vIndianz.com (28 Jan, 2010) — London: Reliance Industries Limited Chairman Mukesh Ambani has said the recent controversy over making knowledge of Marathi mandatory for issuing taxi permits in Mumbai was unfortunate and said the metropolis belongs to all of India.
“We are all Indians first. Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi belong to all Indians. That is the reality,” he said on Wednesday during a panel discussion at the London School of Economics organised to release Rajya Sabha MP N. K. Singh’s book, ‘Not by Reason Alone: The Politics of Change’.
Ambani’s remark that while India’s corporate world had moved away from ‘license raj’ after economic liberalisation, Mumbai’s “poor taxi-walla is still dealing with license raj” was received with applause from the gathering.
Responding to a question on the taxi drivers controversy, Ambani said the real challenge and opportunity was whether India was able to create 15 to 20 million new jobs every year.
The Maharashtra government has, however, rescinded its order on making knowledge of Marathi a pre-condition to awarding taxi permits a day after proposing it.
“Employment is the biggest challenge in the coming years. We are not moving fast enough,” Ambani said. Rajya Sabha MP N K Singh termed the controversy over renewing taxi licenses in Mumbai as “misplaced populism”. Ambani noted that many Indian professionals abroad were returning because of the many opportunities for self- fulfillment in India.
He said the next 20 years would be full of opportunities for the returning Indian professionals that will have an impact on millions of people back home. “India is blessed with connections in Europe and in the US that raise our status as a country. The achievements of our diaspora help India, but whatever had to be done in the West, has been done. Now is the time to come back; there are more opportunities in India,” he said.
After the event, Ambani was mobbed by eager students, most of them Indians, as they vied to speak to him and take photographs with him. He cheerfully interacted with them and invited them to Mumbai. Security personnel had to intervene to escort Ambani to his car.
Further Reading- New Delhi Question Hour shifted to 2 pm in RS – Hindustan Times
- Rajya Sabha dy chairman in fraud trouble – Times of India
- Rajya Sabha deputy chairman named in bank scam FIR – Daily News & Analysis
- Learn Marathi to obtain Taxi permit
- Special AI plane to bring back 300 Indians from Egypt – Times of India
- Air India responds to allegations of overcharging Indians in Cairo – NDTV.com
- All Indians to be back home from Libya by Friday – Economic Times
- Shipla wants Mumbaikars’ support
- Mumbai for all: RSS
- Ambani goes football
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