 "Pranab takes on criticism on stimulus of 2008-09")
“In hindsight, we can say that we did not understand the depth of the crisis at that point of time. So, immediately we had to rush, and like most other countries, we provided a stimulus package to ensure that fastest sliding down of the GDP growth leading to unemployment could be arrested,” Mukherjee told Euro News prior to his state visit to Belgium and Turkey.
The president said when he took over as the finance minister, India’s GDP growth was sliding down on a “fortnightly basis.”
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Before that, Indian GDP was growing at a fast rate of 9 per cent plus, he added.
Mukherjee said it was agreed in the G20 too at that time that there should be a requirement of providing a stimulus package to address the current problem.
Earlier, Finance Minister P Chidambaram had told the Rajya Sabha that there are not just external factors, but also domestic factors responsible for the current economic woes. “One of the domestic factors is that we allowed fiscal deficit to be breached and we allowed current account deficit to swell because of certain decisions that we took during the period 2009 to 2011.”
This was the time when Mukherjee was the finance minister.
Later, Chidambaram had clarified that he did not mean to target anyone and defended the stimulus as a necessity then. In the same house, the finance minister had stated he blamed none. “We allowed the current account deficit to swell and fiscal deficit to be breached. We includes all of us in the government and, in a sense, all of us in Parliament.”
To a query, the President said India is indeed introducing reforms to tackle problems. However, he said the economic model of India cannot be a copycat of the West, relying only on manufacturing and services.
“But in India, we cannot afford to adopt that model because I have to feed 1.2 billion plus people.Therefore, I shall have to emphasise on agriculture, I shall have to emphasise on the development of rural India which is more than 70 per cent of our total population, of the huge population of 1.2 billion plus people.”
To a criticism of the food security bill that the money could be better spent on education, sanitation and health etc, Mukherjee said these areas do not clash with each other. “One does not cancel the other. Nothing prevents from improving sanitation, nothing prevents from improving health, education.”
When asked about the Comprehensive Economic Partnershhip Agreement or CEPA with the European Union, Mukherjee said only a few differences are left and the pact should now be clinched.
The president evaded a direct reply on key issues in the next general polls in India, saying, “I have tremendous faith and confidence on the political wisdom of the Indian electorate. They know which outfit is to be chosen by them to further their interests, economic development, inclusive growth, maintenance of law and order, protection of internal security and protection from external threat.”
At a time when there is branding of a particular leader, Mukherjee was asked whether it is important to have a charismatic leader to win elections in 2014. To this, Mukherrjee replied that the results of polls would tell whether the charsima prevailed or not.
“...as a political activist, we talk during the election of a wave or wind. But wave or wind can be found out only once it is over. When it is coming or when it is blowing, nobody can say where the wind is blowing or the wave is moving.”