NEW DELHI: The Indian government’s monthlong budget session began on a stormy note yesterday with legislators belonging to opposition parties shouting slogans against the hike in petrol and diesel prices that came into effect at 12 a.m.
The agitated legislators have demanded the hike be withdrawn and called it parliamentary impropriety on it being announced on the eve of the budget session without sanction from the Cabinet.
The stormy scenes forcing repeated adjournments of budge session overshadowed the Economic Survey 2008-09 tabled by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. The survey has set a disinvestment target of Rs.250 billion and called for permitting foreign direct investment (FDI) of up to 49 percent in key sectors like insurance and defense. Seeking end of state monopoly in several areas, the survey suggests a reduced role for government in railways, and coal and nuclear power.
According to the survey, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Schemes (NREGS) benefited 45 million households in 2008-09. “This is a significant jump over the 33.9 million households covered under the scheme during 2007-08,” the survey stated. Mukherjee will present the budget in the Lok Sabha on July 6. The survey carried little relevance yesterday with legislators agitated at the hike in petrol prices. Soon after the House assembled, led by the left bloc, opposition members were on their feet. They demanded an immediate withdrawal of the increase in petrol and diesel prices. It was a tough task handling agitated legislators for Meira Kumar, the first woman speaker of Lok Sabha. She allowed a discussion on the issue after two adjournments. Petroleum Minister Murli Deora later assured a reduction in keeping with a fall in global crude rates. This did not satisfy opposition members. They were on their feet again when the House reassembled after a break.
Shouting anti-government slogans, legislators of the left parties and the Samajwadi Party gathered near the speaker’s podium. Deputy Speaker Kariya Munda tried pacifying them to allow the House to function. He gave up in less than five minutes and adjourned the House for the day. Even Congress’s allies voiced protest against the hike. Legislators belonging to Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which is a partner in the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA), were demanding a withdrawal of the hike.
Questioning the timing of the hike, Sushma Swaraj, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s deputy leader in the House, said: “Who is the government helping by this decision in such a hush-hush manner? The (oil sector) public sector undertakings are not running at a loss, they are in profit.” Swaraj said the announcement of the hike on the eve of the budget session “violated the principle of parliamentary propriety.”
The Finance Ministry’s snapshot of the economy was largely upbeat and said the outlook for a resumption in the medium term to India’s robust rate of growth before the global economic downturn was achievable if the government embraces reforms.
India could see growth this year of roughly 7 percent and then resume the faster expansion of recent years, provided it makes sweeping reforms including removal of fuel subsidies and accelerates infrastructure development, the report said.
“India should be back on the new trend growth path of 8.5 to 9 percent per annum provided the critical policy and institutional bottlenecks are removed,” the report added.
The Indian economy grew at 9 percent or more in the three years that ended in March 2008.
— With input from agencies
