The first money lesson a child should learn is the habit of saving, says Nirmala Sitharaman

The government is focussing on four “I”s infrastructure, investment, innovation and inclusivity to realise the goal set for 2047

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said the first thing children should practise is to save money before they want to buy something and savings should be the first lesson every child learns.

Ms. Sitharaman was responding to a question, “What is the powerful money lesson that every student should learn”, posed by a class 5 student at an informal interaction organised by Citizens’ Council, Mangaluru.

Calling Rishan, a student with St. Aloysius Gonzaga School in the city, onto the stage, the Finance Minister said she would not have thought about this question when she was in class 5.

Syndicate Bank that had its birth in coastal Karnataka had a catchy one-liner “let your first expenditure be savings”, Ms. Sitharaman said, and also remembered the innovative Pigmy collection scheme introduced by the bank.

Children should learn to handle money with a certain responsibility, she said. With digital and plastic money in use, parents should be more careful before letting children use them.

Responding to another question from Akash M. Rao on India’s position in financial ecosystem compared to China, Ms. Sitharaman said the policy was clear on supporting the manufacturing sector through productivity and employability linked incentives. Because of the impetus given to Defence production about five years ago, the country was in a position even to export Defence products, the Minister said.

Responding to Lakshman Pai, Ms. Sitharaman said the Union government did not give step-motherly treatment to Karnataka in devolution of funds. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was attempting to muddy the waters to confuse educated voters. Similar was the case with the Kerala Chief Minister, she added.

In her introductory address, Ms. Sitharaman said India could climb up the economic ladder because of strong leadership and continuation of policies. While very few incumbent governments in over 50 countries that went for polls post the pandemic returned to power, the NDA government was an exception

If there was any anti-incumbency, Prime Minister Narendra Modi would not have reached the present position, she said.

Though the government could effectively face challenges posed by COVID-19, there were other challenges ahead, she said, adding a strong government was capable of facing them. The government was focussing on the four “Is”: infrastructure, innovation, investment, and inclusivity to realise the goal set for 2047, Ms. Sitharaman said.

Published - November 14, 2024 07:00 am IST