India needs to change laws to transform, says PM

New Delhi, August 26: Enunciating his vision to rapidly transform India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said there is a need to change laws, eliminate unnecessary procedures and speed up processes to go beyond “mere incremental progress”.

“If India is to meet the challenge of change, mere incremental progress is not enough. A metamorphosis is needed. That is why my vision for India is rapid transformation, not gradual evolution,” he said at the first ‘Transforming India' lecture organised by the NITI Aayog here.

Stressing on the need to bring changes through transformation of governance, Modi said it could not happen with an administrative system of the 19th century.

“A transformation of governance cannot happen without a transformation in mindset and a transformation in mindset cannot happen without transformative ideas,” he added.

“We have to change laws, eliminate unnecessary procedures, speed up processes and adopt technology. We cannot march through the 21st century with the administrative systems of the 19th century,” he said.

With his entire cabinet in attendance, Modi said the change had to be for both external and internal reasons.

Each country, he said, had its own experiences, resources and strengths.

“Thirty years ago, a country might have been able to look inward and find its own solutions. Today, countries are inter-dependent and inter-connected. No country can afford any longer to develop in isolation. Every country has to benchmark its activities to global standards, or else fall behind,” he said.

Stating that change is also necessary for internal reasons, he said the younger generation was thinking and aspiring so differently that the government could no longer afford to remain rooted in the past.

The Prime Minister said the fundamental changes in administrative mindsets usually occurred through sudden shocks or crises.

With a stable democratic polity in India, special efforts would have to be made to force transformative changes, he added.

“As individuals, we may absorb new ideas by reading books or articles. Books open the windows of our minds. However, unless we brainstorm collectively, ideas remain confined to individual minds,” he said. PTI