Piyush Goyal

India's infrastructure deficit in terms of roads, railways, power, and ports needs to be addressed on a fast-track basis.

Reaping political dividends out of tragedies is deeply engrained in the Congress' DNA.

In most riots in India, Congress has had a direct or indirect involvement. History bears this out.

Anyone leaving the Congress' camp and joining - or even indirectly praising - the BJP-led NDA coalition immediately stands the risk of losing this Congress-issued certificate of secularism. It is a travesty!

There is no room any more for the divisive agenda which has been sought to be foisted on the common man.

I am an optimist.

People of India deserve to be complimented for making the 2014 elections a referendum on the misrule of the Congress-led UPA and demonstrating their faith in a proven new leadership.

In New York, lights are on the whole night; there are offices where not a single person is working, but all lights are on. The street lights at the White House are lit all the day. Why? And we are being told not to use coal.

Of course we have to use coal... the renewable energy sources will supplement the supply from coal.

Politics is involved when you don't tackle inefficiency and burden people with higher tariffs.

Gujarat under Narendra Modi has focused on good governance in the power sector and implemented long-term reforms as opposed to the short-term and anarchic methods adopted by Sheila Dikshit and Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi.

For me, as the Government of India, the interest of the poorest of the poorest is paramount.

The Gujarat government knows what's in the interest of consumers. When they plan, they ensure they can save every single rupee or earn every single rupee for the state government and bring power at lowest cost to the consumer. They are tightfisted in their approach.

People have seen the Modi government's track record, and now they believe that if we say something, it will happen.

It is important to take into account the total power cost borne by consumers after taking into account what they spend on inverters and gensets.

Very often, state utilities do not buy electricity even if they need it, as every unit purchased increases their losses.

You can't sell thermal power without the competitive bidding.

I don't get carried away by any praise; I know I have miles to go.

You can fool the people once, twice, but you can't fool them all the time. You should tell them honestly what you can do for them.

Even a poor man doesn't ask alms unless he sees you have the ability to give.

Corruption is the by-product of discretion when there is scope for interpretation of policies.

The speed of decision making is the essence of good governance.

Electricity can transform people's lives, not just economically but also socially.

Productive and sustainable job creation, along with increased and better-targeted social expenditure, are the only routes to permanently beat the poverty trap and to bring our social indicators on par with developed countries.

When a product is market driven, it should be able to pay for all its raw materials at market prices.

We can learn from all around the world. Germany, particularly, has been successful with rooftop solar generation. Other countries like Norway and Sweden have done work on it. Some of them have done offshore wind projects. So we're looking at learning from the best from all across the world. My approach is to get the best out of each one.

I can't inject renewables into a grid that doesn't have base load.

Gujaratis are smart people.

More taxes mean more money to spend for public welfare.

As India becomes more tax-compliant, government revenues will improve, and we will be able to serve the poor better. We can have better roads, healthcare, education, and improve the life of farmers.

With transparency in renewables, the prices of renewables are coming down drastically.

I don't want projects to take 10 years to set up. That adds to the cost.

States are the architects of UDAY, not the central government.

Use of energy-efficient LEDs, pumps, fans, and air-conditioners will save power consumption and reduces the peak load.

Allocating coal linkage to a generating company rather than to a specific plant gives companies the freedom to use the fuel in the most efficient way.

Cost-plus is an inefficient way to do things.

Unless you empower your domestic investor and domestic industry and domestic confidence in the sector, no foreigner is going to come.

We have been working towards providing a clean environment to the people of India, and we are doing it out of our own conviction.

India has been developing its green energy resources.

I don't interfere with regulators.

You only expect something from somebody you have confidence can deliver.

If India moves towards 100 percent LED lighting, we will reduce almost 79 million tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This will also reduce the electricity bills of people.

By using LED bulbs, one can contribute, in their way, to overcome global warming.

Reforms ensure that everybody benefits and the state generates financial resources to provide for the really deserving.

We aim to encourage investments that ease our supply-side bottlenecks, such as rural roads, cold-storage, and grain-warehouses, which will also help us combat inflation.

A visionary leadership is required to harness rapid technological change for positive benefit rather than allowing to become disruptive and further exacerbate economic inequality.

Transparency is the hallmark of Prime Minister Modi's government.