Finance minister: The capacity of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) as on April 1, 2002, was 279 lakh tonnes. It came down to 236 lakh tonnes on April 1, 2004, as 33 lakh tonnes of the godown space was de-hired. Since April 1, 2004, FCI has added... storage capacity taking the total... to 298.38 lakh tonnes as on January 1, 2011. This is important because we want storage facility to prevent the products of the farmers from being wasted.
Comment: Tell that to the farmers.
FM: For five to six years, I travelled five kms on foot in the fields to go to my high school. Do not teach me what a village is. When many a people living in a totally different atmosphere speak, I simply laugh. It is because I know what a village is. I come from a village. I am a village boy. Till my graduation, I stayed in a village, and not in Connaught Place. Therefore, I know it… (interruptions). Yes, a ‘global village’ because the whole world is going to be converted into a village. I believe prosperity and development go together, and not in isolation. I read Rabindranath, please remember one line.… (interruptions).
It is not from Gitanjali. You have heard only of Gitanjali. While talking on untouchability, “if you keep somebody behind you, don’t forget that he will drag you to his level. You cannot move upward when you keep someone behind you”. Therefore, I believe we should prosper together, develop together, go together. And, for that, I request all of you to come together because otherwise this major economic crisis cannot be resolved.
You said if you cannot do it, you leave it. Neither I am to leave it nor accept it. It is for the people of this country. I know you are impatient. But, why do you not wait for two-and-a-half years more? What prevents you?
In almost 40 years of my parliamentary life, I have spent more than half of it sitting on the other side. Therefore, there is no need of telling such things in a parliamentary system. If we convert Parliament, the highest and sovereign legislature into a demonstration platform, do you expect that anybody would have the confidence in the system of this country? Can you tell me a single session, from the 14th Lok Sabha till this session, which has taken place without disturbance? Therefore, you are desperate. It is because nowadays we have developed a strategy of not only discussion, but discussion on a subject that we want under a particular rule, on a particular motion. Discussion is immaterial here, whether it will be Adjournment Motion or not.
Adjournment has its own rules. These rules are not made by anybody else, but by ourselves. I have told you to change the rules umpteen times . You are the masters. Sit in the rules committee and change the rule. If it is a lively issue that can be brought under an Adjournment Motion, the House will be conducted like that.
Somebody asked me as to why we do not advise the states, so that the oil prices come down. How can I advise the states? From where will the states get revenue? Am I in a position to compensate them for this Rs 1,21,000 crore? Tell me, how can oil prices be reduced? I am ready to accept your suggestions. Should we wind up our public sector oil companies? Around Rs 1,32,000 crore would be the under-recovery with the present rate of the blend crude prices. Therefore, partly it will be met through subsidies. Subsidies will have to be given.
Therefore, if we want to address the issue of subsidy, why don’t we sit together and find out that subsidies could be given to certain sectors. Why are we demanding subsidies? Some others will demand interest subventions. Everywhere we will demand subsidies. Then, from where will the developmental resources come?
Now, I am coming to the issue of what would be the final picture as it is emerging today. I am hopeful that if this trend continues and if it is not really seasonal and fluctuating, the food inflation would be moderated. Why I am saying so? It is because I have noticed the figures of seven consecutive weeks, and there has been some declining trend.
Questions have been raised that the government’s revenue is coming down. The government’s revenue is not coming down, despite slow growth up to now. I do not know what would happen in November, December and January. I am not an astrologer, but up till now, the direct taxes revenue growth is around 22 per cent and indirect taxes is a little less than that. But, with regard to direct taxes, I think we have taken the correct decisions.
My net has become less because we have upfronted the refund. Last year, we refunded around Rs 27,000 crore indirect taxes during this period. This year, we have to do Rs 68,000 crore, and we have decided to have it upfront. This created some cash management problem. And, I had to borrow some money.
The problem, which you have apprehended, may come if the manufacturing sector’s growth does not pick up from eight per cent to 10 per cent, or 10 per cent to 12 per cent. Now, it is low. Growth in the manufacturing sector is needed. It is well below this, and for it, we will have to create confidence. To my mind, confidence can be created collectively by us to allow the institutions to function and to create a conducive atmosphere where investments come.
I am saying something, which I had mentioned in the last debate also, but I think it is worth repeating. Yashwant Sinha had showed me the picture of India Today’s cover story that some of the top Indian industrialists are saying, “Goodbye India, hello world”. So, jokingly, I told him that we can change this picture if you and I — I mean, all political parties and not individuals — can collectively work together and create confidence that whatever be our divergence of views on major economic issues, which will benefit the country, we will work together. And, you will see the confidence will come back, and those very people will say : “Tata world, home sweet home”, and they will come back to India.
Excerpts from finance minister Pranab Mukherjee’s reply to the debate on high prices and the state of the economy in the Lok Sabha on December 9
