India fighting graft the right way, says Mukesh Ambani

Mukesh Ambani, India's richest man and head of Reliance Industries Ltd, India's richest company, has sounded an optimistic note in the midst of a spate of 'scams' unearthed in recent times, saying the country is fighting corruption in a "mature" manner.

In an interview to global investment banking major Morgan Stanley, Ambani said, "I do not agree that things have turned grim for India. We should not really deprecate ourselves. We have started on the journey of systemic reforms to reduce corruption."

"The old India is making way for the new India. The transition will not be an easy ride, but I have no doubt that we are moving in the right direction," he added.

He also said that equitable income generation was a must for the country's economic growth.

"Although India is marching on a prosperous path, there is a need to do this in an equitable manner - the benefits spreading far and wide. If income generation does not happen in an equitable way, the demographic dividend that India has can work against its growth aspirations," he said.

Recently, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) had rapped the petroleum ministry and its upstream regulator, the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), for allegedly favouring Ambani-led RIL by allowing it to double gas field costs, but the company has vehemently denied the charge.

Ambani exuded confidence that the India growth story was unstoppable and the country was headed to turn from a Third World country to the third most economically powerful country in the world.