Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has said that India is impacted to some extent by the global economic slowdown but expressed confidence that the country will come out of the difficult situation within a short time.

Singh, who arrived in the US on Monday for the 2019 US-India 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in Washington DC on September 18, addressed members of the Indian community at educational organisation Asia Society here at an event organised by the Consulate General of India.

He said currently the world over, there is a talk of a global economic slowdown. “I also accept that there is global economic slow downand India is also impacted by it to some extent. But I can say with full confidence that India will come out of this difficult situation in only few months’ time,” Singh said.

Singh said this was not a matter of big concern for India because the government has taken several major steps and announced economic packages to boost economic growth.

"We can face and tackle the global economic slow downonly by increasing consumer demand," he said, adding that the government has taken several structural and procedural reforms whose impact is now visible.

"Despite the global economic recession, India has not been impacted because as compared to other countries, India’s consumer demand is comparatively better. We will definitely come out of this difficultsituation,” he said.

India''s GDP growth slowed for the sixth consecutive quarterin the July-September quarter to 4.5 per cent as manufacturing slumped on lowdomestic consumption.

Singh further said that this is not the first time thatIndia is getting affected by the global economic slowdown. During the Congressgovernment, Manmohan Singh was Prime Minister, then also India was impacted bythe global economic slowdown, as well as during former Prime Minister AtalBihari Vajpayee’s time.

He stressed that the government of Prime Minister NarendraModi is a decisive government and “no one can put a question mark on PrimeMinister Modi’s decisiveness.”

Singh outlined the major measures and initiatives taken bythe Modi government to provide basic needs to people of India, includingproviding homes, building toilets to end open defecation, electricity, cookinggas and focusing on infrastructure development.

On the abrogation of Article 370 to revoke Jammu andKashmir''s special status, he said the BJP government has done what it hadpromised in 1951. “In independent India, the biggest crisis in Indian politicshas been that there has been a difference in the words and deeds of apolitician.”

He said political parties used to write a lot of things intheir election manifesto but those never used to be fulfilled after the partiescame into power.

"Because there was a difference between the words anddeeds of politicians, this lead to a crisis of credibility towards thepolitics, politicians in India. I can say with confidence that the BJP acceptedthis challenge of crisis of credibility. We have done what we said.”

In response to a question on the Sikh community, Singh saidIndia will never be able to forget the contributions of the Sikh community. “Noone has given the kind of sacrifices that the Sikh community has made toprotect the culture of India.”

US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Secretary ofDefense Mark Esper will host Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar andSingh on December 18 for the second 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue.