He warned that the government will deal with the issue with “heavy hands”.
Explaining further, he said, “It (demonetisation) is going as per the plan. It was loud and clear that it would have short-term pain for 50 days.”
On downturn of economy due to demonetisation, Goyal said, “It could be for month or two or this quarter. But if you are moving informal economy into formal economy… the transactions were never reported as part of GDP… it will only add to GDP.”
Elaborating, he said, “Rabi sowing (data) seems that there is growth of 8-9% this year. Cement saw 7-8% downturn in the first two weeks (after demonetisation). I am told that it is back to normal.”
However, he cautioned, “Automobile sector is a little bit of surprise… people bought two-wheelers and four-wheelers by cash (payments). That is truly a surprise… we should be able to track every vehicle which is sold… otherwise terrorist activities, petty theft or serious crimes will never get traced.”
About forthcoming assembly elections, he is confident that the BJP will sweep the upcoming elections and will win two-thirds support in Uttar Pradesh. He predicted a win for the Akali-BJP combine in Punjab.
He also said that in next 14-15 years, India has investment opportunity of over USD one trillion to expand in the energy sector.
Sourced from agencies, feature image courtesy: ibtimes.co.in
