M. Govinda Rao, economist, said that a budget focusing on reforms was needed to speed up the rate of growth and generate employment opportunities. He was delivering a special lecture on the theme ‘Accelerating economic growth in India: Agenda for reforms’ at the Justice K. S. Hegde Institute of Management at Nitte in Udupi district on February 17.
Dr. Rao, who is also a former member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, said that reforms need not necessarily be confined to the budget process. Reforms could be carried out outside the budget also.
He argued for three different but necessary policy measures, enhancing public investment containing, containing fiscal deficit and formulating counter cyclical fiscal policy. It remained to be seen whether and to what extent these policies would be formulated by the Union government, he said.
Dr. Rao said that development of railways in Odisha, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh would be helpful to increase the production of coal. But the development of railways had been lackadaisical.
Pointing out that inclusive growth should not mean services led growth, he said that the country was in need of growth led by manufacturing sector.
‘This is needed
to generate
employment and speed up growth rate’
