Economy not as bad as it looks: Singh

Prime Minister Manmohan said too much pessimism about the economy was unwarranted.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said too much pessimism about the economy was unwarranted,as effects of the global financial downturn have begun wearing out and that the drought too can be easily managed.

“We are in a very strong position to manage the consequence of drought. Our food stocks in particular are very high…we should not be over-pessimistic”,he said in his concluding remarks at the meeting of the full Planning Commission.

The country has a buffer food grain stock of 50 million tonnes,enough to meet the requirement of the public distribution system for 13 months.

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Chairing the first meeting of the full plan panel in his second term,Singh said the economy has to deal with the lingering effects of global slowdown and impact of drought,but it also has underlying strengths built over the years.

The government is now focusing on drought management,including protecting kharif (summer) crop and ensuring a normal rabi (winter) crop.

To revive investment,especially in infrastructure,the Prime Minister said the government would streamline Public Partnership Project (PPP) norms.

“The progress (in implementation of PPP projects) has been less than what we would have wanted. We are taking steps to streamline the process so that PPP projects can move faster”,Singh added.

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Manmohan Singh

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