Deepak Parekh, chairman of India's biggest home loan lender HDFC, was all praise for the way the Modi government has handled the economy in the last two years. 71-year-old Mr Parekh, who last year criticised the government for the lack of changes on the ground, said India has come a long way since then.
"Things are much better today, things are improving. The ease of doing business is improving. The government on its part has taken a number of steps to open up the economy. Recently, nine sectors have been opened up for FDI," he told NDTV in London.
The industry veteran said that there is "massive" confidence in India globally, considering the country is the fastest-growing major economy.
"The prime minister in last two years has developed this aura outside that India is on the go... We will even come to an 8 per cent GDP growth shortly," he said.
According to Mr Parekh, India's rapid economic growth will help attract foreign investments at a time when the world is "awash" with liquidity.
He acknowledged the fact that private capital spending in India continues to be low while praising the government's efforts to spend large sums in infrastructure development.
"The private sector is not putting money in new plants and facilities and government has taken this role. Private sector follows, you have to give some time," he said.
Mr Parekh sounded optimistic about corporate earnings, though a lot of companies disappointed the Street in the June quarter. Normal monsoon rains and the passage of Goods and Services Tax (GST) are two factors that could provide further boost to the economy, he added.
"GST (Bill) has been placed in parliament and there is consensus among political parties that GST is going to come through by April 17," he said.
According to Mr Parekh, weeding out "high-level" corruption is one of the biggest highlights of the Modi government.
"All big contracts and large procurements are being done by e-auctions and e-procurements," he said.
The bankruptcy law, the JAM trinity (Prime Minister Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), Aadhaar and Mobile connectivity) and direct benefit transfer (DBT) are some other highlights of the Modi government, Mr Parekh said.
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