Episode 109 - India- Canada Spat, Central Vista Storm, Smart Cities, 'New India' with Hardeep Singh Puri

Hardeep Singh Puri embodies a unique blend of technocratic expertise and political acumen. Over the course of 39 years as a civil servant, he held diverse roles, including Permanent Representative to the UN and Chair of the UN Security Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee. In 2014, Hardeep Puri joined the BJP, marking the onset of his political journey. In Sep 2017, he became the Minister with Independent Charge for the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. He also served as the Minister of State for Commerce and Industry and Civil Aviation in PM Modi's cabinet. Puri presently serves as the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and the Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs in PM Modi's Cabinet. In this episode of the ANI Podcast with Smita Prakash, he underscores the pressing need for reform at the United Nations Security Council to better reflect current global realities and combat its 'paralysing' inefficiency. He shares his insights on the relationship between OPEC and consumer nations and doesn't shy away from attributing the deterioration of India-Canada ties to the Trudeau government. Puri also offers a glimpse into his experiences working with a diverse spectrum of Prime Ministers, from Rajeev Gandhi to Narasimha Rao to Narendra Modi. He sheds light on the progress of the Smart Cities Mission, initiated by the central government in 2015, and candidly assesses the opposition alliance 'India' dubbing it the 'Ghamandiya Alliance' and asserting their limitations in effectively addressing national issues.