Dear Prime Minister Modiji,

It has been three years and what a year this was! Congratulations on completing three years and let me tell you at the onset itself that your popularity continues to remain high. Yesterday, the stock market hit a historic new high thus optimism continues to prevail.

This third year of yours, actually, you might have lost a lot of fans due to the demonetization; I am not talking about the big time cash hoarders – they all would have managed to “convert” much ahead of us mere mortals. But you surely lost out on the adulation of many a housewives who had saved money, one-note-by-one-note, collecting their own small kitty for emergencies. They were not black money hoarders by any count but in one swift swish, their saving was there for all to see and many lost so much money. Yes, you will be forever marked in the history of India for this bold move; I do not know how much black money was finally unearthed and I do not think that cross border terrorism has come down. Your demonetization did one important thing though – it brought many Indians under the tax bracket and made more people familiar with “cashless” transactions. But let me tell you Modiji, cash is once again the king.

Modiji, it was also very good to have you more in India this third year than abroad. Your thumping victory in Uttar Pradesh left everyone gaping and putting Yogi Adityanath as CM was a true masterstroke. And Modiji, a fervent wish – please ask your goons to stop communalizing India; the seeds of hatred which are being sowed now will destroy our country in the years to come.

Now to the report card. This year you have made Aaadhar the mother of all cards. You made RERA a reality. You did away with the Railway Budget. More importantly, you are now so close to ushering in GST; it is good to know that rates have finally been fixed but I seriously think; this will be your game changer for the fourth year.

I also believe Lady Luck is very strongly attached to your side. Seven months after you took over, crude oil price crashed from highs of $105/bbl to as low at $30/bbl and now hovers around $49-50/barrel. So slipping crude has helped you automatically reduce your import bill and the forex kitty has never looked richer. While on Lady Luck, monsoon too has been a blessing. Last year was very good and this year too, the IMD says that it will be bountiful. A good food grain production will ensure prosperity all-around and not to mention, both these factors – crude and monsoon, have managed to keep inflation on a leash.

Modiji, all this is very good but there are a few promises which you made and have not yet fulfilled. First and foremost is unemployment. I see around myself, so many youth with no work at all. I cannot blame you directly for this as private sector investment has simply not taken off and thus no new employment opportunities got created. But if you do not work on this fast, the over 60% popularity vote which you got just now will shrink.

One big worry has emerged – credibility has become a big question mark – of institutions like RBI and CBI and that of most of the data coming from Govt agencies. Authenticity of data is seriously under threat and this needs to be corrected soon or else, you will end up looking more and more like China.

Modiji as you look back at the year gone by, surely you see a pile of broken dreams. Yes, you are stuck in a trap of expectations, which were set by you. Modiji, I seriously think you need to rethink where you want to take this “Make in India”. World over, right since ancient times; as you will be very well aware , Indians are known for their proficiency in things which require a lot of intellect, a lot of creativity. Excelling in mathematics, science and art is in our dna, we are genetically endowed with these skills. So when we have this strength of brain power and creativity, why do you want to make it all about brainless factory work? Why can’t your “Make in India” be all about making India an R&D hub for the world? 

Am sure you have the foresight but yet, let me tell you that later in the world, only those who have abundant water and food will rule the world. Let’s work on that.

2019 is election year. You, at this juncture have no Opposition as such to really talk about. But Modiji, please do not make the next two years only about politics; we need development, manufacturing needs a boost, employment has to be generated; hope you concentrate on that as these measures, if they get going, will automatically make you the winner.

Well, 21^st June is round the corner and we hope to see you make more moves on the yoga mat!

Thanks and wishing you all the best for times ahead.

Regards

Ruma Dubey