New Delhi, November 21
Even as his government grapples with the impact of the global economic meltdown in the election season, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today expressed confidence that India would emerge stronger from this crisis and said the country had the ability to sustain a growth rate of about 8 per cent.
Noting that the global economy was going through ‘choppy waters’, he called upon all political formations in the country not to divide people in the name of religion, caste or region while pursuing competitive politics.
“The message of the economic and social crisis now gripping the world is also that extremist ideologies, political or economic, have harmful consequences. The idea of India, based on the rejection of extremes, respect for diversity and pluralism and the acceptance of the middle path, offers new pathways to progress for humanity in distress,” Singh said inaugurating the two-day Hindustan Times Leadership Summit here.
Sonia Gandhi, UPA chairperson and Congress president, also addressed the gathering, consisting of intellectuals, politicians, bureaucrats, diplomats, journalists and many eminent personalities.
Reiterating that a growth rate of about 8 per cent was possible, Singh declared that his government was determined to do so, adding no instrument of public policy would be spared to address the shortage of demand. “When nations have tilted to extremes, they have either hurt themselves or harmed the world at large. To regain balance, they have always had to return to the middle path of social and economic progress.”
Singh, himself a renowned economist, said even at the G-20 summit in Washington last week, he had urged world leaders to recognise the inter-dependencies of nations and their stake in a collective future. “We need a global safety net so that the poor of the world do not pay a price for the profligacy of the rich, and the delinquency of a few. Global problems require global solutions. Global institutions of governance must be made more inclusive and more representative. The
voice of the developing world must be heard in the high councils of global decision-making.”
Singh said the Indian economy had weathered more severe economic meltdown in 1991 and later during the Asian currency crisis. “This (present) crisis was not made in our country but elsewhere…due to the interdependency (of the world economies), we are in the same boat.” His government had anticipated the economic slowdown and taken measures in the budget.
Speaking soon after the Prime Minister, Sonia gave her own prescriptions to the government to meet the challenge posed to India by the economic slowdown. Strongly defending liberalisation, she said this must be pursued within a framework of sensible but heavy-handed regulation.
Concerned over the likely implications of the global crisis on the Indian economy which could severely affect her party’s prospects in the ongoing assembly pools, being considered ‘mini general elections’, and the Lok Sabha polls later, Sonia provided to the audience a glimpse of her party’s view on how best to mitigate its adverse, particularly the ‘aam admi’ (common man).
“What concerns us most today is that this economic upheaval could grievously effect the most vulnerable sections of our society. The poor had nothing to do with the habits of the rich,” the Congress chief said, in a well-drafted speech, she could have read at any of her election meetings.
She went on to add: It is our duty to ensure whatever action we take in response to the turmoil protects them (poor). The Prime Minister himself has stressed this, and this remains our firm commitment.”
Invoking the memory of her mother-in-law Indira Gandhi, Sonia recalled how her decision to nationalise banks had provided stability and resilience to the Indian economy in the face of financial slowdown. “But I believe equally that much more effort must go into making sure that our public systems are made vastly more efficient and responsive. This means adopting a more creative approach to enhance the impact and value of public expenditures. This approach has to be anchored in collaborative partnerships.”
