COMMENTARY
INTERVIEW
SPECIALS
CHAT
ARCHIVES

PM promises more transparency in policy making

Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral on Tuesday assured Indian industry that the government would introduce greater transparency in policy-making and act as a facilitator for enhancing the productivity of all sectors.

The government would also hold discussions with the interest groups concerned to make policy-making participatory, Gujral said while inaugurating the 70^th annual general meeting of the federation of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

"The government will provide the maximum facilities to industrialists, farmers, professionals, workers and all other sectors to enhance productivity. Information flow will have to undergo a transition," he added.

The government, he said, is aware of the pressing need for enhanced economic growth. "There is an equally strong need for us to take into consideration the requirements of our people. Government is, therefore, attempting a modified approach to economic development, which attempts at balancing economic growth and social equity in a democratic environment."

The government, Gujral said, is determined to move ahead and not allow temporary bottlenecks to come in the way.

The Ninth Plan, the prime minister said, will aim for a 4.5 per cent growth rate in the agricultural sector. "Without a robust and fast growing agricultural sector, neither economic growth nor alleviation of poverty and eradication of massive unemployment is possible. We must, therefore, ensure that there is adequate investment in this area to achieve a respectable growth rate," he declared.

In order to realise the growth rate of seven per cent which the country had envisaged for 1997-2002, the gross investment needs to increase to 28 to 30 per cent of GDP.

"This is not a tall order. Our domestic savings have already reached a level of 25.6 per cent and investment 27.4 per cent in 1995-96. With further efforts to increase savings and the foreign direct investment inflows, we can even exceed the target," he added.

The prime minister said the government was making considerable efforts towards promoting private investment in the infrastructure sector, "the cornerstone of India's ambitious economic programme."

The government has already liberalised investment norms in the infrastructure sectors. "I am taking a personal interest in expediting the process," Gujral said. Besides being offered fiscal incentives, several new institutions have been created to support initiatives to attract investment in the infrastructure sector. Regulatory authorities are being set up and requisite legislative measures are also on the anvil.

Referring to the tax regime, the prime minister said the government is now making efforts to broadbase the tax structure and making the tax administration stricter to enforce compliance. "Apart from tax reforms, the process of fiscal consolidation has also focused on restructuring the loss-making public sector enterprises and on curbing low-priority government revenue expenditure".

He said the government would welcome investments inflows wherever these are crucial for achieving high growth since these flows help the economy to complement the available resources.

The prime minister said while market-oriented and less-regulated regime increases competition and greater efficiency, it would not imply an "abdication by the state of its responsibilities."

Gujral stressed growth cannot be an end in itself. "It is no doubt a powerful antidote to pervasive poverty, but the growth process should not result in high human and social cost," he said.

Underscoring the need for growth in the agricultural sector, he said the Ninth Plan would aim for 4.5 per cent growth in the agricultural sector.

The basic requirements of housing, sanitation, schools and hospitals in the rural areas, extended townships, clusters, and emerging metros need to be urgently provided. He said investment in the social sector was well below the targets. "This was particularly so in the crucial areas of education, health, family welfare and housing. This will not repeated in the Ninth Plan," he promised.

The prime minister said there is a need for the government to withdraw from those activities that the private sector is in a position to undertake competently. But he stressed that "this does not mean a dilution of the government's responsibility, but only a more effective use of the government's resources and energy."

Earlier in his speech, FICCI President A S Kasliwal said that the common man has been neglected through six years of economic reforms. He pointed out that while a huge number of luxurious passengers cars are now being manufactured in India, the common man still struggles to travel in outdated buses and the mass rapid transport system has remained on paper. There was, he insisted, an urgent need to correct this.

UNI