'India took only 5 years to move from $2 to $3 trillion economy'

Indian Ambassador to the US, Harsh Vardhan Shringla said the United States, today, is not only India's largest trading partner, but most importantly, the two countries enjoys excellent people-to-people contact.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com

India took only five years to move from a $2 trillion to $3 trillion economy, the Indian envoy to the US has said as he exuded confidence that the country would touch the $5 trillion mark in the coming years.

In 2014, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office, India was the 11th largest economy in the world.

Five years down the line, India is either the fifth or sixth-largest economy of the world, the Indian Ambassador to the US, Harsh Vardhan Shringla, said.

"This is a result of the leadership of the prime minister and the political stability in the country," Shringla said in his keynote address to the 2019 Annual Gala of Asian Indian Americans of Central Pennsylvania.

"It took us nearly 60 years after independence to achieve $1 trillion mark.

“It took 12 years to achieve our second trillion (dollar economy).

“And it has taken only five years, 2014 to 2019, to achieve the third trillion economy," Shringla said in his address to the Indian-American community.

The prime minister envisions an India that becomes a $5 trillion economy, meaning jumping by another $2 trillion in the next five years to come, Shringla said.

"Soon, we will have the largest productive workforce in the world,” he said.

Referring to the fact that India is only the third country to send a satellite to Mars, he said the average age of the scientists working on that mission was 29 years.

Observing that India has developed unique ties across the world, he said New Delhi had extended its hand of friendship in its neighbourhood.

India-US relationship is one of the paradigms of such co-operation, friendship, and partnership, he said.

In last 10-15 years, this relationship has become very multifaceted and comprehensive.

The United States, today, is not only India's largest trading partner, but most importantly, the two countries enjoys excellent people-to-people contact, Shringla said.

Indian-Americans, he said, have played a vital role in this relationship, he told the audience.

Referring to the 'Howdy Modi' event in Houston on September 30, Shringla said that the prime minister addressing 50,000 Indian-Americans, along with US President Donald Trump, was a proud moment for the community.

"It also reflects the partnership between the two countries," he said.