Second generation reforms will be delayed

quot;Large-scale activities cannot be taken up by the caretaker government, but routine functions would continue,quot; he said adding that the political consensus shown in passing the budget was a positive step.

Reforms which had already been initiated would continue although new ones would be delayed, Confederation of Indian Industry CII deputy director general M Roy said.

quot;Bills on which the standing committee has given its approval need not be kept pending and if a political consensus can push them through, it would give apositive indication to the international economy,quot; she said.

quot;Once a new government comes, they can take it up again and endorse it as required,quot; she added.

Important economic bills like FEMA Foreign Exchange Management Act, IRA Insurance Regulatory Authority, Money Laundering Bill, Companies amendment Bill were at the penultimate stage when Parliament was dissolved.

The new government that comes in should take up the economic legislations on a priority basis without letting the work of the standing committees go waste, Roy said.

quot;The standing committee were constituted on a multi-party basis and discussions on them need not start from scratch again,quot; she added.

Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry FICCI also called for political consensus in passing these legislations when a new government takes over.

Political parties should take up the issue of economic reforms in their election manifestoes, it added. Regarding the disinvestment programme of the government, Murthy saidhe did not expect much action in this direction till a new government takes over.

quot;The target of Rs 10,000 crore will now have to be fulfilled in a shorter period as the first few months would be lost,quot; he said.

The caretaker government would not be able to take much action in this direction except for those units where a final decision had already been taken, he said.

Even otherwise, the PSUs could not be expected to get a good price in the current situation and a delay of few months would not have serious repercussions, Roy said. However, Murthy conceded that foreign direct investment and foreign institutional investment would be affected as the capital markets would be subdued.