New Delhi: Minister of Railways and Coal Piyush Goyal (he also holds the additional charge of Finance Ministry in the absence of Arun Jaitley who has undergone kidney transplant) said on Thursday that transparency and honesty are Modi government's top priorities. 


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In an exclusive interview to Zee Hindustan, he said, "In 2014 when there was discontent in the country and corruption was at its peak, at that time people voted for PM Modi... after that in subsequent state elections, people reiterated their faith in PM Modi... this government gives topmost importance to transparency and honesty... PM Modi had made it clear in the beginning that his government will be for the poor and farmers... it will not be a band-aid government... it will not be a cosmetic government... we had decided to give a decisive government... every rupee that we spend goes to the poor... ours is an outcome-based government and not an outlay based one... PM Modi did what he had promised... we made the rich pay back their loans to the banks... that is why India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world... With the support of the people, we want to create a new India..."


On rising petrol prices, Goyal said, "we are thinking of a long-term solution."


Talking about Railways, he said, "Our first priority is to run the trains on time...safety is also a big priority... last year rail accidents were lowest in the country's history... by March 2019 the backlog regarding laying rail tracks will be completed... We are reducing unmanned crossing year-on-year... when it comes to the security of passengers we will not compromise monetarily in any manner... We are also looking at painting the trains fresh, making interiors better and giving more amenities..."


On the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, he said, "I believe that the way PM Modi has worked hard and strived to change the lives of the common man, in 2019 the NDA will get more than 400 seats and BJP will get more than 300 seats on its own..."




Slamming Congress president Rahul Gandhi for calling PM Modi 'corrupt', Goyal said, "No one can raise a finger at PM Modi... Rahul is out on bail in National Herald case... he should explain why he went to meet Lalu Prasad... and what about 'coalgate' and other scams... tweeting nonsense will not make any difference." 


"We will keep working for the people and go to the people when the time comes for elections... I am sure that people will bring the Modi government back to power in next General Elections," he said.