The full Planning Commission will meet on Tuesday for a mid-term appraisal of the XI Five-Year Plan. The meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will broadly discuss the state of the Indian economy, with emphasis on drought and the rural economy.
The meeting is expected to be a stock-taking endeavour in which sectoral and growth targets for the XI Plan period ending March 31, 2012, will be assessed and possible revisions might be decided.The ministers in charge of key portfolios like finance, home affairs and agriculture will also be present.
The meet is also expected to review the integrated energy policy (IEP), which was approved by the Cabinet last December. The IEP had made about 110 suggestions, of which action has been taken on around 30.
Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia had earlier told reporters: “There has been progress on some of the recommendations of IEP and others have progressed a little. The meeting would be a status assessment, as energy is essential for our development. As a run up to the mid-term appraisal, we will brief the members on the key issues in IEP.”
The Commission is also expected to discuss allocations under various government welfare schemes. “Because of the economic slowdown, the allocations under the Plan have gone for a toss and there are chances of some revision in the meeting,” said a Commission official.
Officials have also indicated that discussion might take place on increasing the subsidy on food. However, Ahluwalia had earlier made clear that any such increase will not affect the fiscal deficit target set by the government, at 6.8 per cent for the current financial year.
