The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, launched three gold related schemes at a function on 5th Nov-15.
The schemes are – Gold Monetization Scheme, Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme, and India Gold Coins.
On the occasion, the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi described the schemes as an example of “sone pe suhaaga” (icing on the cake). The Prime Minister said India has no reason to be described as a poor country, as it has 20,000 tonnes of gold. He said the gold available with the country should be put to productive use, and these schemes show us the way to achieve this goal. At the launch, the Prime Minister said that gold can be a great tool for women empowerment and that they would be the biggest beneficiaries of the new schemes. He further added that the reason behind the success of these schemes will be the women of India. He also said that the gold bonds will be more beneficial than physical gold.
Shri Narendra Modi described the launch of the India Gold Coins, bearing the Ashok Chakra, as a matter of pride for the nation. He said people would no longer have to depend on foreign minted gold bullion or coins. The Prime Minister also launched a website on these schemes
“ http://finmin.nic.in/swarnabharat”, and distributed Certificates of Investment to six initial investors.
Earlier, addressing the gathering, the Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that gold lying with an individual can be a personal savings but it does not contribute in the development of the country. He said that from now on, gold will not only be an instrument of security but will also give earnings and will become part of nation building. Finance Minister Shri Jaitley further said the import of gold will come down with the launch of these gold related three schemes on 5th Nov-15.
He expressed hope that citizen would take advantage of these three schemes. The Union Minister of State (I/c) for Commerce Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman and the Union Minister of State for Finance Shri Jayant Sinha were present on the occasion among others.