Long journey ahead of India's economic reform - Minister

15 Nov SS News

Reforming India's declining economy has shown to be quite difficult with the country's finance minister warning potential investors of a "long journey" ahead.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley warned foreign investors on Wednesday that there were no quick fixes for the country's economic woes, playing down the idea of one or two "big bang" changes.Instead, the government would narrow its focus and "consistently pursue the reform agenda," Jaitley said at the World Economic Forum's India summit in New Delhi.Critics have accused the right-wing government of lacking the determination to eliminate regulatory and bureaucratic obstacles to do business that would attract foreign investors.

Many investors have left the country after a string of corruption scandals as well as India's infamous red tape policy by the previous left-leaning Congress government.The Indian government has since introduced some reforms in a bid to overhaul complex labor laws and turn the country into an industrial powerhouse to provide jobs for a growing young workforce.

India has the second highest economic growth in the world, but some 500 million people in the country live in poverty.

The economy must grow by at least eight-to-nine percent to generate employment for millions of new job-seekers, economists have predicted.Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has promised progress and prosperity for all but has not clearly clarified how his administration intends to achieve the goal.