New Delhi, February 15
Worried over rising prices of essential commodities, the government has decided to be upfront on the issue, expected to figure prominently in President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s Address to a joint sitting of Parliament on the opening day of the Budget session on February 23.
While discussing the text of the presidential Address at its meeting today, the Cabinet decided not to shy away from the issue and confront it head on in the speech.
Inflation came in for special mention during the meeting when a number of ministers, including Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, expressed concern over the shooting up of prices and wanted a special discussion on the issue.
His colleague, Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, had raised this issue at the last Cabinet meeting.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held out an assurance while Finance Minister P. Chidambaram agreed that inflation had been spiralling.
The reasons for the price rise and the government’s efforts to deal with the issue were expected to be enumerated in the speech.
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar’s handling of his ministry came in for indirect criticism from the Finance Minister, who spoke of how the foodgrain crisis had contributed to rising prices.
Faced with increasing pressure from within, the government resorted to a cut in petrol and diesel prices and banned wheat export yesterday.
It had also promised to take several more measures in the coming days to put brakes on the upward inflationary trend.
The presidential Address was expected to skirt the issue of FDI in retail while the SEZ issue was likely to be mentioned in the context of the rehabilitation policy being prepared for the persons displaced.
