Montek rules out more stimulus packages

Montek rules out more stimulus packages
The Financial Express, July 22, 2009, Page 2

Press Trust of India, New Delhi

Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Tuesday ruled out any more stimulus package for industry as the Budget has given a substantial boost to the slowing economy.

“The Budget includes a very stringent boost, plan expenditure and investment ... We don’t need any more stimulus packages,” Ahluwalia told reporters here.

“We should concentrate on implementing what is there,” he said. The government has cut excise duty by 6% and service tax by 2% in three stimulus packages.

Besides, the fourth stimulus package was given in the Budget for 2009-10. About monsoon, he said, “Monsoon has improved; there was deficient rainfall but deficiency was more earlier —it has reduced now, (and) the monsoon has not ended yet, I think we should wait and see the entire month of July.”

He said if there is continuous improvement in July, the situation will not be that bad. About the impact of the delayed monsoon on GDP, he said, “Now it is too early to say about the condition of the monsoon; this is true that so far there is a problem but the impact of this could be ascertained only when we come to know the total deficiency in rainfall; if it is 5-10% deficit then there would not be much impact.” When asked about the rising prices of food articles and other commodities, he said even if wholesale price inflation is negative, prices of some commodities have surged.