Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman finds entrepreneurs in Bengaluru "too decent" and "quiet" compared to their counterparts in Delhi and Mumbai. Speaking to The Indian Express, she said the business community in Bengaluru mostly keeps to themselves and uses strong words for the government only on social media.
"They barely listen to us, it's fine, but we can't be bothered to go to Delhi. But because these business leaders are very tech-savvy, they'll go about tweeting - hey central government, you're not doing this. You don't take care of Bengaluru...we are the next California," the minister said.
Sitharaman said the central government is very much with the start-ups. "One or two startups' problems cannot be seen as the entire startup world's problems. Many of them are doing alright. I don't want the sector to have any kind of apprehension. The government is very much with the startups, we want to be sure you will be given all the assistance," the minister was quoted as saying by IE.
Earlier today, Sitharaman hailed Bengaluru taxpayers for their contributions in building a strong and 'Viksit Bharat'. Speaking after laying the foundation stone for the upcoming complex HONGIRANA for Income Tax officers, she said the taxpayers of Bengaluru have been absolutely giving the central government the buoyancy. "Your contribution is relentless. There has never been a dip. So thank you very much Bengaluru for keeping that momentum up," she said.
Sitharaman also emphasised the investments that the Central government is making in Bengaluru. She said the Department's entire central processing centre -- the digital processing unit which governs the entire country -- is located in Bengaluru, driving the income tax system for the whole nation. The faceless system was a big step forward in ease of doing business.
"So money doesn't go away from Karnataka. It comes back as well and comes back not just like that - Yes it comes back for roads, it comes back for connectivity, it comes back for metro, it comes back for rail, it comes back for the suburban railway system, It comes back for Mangaluru port, it comes back for the 'Kalyana' Karnataka (region) and so on," Sitharaman said.
(With inputs from PTI)