AMN /
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said that Indian economy can grow at 8 to 9 per cent in a friendlier global climate. He said the world was facing a difficult situation where volatility is the norm but given a better climate and global situation, India can grow in the 8 to 9 per cent range. Mr Jaitley was participating in a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos yesterday.
He said, government is always trying to prepare itself to meet any challenges keeping in mind that exports have shrunk, currencies and stock markets are impacted. The Finance Minister said oil prices have helped the country to re-plan government expenditure. He pointed out rationalisation of subsidies as one of the biggest reforms to have happened in the country.
On the impact of bad debt on banks, Mr Jaitley said the process to de-stress banks has been initiated and government may add to the re-capitalisation of public sector lenders. He noted that RBI has already asked banks to line up the bad debts they need to sell. The Finance Minister said, the problem is not widespread and is limited to a few sectors.
Talking to a private news channel, Mr Jaitley described as preposterous, the Congress party’s demand for putting a cap on tax rate in the Constitution Bill. He said, nowhere in the world tariffs are mentioned in the statute. The minister clarified that it is not practical to take the approval of all states to change the tax rate, particularly in times of contingency. Mr Jaitley, however, noted that GST is certainly going to come.
