free Trade Agreement (FTA), aimed at strengthening economic ties amid global trade disruptions. The agreement, covering goods and services between India and the 27-member EU bloc, opens access to a combined market of roughly 2 billion people.

Speaking on the India-EU FTA, Modi said, “I am very confident that, in a way, this is a major step in the direction of a confident, competitive, and productive India.” He added, “Even colleagues who may dislike us, which is natural in a democracy, acknowledge that this government emphasizes last-mile delivery. We make efforts to bring schemes not just to files, but to the lives of people.

We must continue this tradition through next-generation reforms under the ‘Reforms Express.’” The Prime Minister also highlighted that Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is the first woman to present the Budget in Parliament for the ninth consecutive time, marking a historic moment in India’s parliamentary history.