The Hindu : National : `Budget has vision for agriculture'

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Friday, Jul 09, 2004

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National

`Budget has vision for agriculture'

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, JULY 8. The United Progressive Alliance today hailed the budget proposals asserting that the direction was guided by the agreed Common Minimum Programme (CMP) with thrust on agriculture, rural development, irrigation and education among others. The Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, praised the Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram, for preparing a "exceedingly good job'' specially taking into consideration the fact that the Government had just four weeks for the task as against normal four to five months of preparation.

He said the budget proposals were aimed to translate the vision of CMP and in guiding the path the Government would have to follow. He allayed apprehension that the budget would fuel inflation emphasising that the Government would remain alert. "We shall remain alert. There is great emphasis on fiscal responsibility,'' he said adding that the revenue deficit was pegged at 2.5 per cent while the fiscal deficit was kept at 4.4 per cent. "This should give enough assurance that our government takes the task of fiscal consolidation very seriously,'' Dr. Singh told correspondents.

The focus of the budget, he said, was that it has a vision for agriculture, irrigation and rural development. He also pointed out that the Government had taken out 1.4 crore people out of the income tax net.

Responding to the former Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee's comment that the budget was silent on the Golden Quadrilateral project, Dr. Singh said: "good projects will continue''.

The Congress said budget proposals were in line with the promise made by the Government in CMP. "It has the fragrance of village, reflects the concerns of the poor and the deprived classes of society,'' the party spokesperson, Satyavrat Chaturvedi, said adding that it also promised to focus on neglected areas such as agriculture, plight of farmers, rural development, health, education and national security.

The Rashtriya Janata Dal chief and Railway Minister, Lalu Prasad, said the budget had undone the injustice done to Bihar by the previous NDA Government. Describing the budget as "pro-poor and pro-farmer", Mr. Prasad said it added to the prestige and the credibility of the UPA Government. "Both the Railway as well as the General budget are a credit to the new Government."

The mixed reaction from the Samajwadi Party mirrored the dilemma before the party vis-à-vis its relations with the UPA. The party welcomed the measures announced for farmers and the agricultural sector but was critical of the Government's decision not to announce a special package for Uttar Pradesh.

"The initiative for the farm sector is welcome but the discrimination against the Samajwadi Party and U.P. is there for all to see," the party general secretary, Amar Singh, said.

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