Economic slowdown is short-term: PM

Inaugurating the 56th meeting of the National Development Council (NDC), Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said that economic slowdown in the country is a short-term phenomenon, and urged the nation to guard against the “mood of negativism.”

He said that since the UPA came to power, the economy in the last seven years has grown at an average of 8.5 percent. He added that the slowdown should be viewed in the backdrop of sluggish growth in the developed world and that developments in the neighbouring country and the world economy must be considered while charting out the Twelfth Fifth Plan.

He said that the 12th Plan must “Provide a policy environment in which the creative spirit of our farmers and entrepreneurs is given full support and encouragement.” Secondly, the government must develop infrastructure in both rural and urban areas to support inclusive growth.

He also said that the government must aim at increasing the income of the poor and ensure that every citizen has access to to essential public services, without which inclusive growth is not possible.

Talking about the government’s inclusive strategy, Manmohan Singh said that agriculture growth, with the help of MNREGA has resulted in increasing the rural income considerably. But, he noted that education and health will remain the focal area of the inclusive strategy.

While admitting that there is lack of transparency in implementation of central schemes, Singh said that “Twelfth Plan provides an opportunity to streamline and restructure Centrally Sponsored Schemes to overcome these gaps.”

Watch video:Speaking at the NDC meet, the Prime Minister warned about an economic slowdown citing the global economic crisis.