Sinha vows to check inflation in few months

INDORE, Sept 12: Union Finance Minister, Yashwant Sinha expressed confidence that the trend of price rise of essential commodities in the country would be controlled within the next two months and it would not affect BJP’s prospects in the ensuing assembly polls in four states including Madhya Pradesh.

Addressing a press conference here today, Sinha said increase in price rise of essential commodities during past few months was due to the policies adopted by the previous government and also due to poor weather conditions.He said even when the BJP-led coalition government came into power, the inflation was showing upward trend. The fiscal deficit in 1997-98 increased from 65,000 crore to 78,000 crore, while the economic growth rate decreased from 7.5 per cent to 5.12 per cent. There was also a six per cent fall in agriculture produce.

He said the earlier government had not taken steps for the benefit of agriculturists. Citing an example, he said when there was a bumper crop of potato, production of it wasreduced to 60 lakh tonnes in 1997-98. The production of onion was six lakh tonnes, oilseeds of 13 lakh tonnes.