Wars now target economies: PM

Bhubaneswar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said wars were no longer being fought only through conventional means but also by targeting economies, and underscored the need to protect India’s banking system from “cyber terrorists”.

Addressing a gathering after inaugurating the Reserve Bank of India’s Rs 169-crore data centre and Cybersecurity Training Institute here, he said the facilities would greatly benefit the people of Odisha and the country. “Development for us means balanced growth of India and opportunities for villages and small towns,” Modi said.

He said India’s banking sector was now among the most efficient in the world, with people having access to banking services round the clock. Small entrepreneurs, traditional artisans, street vendors and workers in the unorganised sector have benefited from formal banking services for the first time, he said.

“During the Congress rule, banking facilities were only for a handful of rich and influential persons. They used to get loans easily, while poor, middle-class and women were denied such facilities. However, things changed after 2014 as we adopted a balanced approach. Debit and credit cards were earlier luxury items for the masses, but those are now available for all,” he added.

“The past decade was about taking banking to those deprived of it. The coming decade is about making banking more efficient and reliable,” he added. The Prime Minister said Odisha will write its future in sectors from mines to microchips and many doors of opportunity will be opened for the youth.

The Prime Minister also took a jibe at the phone banking model under the previous Congress-led UPA government, alleging that it benefited only the wealthy and those with links to Congress leaders, while the poor were deprived of basic banking services.

“Poor and middle-class families needed a guarantor just to open a bank account, yet under the Congress’ phone banking system, thousands of crores of rupees were readily available to the rich. It was this mismanagement that brought India’s banking system under the grip of non-performing assets (NPAs), pushing it to the brink of ruin,” he alleged.

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