US report praises Modi's style of governance

A US Congressional report has hailed Gujarat as the best example of effective governance and impressive development in India.

The report prepared by Congressional Research Service also praised Gujarat CM Narendra Modi saying the state under him has become a key driver of national economic growth.



"Perhaps India’s best example of effective governance and impressive development is found in Gujarat, where controversial Chief Minister Narendra Modi has streamlined economic processes, removing red tape and curtailing corruption in ways that have made the state a key driver of national economic growth.

Seeking to overcome the taint of his alleged complicity in deadly 2002 anti-Muslim riots, Modi has overseen heavy investment in modern roads and power infrastructure, and annual growth of more than 11% in recent years. The state has attracted major international investors such as General Motors and Mitsubishi and, with only 5% of the country’s population, Gujarat now accounts for more than one-fifth of India’s exports," the CRS report said.

Gujarat is followed by Bihar and its Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, has also been praised for his effective governance and administrative skills. The report hails Nitish Kumar for the restoration of law and order in the state as well as for improvement in infrastructure and education.

"Another positive example in 2011 has been Bihar, one of India’s poorest states, where Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has won national attention through his considerable success in emphasizing good governance over caste-based politics; he is credited with restoring law and order across much of the state, as well as overseeing infrastructure and educational improvements of direct benefit to common citizens projects," the report noted.

The report also mentions that the actions of Narendra Modi and Nitish Kumar have inspired Uttar Pradesh CM Mayawati to focus on more toward infrastructure projects such as road-building and improving the state’s poor energy grid.

"The examples set in by Chief Ministers Modi and Kumar may have inspired the popular leader of India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh. Chief Minister Mayawati, who is widely believed to maintain national political ambitions and was at the forefront of a nascent “Third Front” in 2009, has shifted her own focus much more toward infrastructure projects such as road-building and improving the state’s poor energy grid," the report said.