Government mandate only for interim budget: Ahluwalia

October 12th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The federal government may give up the practice of presenting an outcome budget for ministries as it has found it to be of little use with the kind of tools being currently deployed for evaluation, a top policymaker said Monday. Outcome budgets are progress reports of ministries on what they have done with the money allocated to them in the national budget that is presented in parliament each year.

August 24th, 2009 Indo-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI - India's fiscal deficit this year will not exceed 6.8 percent, Planning Commission Deputy Chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia said here Monday. "Deficit will not be more than 6.8 percent in the current fiscal,” Ahluwalia told reporters here.

July 21st, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, Montek Ahluwalia, on Tuesday said that since the budget has given a substantial boost to a slowing economy, there won't be any more stimulus packages for industry. "The Budget includes a very stringent boost, plan expenditure and investment.

July 21st, 2009 NEW DELHI - India's corporate sector does not need any more stimulus packages, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said here Tuesday. "The budget includes very significant boost in plan expenditure and investment.

July 8th, 2009 NEW DELHI - A mid-term review of the 11th Five-Year Plan (2007-12) will be conducted before the presentation of the budget for fiscal 2010-11, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said here Wednesday. "I am hopeful that the next budget will address the shortcomings of the mid-term review," Ahluwalia told reporters after the commission's first meeting since the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government assumed power for a second term.

June 8th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The government has the scope to raise funds by selling shares in state-run firms even as subsidies need to be recast to benefit the needy, Montek Singh Ahluwalia said Monday, taking over as deputy chairman of the Planning Commission for a second successive term. "There is scope to raise significant resources through selling government stakes in the state-run companies," Ahluwalia told reporters at his first press conference after he was named the deputy chief of the plan panel.

March 27th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Indian economy will log a growth of less than 7 percent this fiscal with 2009 turning 'significantly worse' as the current economic crisis was unlikely to end soon, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said Friday. 'The world is going through the worst crisis in 60 years,' Ahluwalia told the national conference and annual session of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) at the Taj Palace Hotel here.

February 15th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Monday hailed the interim budget as a 'fine balancing act', and said it will stimulate growth for the country in these difficult times. 'I have no doubt that the continued stimulus for the various flagship programmes of the government will provide relief to all sections - specially the 'aam aadmi' (common man),' the prime minister said in a statement.

February 15th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Home Minister P. Chidambaram Monday praised the interim budget tabled in parliament, saying Minister for External Affairs Pranab Mukherjee had done a commendable job given the difficult times facing the Indian economy.

February 15th, 2009 NEW DELHI - External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee began presenting the interim budget for the next fiscal amid expectations that measures will be announced to cushion the impact of global meltdown on the Indian economy, and help revive consumer demand. The exercise began with Mukherjee reading out his budget speech in the Lok Sabha, during which he will also seek an approval to finance the government's expenditure, till such time the regular budget is presented by a new government after elections, and passed by parliament.

February 15th, 2009 NEW DELHI - External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee did not present a populist budget as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government had done a 'tremendous job' and does not need to play to the gallery, the ruling Congress maintained Monday. Mukherjee observed 'constitutional propriety' while presenting the interim budget, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said.

February 15th, 2009 KOLKATA - The interim budget presented by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee did not address the problem of rising unemployment in the country due to global economic crisis, West Bengal Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta said here Monday. 'The budget failed to address consequences related to global economic crisis,' he told reporters at the Writers Buildings - the state secretariat.

February 15th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Following are the reactions from some prominent industrialists and economists to the interim budget presented by acting finance minister Pranab Mukherjee here Monday: Deepak Parekh, chairman, HDFC Bank: Not a disappointment, I did not expect anything in the interim budget. It was never meant to be a giveaway.

February 12th, 2009 RAIPUR - The interim railway budget presented Friday by Railways Minister Lalu Prasad has let down expectations of Chhattisgarh despite the fact that the state generates high revenue for the railways, Chief minister Raman Singh said here. 'The interim rail budget is disappointing, it has let down expectations of millions of people of Chhattisgarh,' said Singh in his reaction to the interim budget.

January 19th, 2009 NEW DELHI - There will be no tax breaks before the budget, the government said here Tuesday. 'I don't expect tax breaks between now and the budget session,' said Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.