Cong govt not letting GST benefits reach people in Himachal, says PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday attacked the Congress governments for stalling the passage of Central tax cut benefits to the people, making a direct reference to Himachal Pradesh.

Speaking at an event in Odisha’s Jharsuguda — where he inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of development works worth over Rs 60,000 crore — PM Modi said people needed to be wary of the Congress and its allies.

“The Congress governments will open avenues to loot people, wherever possible,” Modi said referring to the additional tax levied on fuel and cement after the Centre reduced prices.

He said, “Look at the actions of these people (the Congress) who love making unsavoury statements. The Congress is habituated to abusing us in various ways.”

Modi further said, “When we reduced GST across the board, prices fell all over the country. But the Congress does not want to ease the burden of the common masses. When the Centre reduced the prices of diesel and petrol, the Congress governments imposed extra taxes and placed an additional financial onus on people.”

“Even when the Centre reduced the prices of cement, the Congress government in Himachal imposed their own tax and the benefit which the Centre wanted to give to the people of Himachal, could not be passed on. The Congress government in HP stood like a wall in the way of the benefits we wanted to give to the people,” the PM added.

He went on to say that wherever the Congress is in power, it would plunder people. “That is why people have to be wary of the Congress and all its allies,” the PM added.

BSNL’s indigenous 4G services Unveiled

• PM Modi has unveiled a new avatar of the BSNL, marking the launch of its indigenous 4G services.
• He also launched over 97,500 4G mobile towers established by BSNL, including 92,600 with the latest 4G technology from Jharsuguda in Odisha.
• He said India had lagged in the development of 2G, 3G, and 4G services and relied on foreign tech in this domain. The achievement places India alongside few countries capable of building & supporting indigenous telecom networks.

As he unveiled a new avatar of BSNL, marking the launch of its indigenous 4G services, PM Modi reiterated self-reliance pitch as the foundation of Viksit Bharat. He said the government was committed to achieving self-reliance in every domain from chips to ships.

He stated that a vast industrial corridor was being developed from Paradip to Jharsuguda. Emphasising the strategic importance of shipbuilding, the PM noted that any nation aspiring for economic strength must invest in this sector, as it benefits trade, technology and national security.

Modi said having indigenous ships would ensure uninterrupted import-export operations even during global crises. The Prime Minister announced a major initiative by their government — a Rs 70,000 crore package for shipbuilding in India — and projected that this would attract Rs 4.5 lakh crore in investments, reaching sectors such as steel, machinery, electronics and manufacturing, especially benefiting small and cottage industries.

He highlighted that this would generate millions of new jobs and also bring significant advantages to Odisha’s industries and youth.