NEW DELHI: Prime Minister VP Singh Friday announced that the outlay for defense in the coming year would be adequately stepped up and asked the people to be ready to face “certain very hard decisions” to save the country from falling into a debt trap.”
Replying in the lower house of parliament to a three day discussion on the president’s address, Singh said the defense allocation had to be increased in view of the challenges posed on the borders.
He said the country faced serious problems as regards domestic and foreign debt and declared that the country’s economic independence would not be mortgaged. He said some hard decisions would have to be taken.
The house adopted the motion after rejecting all the amendments.
In his hour long speech, the prime minister touched upon the need for a national agriculture policy the steps initiated in Punjab and Kashmir and efforts to evolve a national consensus on major issues.
The prime minister regretted that so far no national policy on agriculture had been evolved despite the fact that 80 percent of the population was dependent on agriculture for its livelihood.
He said both industry and agricultural had to play a complimentary role and disclosed that 50 percent of the investible national resources would be allocated for the rural sector.
He said government would lay emphasis on rural based and agro based industry in order to tackle the unemployment problem. Government would prefer labor intensive industry to capital intensive industry, the prime monster added.
On public sector, he said their working could not be speeded up till workers were made a part of management and promised that this year itself his would be translated into reality.
The debt service payments had gone up from Rs 25.23 billion in 1984-85 to Rs 70.36 billion in 1988-89.
He said when the government took over the foreign exchange reserves were only Rs 55.00 billion.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 23, 1990
