Profits earned through ethical means create wealth for nation: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said the government led by Narendra Modi refers entrepreneurs as wealth creators as the profit earned by them through ethical ways help drive development goals.

"Wealth creation in India has never been a taboo in India. We promoted wealth creation. We would want wealth creation. That is why entrepreneurs in India, under Prime Minister Modi, we refer them as wealth creators. They are not thieves," she said while addressing the National Commemorative Seminar on 60 years of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya Integral Humanism Lectures.

Pandit Upadhyaya was one of the founding members of Jan Sangh from which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged in April 1980.

"We would like to have profit created by genuine ethical practices, and that is what is going to create wealth for the nation. And once you have wealth, you give dignity of labor, you provide for education, you provide for skilling, and you lift the tempo and the spirit of the nation," she said.

Recalling Deendayal Upadhyaya's idea for India, Sitharaman said that while planning, we must keep in mind the person at the very bottom of the system so that he can be uplifted keeping his dignity intact.

"Whether it was former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji or whether it is the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, every government policy under these two eminent leaders has been very reflective of Integral Humanism," she said.

'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas and Sabka Prayaas' is exactly what you do when you believe in Antyodaya theory propagated by Upadhyaya, she said.

"If you lift everyone out of poverty, give them employment, give them a certain standard of living and give them access to fundamental basic necessities, as a result, they are above where they were before, and they have greater access to the country's productive capacities. Then, the country's production levels also increase," she said.

Providing for national defence was one of the main priorities for a nation as per Upadhyay, she said, adding since 2014, Prime Minister Modi has been emphasising on Aatmanirbharta in defence production.

"That's what we have done and it's the reason Operation Sindoor was carried out. It was completely opposite to a government which said that it didn't have the money to spend for defence procurement," she said.