HYDERABAD: Predicting a buoyant economy in the next fiscal too, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram has assured the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) partners that moving ahead with economic reforms did not mean a blow to the social agenda. Social concerns as well as matters related to fiscal discipline would be dealt with fully, he added.

Committed to poor

Addressing a press conference on the sidelines of the 82nd All India Congress Committee plenary here on Sunday, Mr. Chidambaram said the Government's commitment to the underprivileged would not be diluted when it further experiments with the fiscal policy to improve the growth rate to 8 per cent. He refused to be drawn into a discussion on the import of his statements on the coming budget that he would present in Parliament next month.

The Government would continue to pursue its policies aimed at strengthening resource mobilisation, including expansion of tax base as suggested by the party, improving tax administration and a launching a drive against tax evasion. He would hold consultations with the Left parties on February 2 to discuss the issue of taxing the super rich class. "I have the memorandum of the Left on hand and we are always open to suggestions," he said. Asked whether the salaried middle class would be able to enjoy a tax-free or, at least, a returns-free regime, he said: "The basket of exemption is already a large one at Rs.1 lakh. There is no tax on savings up to Rs.1 lakh any more. The salaried class certainly deserves it. The benefit of these measures depends on the size of the family and the spending habits."

The UPA Government led by the Congress had always tried to accommodate the opinions of coalition partners but "decisions are ultimately made by the Congress," he said, and reiterated that there was no move to divest from the `Navratnas.' "It does not mean that disinvestment is put on the backburner. We will disinvest only a small portion of equity from the non-Navratna companies and divert the money to the pool of the National Investment Fund," he added.

Likewise, he said: "There is no move to increase the price of wheat or rice to the Below Poverty Line families. As our food stocks have come down from a fairly large quantity to normal levels, we have only sought a marginal cut in the quantity to be supplied."

Referring to the objections of the Left parties to the economic policies, he said their opposition had not impeded the growth rate that had already crossed 6.9 per cent. Hence, there was no reason to discontinue these policies. "In fact, the party is egging the Government to go for a 10 per cent growth during the Eleventh Plan."

Earlier, the draft resolution placed before the plenary earlier appreciated the launch of the Bharat Nirman programme of six components such as irrigation, roads, housing, drinking water, electricity and telecom and suggested the inclusion of sanitation and maintenance of sewage system. It suggested that under no circumstances, the fund from the public sector be used for meeting the revenue expenditure. Transparent norms for foreign direct investment, strengthening of the supply chain for retail sector and concessional credit to it were some other suggestions at the plenary.

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