Front Page   

Fractured mandates cause difficulties: Manmohan

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Tuesday that “competitive politics” and “very fractured mandates” had made it difficult for governments to do what was “manifestly obvious.”

Delivering the keynote address at the McKinsey Board Meeting, he said: “I don’t think there is any lack of thinking on what needs to be done to sustain and further accelerate growth. There is also fairly wide recognition of the importance of this agenda. However, given the nature of competitive politics and the very fractured mandates given to governments, it has become difficult sometimes for us to do what is manifestly obvious.”

Dwelling at length on the economy, Dr. Singh said the nine per cent growth that the country had sustained year after year in the recent past was not a “flash in the pan.” But much more was needed to be done and the government was committed to making the growth process more “socially inclusive.”

While the government was duty-bound to focus on equity, the Prime Minister underlined the fact that an open economy could not ignore or neglect efficiency. “We have to ensure that competitive pressures are maintained in all markets. We have to ensure that the productivity of resource utilisation is increased.” Advocating a judicious mix of equity and efficiency considerations in policy initiatives, he said the public-private partnership mode was an “effective means of combining the two.”

Of particular concern, according to him, were the inter-regional disparities in development, more so because there had been no “catching-up effect.” Stating that large continental economies were bound to have inter-regional disparities, he said: “However, we cannot afford to see this gap between our developed and backward regions persist.”

In this context, Dr. Singh said the State governments had a crucial role as implementation of social and human development programmes was in their hands. “If we can improve the administrative capacity of State governments, we can do much more in making the growth process more socially inclusive.”

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Early winter session likely
UNPA-Left for common approach in Parliament
Women suicide squads may target Benazir
Fractured mandates cause difficulties: Manmohan
Damage to Ambedkar statue sparks protests in Madurai
Nuclear deal: Manmohan hopeful of solution
Stormy session likely in Puducherry
Gambari seeks concrete action for democracy in Myanmar
Indian, PoK nationals cross over for reunion
Chidambaram: India will not impose capital controls
CBI questions Rahman’s wife, mother-in-law
Maternity scheme norms: order reserved
‘Let your bowling do the talking’
100 injured in fire
Emergency landing
MSP hike for paddy doubtful
‘Total dependence on rice not advisable’
Entrepreneurs likely to get free training
State meeting place for extremists: Kodiyeri
Tax collection doubles at Walayar
M.P. Prakash knocks on the doors of Congress
Employed receive unemployed relief assistance
PMK will float new front for next Assembly polls, says Ramadoss

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu