Kannur (Kerala), April 20
Terming the current inflation in the country as largely imported, finance minister Palaniappan Chidambaram today said “no Prime Minister or finance minister can ever roll back prices of essential imported goods”.
The general price rise is largely due to costly imports of essential commodities and the Centre was taking firm steps to contain it through administrative and monetary measures, he said. He pointed out that prices of crude oil, 75 per cent of which is imported by India, had gone up from $37 a barrel in 2004 to touch the $115 mark while that of all other imported goods like palm oil and metals had multiplied.
“The prevailing general price rise could be attributed to imported inflation”, the FM said.
“We can control prices of some goods but no Prime Minister or finance minister can ever roll back prices of essential imported goods,” he said at a seminar titled ‘Vision Kannur- 2020’, hosted by the district Congress Committee here. He said ‘inflationary expectations’ had also driven the price rise, triggering a steep increase in prices of construction material, including cement and steel.
Meanwhile, launching a veiled attack on the Left parties he said any ideology which undermines expansion of the economy should be rejected.
“One should come forward to repudiate any ideology which professes that growth indices are irrelevant,” he said without mentioning Left parties at a seminar organised by the district Congress Committee here.
The country achieved 8.80 per cent growth during the four-year Congress-led UPA rule, compared to 5.80 per cent in the tenure of the previous BJP led NDA government, he said.
Economic growth close to nine per cent would help India double its GDP in 10 years. However, he warned “If we stand to remain at 3.50 per cent growth rate, what the nation achieved during 50 years after Independence, we would continue to be poor for many more years”.
— PTI
