New Delhi, February 28
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today hailed the General Budget 2005-06 as a “growth-oriented” one with focus on rural development and employment generation in line with promises made in the National Common Minimum Programme.

Appreciating Finance Minister P Chidambaram for presenting an “outstanding” Budget, Dr Singh said, “He (Mr Chidambaram) has done an outstanding job and worked very hard to produce a Budget which measures up to the challenges of our time.”

“Mr Chidambaram deserves all the credit...The Budget will live up to meet challenges of the time,” Dr Singh said.

The Prime Minister said the Budget has provided massive allocation to vital sectors such as health, education, rural roads and rural sanitation to provide necessary momentum to the growth process.

Dr Singh asserted that the tax reforms spelt out in the Budget are aimed at providing relief to the common man and at the same time ensuring that the growth momentum in the corporate sector is not affected.

“This Budget targets increasing employment. We will try to fulfil whatever promises made to people in the National Common Minimum Programme (MCMP),” he said.

He said the ‘Bharat Nirman’ scheme announced in the President’s address to the joint sitting of Parliament is aimed at changing the face of rural India and the Centre would work with the state governments to make life in villages “liveable”.

The Prime Minister said the budget would focus on infrastructure development and telephone connectivity in rural areas.

He said the proposal to bring an additional one crore hectares of land under irrigation would give a boost to the agriculture sector.

“When one crore hectares come under irrigation, it will change the face of rural India beyond recognition,” he said.

On Chidambaram’s proposal to impose a 0.01 per cent tax on withdrawal from banks of Rs 10,000 in one day, Dr Manmohan Singh said, “I think it is a tax which is not going to impose an unnecessary burden on the common man”.

The food-for-work programme, being implemented in 150 districts across the country, would be extended to all areas after the enactment of the Employment Guarantee Act.

The setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for the infrastructure sector, as proposed in the Budget with an initial allocation of Rs 10 crore, would provide an impetus to public-private partnership and help expand the infrastructure facilities.

“If this programme succeeds, we can build on this to modernise roads, ports, airports and tourism,” the Prime Minister said.