Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 9 said India’s GDP growth of 7.7% in the first six months of the current fiscal year is a reflection of the country’s strengthening economy and the transformative reforms carried out in the last 10 years.

Addressing the ‘Infinity Forum 2.0’ conference at the GIFT City in Gandhinagar via video link, PM Modi expressed confidence that in the next few years, India will become the world’s third largest economy, and by 2047 it will become a developed country.

He also said his government wants to turn the Gujarat International Finance Tec (GIFT) City into a global nerve centre of the new age global financial and technology services.

“In the first six months of this financial year, India has achieved a GDP growth of 7.7 per cent…Today, the entire world has pinned its hopes on India, and this did not happen just on its own. This is a reflection of India’s strengthening economy and also the transformative reforms carried out in the last 10 years,” Mr. Modi said in his inaugural address.

These reforms have strengthened the economic foundations of the country. During the pandemic, when most countries were focusing only on fiscal and monetary relief, we focused on long-term growth and expansion of economic capacity,” he said.

In September this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast that global growth will be 16% owing to India, he said.

India is one of the fastest growing fintech markets in the world today and the GIFT International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) is emerging as its centre, PM Modi said.

“We want to make GIFT City the global nerve centre of new age global financial and technology services. I am confident that the products and services of GIFT City will be helpful in solving challenges that the world is facing today,” he said.

GIFT City has the capacity to become a gateway to the global fintech world and a fintech laboratory, he said.

PM Modi said that GIFT IFSC is an efficient channel for the required green capital flow in order to make India a low carbon economy. “The biggest among the challenges that the world faces today is climate change. As one of the world’s largest economies, India is also very conscious of these concerns,” he said.

India has made new commitments to the world at the COP summit, and to achieve its target, cost-effective finance will have to be made available, he said.

“During G20, our priority was also that everyone understands the need for sustainable finance to global growth and stability. This will promote the transition towards greener, more resilient and inclusive societies and economies,” PM Modi said.