VANCOUVER: India on Friday sought the help of the Asian Development Bank to overcome its temporary liquidity problem and said it was determined to make the necessary macro-economic adjustments to overcome present difficulties.
“We recognize that we do not have soft options” the leader of the Indian delegation and finance secretary S P Shukla said adding that the government was confident that the process of adjustment initiated in the interim budget would be followed up further after the general elections.
Soliciting the help of international financial institutions like the ADB Shukla who was addressing the annual meeting of the ADB here on Thursday underlined the “resilience and the inherent strength” of the country’s economy.
The annual report of the bank he said had succinctly described the impact of the gulf crisis on member developing countries For India the oil prices increased at a time when its economy faced a difficult fiscal and balance of payment situation.
In addition to the higher cost of oil imports there have been heavy Costs associated due to loss in a remittances from and exports to loss in remittances from and export to Kuwait and Iraq. The inevitable increase in the domestic prices of petroleum products that followed had exacerbated inflationary pressures in the economy Shukla said.
Article extracted from this publication >> May 3, 1991
