The Planning Commission on Thursday described the International Monetary Fund's growth projection of 8.8 per cent for India as optimistic and said the panel would stick to its outlook.
The government plans to resurrect the ministry of disinvestment in a bid to raise resources by selling its shareholding in public sector companies.
The Planning Commission on Monday said investment in the infrastructure sector in the Eleventh Five-Year Plan (2007-12) will be close to the target of $500 billion, thanks to a better-than-expected show by the telecom sector
Moreover, 'no-go' areas need not be excluded for mining activities for ever, Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said.
In order to help the industry combat the impact of global financial crisis, the government had provided three stimulus packages to the industry resulting in a revenue sacrifice of Rs 1.86 lakh crore (Rs 1.86 trillion).
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said, "I do not claim victory. These are ideas which are under discussion in various fora. The sherpas have been discussing these ideas and it is a process of give and take. But I do claim some credit that in my speech, I brought the development issue into the very forefront of sustainable, manageable growth process."
Brazil, Russia, India & China (known collectively as BRIC) on Sunday sought a re-balancing of representation on the executive board and the International Monetary and Financial Committee of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The committee is the policy-making arm of the IMF.
The Planning Commission on Tuesday said it expected industrial production to beat last year's growth and attributed the revival to various stimulus measures. His comments came after latest government data showed that factory production grew 11.7 per cent in November last year.
Following widespread drought and floods in various parts of the country, food inflation climbed to more than a 10-year high of 19.95 per cent in December, driven mainly by higher prices of potato, other vegetables and pulses.
Emerging economies can expand at a "reasonable pace" in the next four to five years even if growth in developed nations is moderate, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said.
In an apparent attack on the previous united front and NDA governments for neglecting agriculture, the planning commission on Monday asked the centre to "correct" farm policies in view of the deceleration in the sector witnessed since 1996.
The country's new home minister, Palaniappan Chidambaram, today said he prefers a Congressman as his successor in the finance ministry, setting off speculation about the implication of his statement.
In view of declining inflation and recessionary conditions, the Planning Commission expects industry to cut prices in the normal course to battle economic slowdown.
No other corporate house in India is in a better position than Tata group for the takeover of debt-laden airline Air India, former deputy chairman of erstwhile Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia said on Thursday. Tata Sons has emerged as the top bidder for the takeover of the state-run airline but the bid is yet to be approved by a group of ministers headed by Home Minister Amit Shah. "You can't have a better corporate, with a better position than the Tatas, we can hand it (state-run airline Air India) over," he said while replying to a question in a virtual event.
India's per capita green house gas (GHG) emission in 2030 will be well below those in the developed countries in 2005, according to a report.
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Tuesday said that poor monsoon will adversely impact farm production and trim economic growth.
Indian industry began this financial year on a strong foot, with robust growth of 17.6 per cent in April. This has surpassed analyst expectations and fuelled concerns of a rate hike by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
The Rs 67,700-crore (Rs 677 billion) revenue boost from the auction of 3G spectrum licences will help the government reduce its borrowings in the current fiscal, Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said.
The Planning Commission on Monday lowered the target for construction of roads under the NHDP scheme to 2,500 km for the current fiscal from 3,165 km in the previous year, which was not met by the road ministry.
The Planning Commission on Monday set targets to augment the country's infrastructure this fiscal, including adding 20,359 MW of power generation capacity and 2,500 km of highways, its Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said.
He is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia during his visit.
Blaming earlier policies for "discriminating" against labour intensive sectors and leading to "significant deceleration" in employment, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Friday
"They (prices of petroleum products) should be linked to world prices," Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia told PTI when asked about the global crude prices now surging to about $70 a barrel.
The Planning Commission on Tuesday said the Reserve Bank's decision to tighten the money supply will not have any impact on growth and the economy would do better than 8 per cent expansion rate projected by the central bank.
'We want the PM to be aware of the autocratic behaviour of the bureaucracy,' says CPI leader D Raja.
The government is planning to utilize $5 billion worth of foreign exchange reserves for infrastructure development this fiscal.
The government is formulating a standard concession agreement for roads, ports and airports, expected to be ready by later this year.
India should learn to live with high energy prices for rapid economic growth, said Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia after two of the state-owned oil companies hiked petrol rates this week.
The Planning Commission on Friday said that high inflation, primarily driven by rising food prices, is likely to ease in the next few months on the back of an expected good rabi crop.
A core group of ministers on Wednesday held inconclusive deliberations on a proposal to raise fuel prices, necessitated by a spike in global crude prices that threatens to spawn an oil import crisis.
The campaign aims to raise 1.25 billion pounds, and begins at a high profile international event in London on Wednesday. The launch event at the British Academy features the university's chancellor Lord Chris Patten, and vice-chancellor John Hood. Oxonians from various fields and countries have been roped in to raise funds that will be used to meet rising costs and steep competition from American universities.
Indian economic growth had slowed down to 6.7 per cent during 2008-09 due to the impact of global financial crisis from average of 8.7 per cent in the previous five years.
The summit in Korea, Ahluwalia pointed out, was the first to be held in a newly developed nation, as well as in Asia, home to many emerging nations. With the financial crisis that necessitated the meeting of minds in 2008 a thing of the past, Korea is keen to bring development to the forefront.
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Monday expressed confidence that in the years to come India could emerge as the fastest growing economy in the world, beating China as the nation has yet to achieve its full growth potential.
They are of the view that calling the new institutes "IITs" would dilute the brand image of the existing premier institutes, which figure among the world's 100 best technology universities and are compared with the likes of MIT, California University and Berkeley. The seven IITs are located in Kharagpur, Mumbai, Chennai, Kanpur, Delhi, Guwahati and Roorkee.
The government is likely to raise the Gross Budgetary Support (GBS)-- the amount of assistance provided by the Centre for Plan schemes-- by 15 per cent to Rs 2.60 lakh crore during 2010-11.
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