1) Tame inflation: Retail price inflation stood at 8.31% at end FY'14. The new government will need to rein it in through supply side measures to enable RBI cut interest rates to spur demand. Former finance minister Yashwant Sinha has recommended “liberally” releasing foodgrains from the stocks to check food inflation. BJP has promised to “break the vicious cycle of high inflation and high interest rates” through a slew of measures.
2) Revive economic growth and create jobs, stuck at sub-5% for 2012-13 and 2013-14 through huge public investments in infrastructure like laying of roads, railways and connecting ports as envisaged in the BJP manifesto. BJP has promised to expedite clearances of projects stalled because of various approvals. It has pledged to encourage labour intensive industries like tourism, textile and low cost housing for job creation.
3) Corruption and black money: BJP has committed to take steps to reduce corruption by simplifying procedures. It has pledged to set up a task force to recommend amendments to existing laws or enact new laws to check black money as also to track and bring back black money stashed in foreign banks.
4) Fiscal discipline/Current Account Deficit: BJP manifesto said the party will “strictly implement fiscal discipline’ without compromising on funds availability for development. It would need to achieve a target of fiscal deficit of 3 percent of GDP by 2016-17 and be kept below that level. The manifesto stated the current accounts deficit will be brought down aggressively by focusing on exports and reducing dependence on imports. It said value addition on our products will be the biggest task.
5) Boost Manufacturing: Narendra Modi has said his dream is to make India a global manufacturing hub. The BJP has said it would set up a task force to revive MSME sector, cut red tape and environment clearances will be made transparent and time bound.
6) Financial sector reforms, ending “tax terrorism”: BJP has committed to banking reforms, including reducing NPAs. It will build consensus along all state governments for adopting the Goods and Services Tax. Manifesto promised to end tax terrorism and uncertainty and have a ‘tax policy roadmap’.
7) Social welfare schemes and subsidies: It has envisaged reviewing and revamping the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) and linking it to agriculture, as also revamping others like Food Security Act, etc.
8) Urbanisation: BJP has promised huge investments in improving urban areas and building 100 cities.
9) Agriculture: To farmers it has promised a minimum support price 50% more than their production cost and better irrigation facilities, increase public investment into agriculture and rural development, unbundle FCI operations into procurement, storage and distribution for greater efficiency, etc.
10) Skill Development: It has pledged to launch a ‘National multi-skill Mission’, do ‘skill mapping’ as also make secondary education universal.
