Pranab Mukherjee holds pre-budget parleys with Congress leaders

September 12th, 2009 KOLKATA - Setting a personal example of austerity, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday travelled from Delhi to Kolkata in economy class of a budget airline. "It's nothing new to me.

July 19th, 2009 KOLKATA - Union Finance Minister and West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (WBPCC) President Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday ruled out any possibility of further division of West Bengal. Mukherjee said this while commenting on the indefinite bandh that has been called by Gorkha Janamukti Morcha(GJM) in the Darjeeling Hills, which has been demanding for creation of a separate state of Gorkhaland.

July 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India's fiscal budget has risen from Rs.193 crores to over Rs.10 lakh crores in the 63 years since independence of the country in 1947, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said while presenting the budget for 2009-10 in the Lok Sabha Monday. "Madam speaker, I am happy to announce that for the first time, the budget estimates have crossed Rs.10 lakh crores.

July 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will present the first general budget at 11am today in Lok Sabha. This is the first general budget of the UPA government after coming to power for second term.

July 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - A new direct tax code will be introduced in 45 days and bring changes in the indirect tax structures, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee Monday said while presenting the union budget for 2009-10 in the Lok Sabha Monday. Reiterating his commitment to expedite tax reforms, Mukherjee also said he would aim to introduce the goods and services tax by the initial deadline of April 10, 2010.

June 22nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Monday defended his decision to despatch the Central forces to Lalgarh in West Bengal, signifying Centre's commitment to provide security personnel to any state government which requests for them. "If any state government requests for paramilitary or other Central forces to tackle difficult law and order situations by following constitutional norms, the Central government will send them," said Pranab Mukherjee.

June 19th, 2009 New Delhi, June 19 (ANI): Union Food Processing Minister Subodh Kant Sahay and Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni met Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee ahead of the general budget, which is to be presented on July 6. As part of the pre-budget exercise, Mukherjee held parleys with various stakeholders, state finance ministers, industrialist groups, leading economists, trade unionists and top officials of various financial institutions.

June 15th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee Monday said the budget for fiscal 2009-10 to be presented next month would reflect the views of everyone. Emerging from a pre-budget meeting of senior party leaders that he chaired, Mukherjee told reporters at the Congress headquarters here: "We had earlier taken the suggestions of industrialists and trade unions.

May 26th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday said the government would present the budget for 2009-10 in the first week of July. "I would not like to have a second batch of vote on account.

May 25th, 2009 NEW DELHI -; Pranab Mukherjee on Monday assumed his charge as the new Finance Minister. Mukherjee was welcomed by the Finance Secretary, Revenue Secretary, Expenditure Secretary, Disinvestment Secretary, CEA, Chairman, CBDT and Chairman, CBEC.

May 23rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee Saturday promised every effort to lift the Indian economy out of the current slowdown and said the regular budget will be presented in due course. "The Indian economy remains resilient," the veteran Congress leader told reporters at his residence, soon after a Rashtrapati Bhavan communiqu named him finance minister.

April 5th, 2009 NEW DELHI - External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee has rejected BJP claims that the United Progressive Alliance is falling apart. On Sunday, Mukherjee told reporters in New Delhi that all the constituents of the alliance except PMK are still with the UPA.

March 2nd, 2009 KOLKATA - The road to a possible alliance between the Congress and the Trinamool Congress for the Lok Sabha polls looked beset with thorns Sunday, with some West Bengal Congress leaders demanding that the Trinamool bigwigs either withdraw their disparaging comments about the state Congress president or apologise. Emerging from a meeting between Congress general secretary K.

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 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.