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20
September 2017
 |
Finance Minister (The Total Investment & Insurance
Solutions)
Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday hinted at a package of measures to boost the
economy, while virtually ruling out any cut in duties on petroleum products to
check the spike in fuel prices.
"We
have taken note of all the economic indicators that are available. This has
been a pro-active government on the reforms agenda. Over the last two days, I
have had a series of discussions with ministerial colleagues and various
secretaries. The Total Investment & Insurance
Solutions
"The
government will take additional measures in the coming days after consulting
the Prime Minister. Whenever the measures are taken, you will come to know of
it," Jaitley told reporters here following a meeting of the union
cabinet. The Total Investment & Insurance
Solutions
On
Tuesday evening, the Finance Minister chaired a high-level meeting to review the
economic situation and discuss measures, including a possible stimulus package,
to be taken amidst an economic slowdown.
The
meeting was attended by, among others, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Commerce
Minister Suresh Prabhu, Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian and
Secretaries in the Finance Ministry -- Ashok Lavasa, Subhash Chandra Garg,
Hasmukh Adhia, Rajiv Kumar and Neeraj Kumar Gupta.
Originally,
the review was to take place with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's participation. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions
On
the current high transport fuel prices, Jaitley said it was a temporary spike
in global prices caused by the supply-demand mismatch due to hurricanes that
hit the US coast. The Total Investment & Insurance
Solutions
Asked
about the possibility of a cut in excise duties on petroleum products, he said
government needed money for public spending to push growth and for social
sector schemes. The Total Investment & Insurance
Solutions
"States
are taking so much tax... earlier under the fortnightly pricing regime, when
two years back we lowered fuel prices, states like Delhi, Haryana would
immediately raise VAT to earn more money. States under the Left and Congress
should take steps to lower cesses," he said.
Referring
to opposition about price-rise, Jaitley said the parties which kept quiet when
inflation was in double-digits, were now crying when it is at 3.3 per cent,
which is within the RBI mandate of keeping inflation under 4 per cent.
"During
monsoon, there is normally a spike in vegetable prices and inflation is still
at 3.36 per cent," he added. The Total
Investment & Insurance Solutions
Jaitley's
high level meetings follow a sharp fall in latest key macro indicators such as
the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and industrial production, as well as a
widening Current Account Deficit. The Total
Investment & Insurance Solutions
Pulled
down by sluggish manufacturing, growth in the Indian economy in the first
quarter of this fiscal fell to 5.7 per cent, clocking the lowest GDP growth
rate since Prime Minister Modi assumed office in May 2014.
The
August consumer price index (CPI) inflation in India shot up a full one
percentage point to 3.36 per cent, from 2.36 per cent in July, led by a spike
in food prices. The Total Investment
& Insurance Solutions
The
Index of Industrial Production (IIP) in July rose by 1.2 per cent as compared
to the same month of last year. It had declined by (-)0.1 per cent during June
this year. The Total Investment & Insurance
Solutions
Regarding
the technical glitches that have plagued the digital filing of GST returns by
businesses, Jaitley blamed it on last minute rush to meet the deadline.
"A
lot of the GST problem is self-invited by assessees. For example, today
(Wednesday) is the last date for filing returns (July), but till last night
only 25 per cent had paid their taxes," he said.
"So,
if 75 per cent of people wait till the last day, the system is bound to
crash... its capacity is 1 lakh per hour or 24 lakh through the entire day.
Till last night, there was no problem," he added. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions
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