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PM hints at rise in fuel prices, cites import bill

April 29, 2012

Manmohan

Bathinda (Punjab), April 29: Despite key Congress allies opposing deregulation of diesel prices, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday stressed the need to rationalize fuel prices as spiralling cost of international crude severely impacts India's import bill.

Inaugurating a nine-million tonne a year refinery here, the PM said imports account for about 80% of India's crude supplies and "we need to rationalize prices and at the same time ensure that the poor and needy are shielded from the effects of such rationalization."

Despite his caveat on protecting the vulnerable, Singh's remarks point to likely increases in petrol and diesel prices if he does bite the bullet, despite the Nationalist Congress Party and the Trinamool Congress opposing the "in principle" decision to deregulate diesel prices.

The voluble allies have promised to protest the move with the NCP planning rallies in Delhi and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee instructing party MPs to voice the party's opposition. Trinamool parliamentary party leader Sudip Bandhopadhyay has said the party will not support diesel price deregulation.

Fuel subsidy accounted for 3.4% of government spending amounting to Rs 41,000 crore in 2010-11, and the forecast for international crude prices indicates costs will remain high. Under recoveries of oil companies amounted to Rs 138,406 crore in the financial year 2011-12. With the government straining to control the fiscal deficit, the pressure to increase fuel prices is growing.

PM tests ground for fuel hike

The Prime Minister on Saturday may have hinted at the need to rationalize fuel prices but key allies like Trinamool and NCP are unlikely to accept such a move. TMC chief Mamata Banerjee, given her "pro-people" stance - she even sacked her own railway minister to stymie a bid to raise rail fares - will certainly not support a hike in fuel prices. It remains to be seen if she will put her foot down or limit herself to protests. If NCP and TMC team up they can create a serious hurdle for the government and PM's comments seem intended to test the waters.

Besides allies, opposition groups are certain to criticize fuel hikes on the ground that they add to the burden on the aam aadmi and spur inflation.

The PM said "the challenges we face on the energy front are formidable. We need adequate supplies of energy at affordable prices. Domestic sources of crude oil and gas are inadequate to meet the growing demands of our rapidly expanding economy."

Suggesting that the oil subsidy bill was getting out of hand, Singh said "In order to insulate the common man from rising oil prices, the government shoulders a sizeable portion of the burden by pricing diesel, kerosene and domestic LPG below their market prices."

"We need to adopt better technology and consumers should be made aware of the benefits of fuel conservation," said the PM.

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Agencies
January 9,2020

The World Bank says that a lack of credit and drop in private consumption have led to a gloomy growth outlook for India with a steep cut in growth rate for the current fiscal year and only a modest gain projected for the next year.

India's growth rate is forecast to be only 5 per cent for the current fiscal year, weighed down by a growth of only 4.5 per cent in the July-September quarter, according to the 2020 Global Economic Prospects report released on Wednesday.

"In India, [economic] activity was constrained by insufficient credit availability, as well as by subdued private consumption," the Bank said.

The growth rate is forecast by the Bank to pick up to 5.8 per cent in the next fiscal year and to 6.1 per cent in 2021-22.

India's growth rate was 6.8 per cent in 2018-19.

The 5 per cent growth rate projection for the current financial year is a sharp cut of 2.5 per cent from the 7.5 per cent forecast made by the Bank in January last year, toppling it from the rank of the world's fastest growing economy.

India's performance follows a global trend of lowered growth weighed down by developed economies.

The report estimated world economic growth rate to be only 2.4 per cent last year and forecast it to edge up 0.1 per cent to 2.5 per cent in the current year.

Even with the lower growth rate of 5 per cent in the current fiscal year and 5.8 per cent forecast for the next, India holds the second rank among large economies, behind only China with an estimated growth rate of 6.1 per cent for 2019 and 5.9 per cent this year.

The report blamed "weak confidence, liquidity issues in the financial sector" and "weakness in credit from non-bank financial companies" for India's slowdown.

The Bank predicated India's recovery to 5.8 per cent in the coming financial year for India but "on the monetary policy stance remaining accommodative" and the assumption that "the stimulative fiscal and structural measures already taken will begin to pay off."

It also warned that sharper-than-expected slowdown in major external markets such as United States and Europe, would affect South Asia through trade, financial, and confidence channels, especially for countries with strong trade links to these economies."

The Bank said that the growth of advanced economies was 1.6 per cent last year and "is anticipated to slip to 1.4 per cent in 2020 in part due to continued softness in manufacturing."

In contrast the growth of emerging market and developing countries is expected to accelerate from 3.5 per cent last year to 4.1 per cent this year, the report said.

In South Asia, Bangladesh is estimated to have the highest growth rate of 7.2 per cent in the current fiscal year, although down from 8.1 per cent last fiscal year.

But its higher regional growth rates are coming off a lower base with a per capital gross domestic product of $1,698 compared to $2,010 for India.

Bangladesh is expected to grow by 7.3 per cent in the next financial year.

Pakistan's growth rate is estimated at only 2.4 per cent in the current fiscal year and is projected to rise to 3 per cent in the next, according to the Bank.

The Bank blamed monetary tightening in Pakistan for a sharp deceleration in fixed investment and a considerable softening in private consumption for the fall in growth rate from 3.3 per cent in the 2018-19 fiscal year.

Sri Lanka's growth rate was estimated to be 2.7 per cent last year and forecast to grow to 3.3 per cent this year.

Nepal grew by an estimated 6.4 per cent in the current fiscal year and will rise to 6.5 per cent in the next.

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Agencies
June 17,2020

New Delhi, Jun 17: AAP MLA and national spokesperson Atishi has tested positive for COVID-19, her party colleagues said on Wednesday.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal took to Twitter to wish her speedy recovery.

"Atishi ji has played an important role in the fight against corona. I hope that she will get healthy soon and again get involved in serving the people," Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.

According to sources, Atishi was tested on Tuesday for COVID-19 and her report came positive today.

She is presently under home quarantine, the sources said.

"Get well soon Atishi, recover soon from Corona," AAP MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj tweeted.

Atishi represents Kalkaji assembly constituency.

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Agencies
August 2,2020

New Delhi, Aug 2: The Centre has written to all states and Union Territories stating that smartphones and tablet devices should be allowed for hospitalised Covid-19 patients so that they can interact with family and friends through video conferencing, which would provide them psychological support.

Though mobile phones are allowed in hospital wards, the missive was issued following some representation from the kin of patients alleging otherwise.

Director-General of Health Services (DGHS) in the Health Ministry Dr Rajiv Garg in the letter to the principal secretaries of health and medical education of states and Union territories said appropriate protocols for disinfecting devices and allotting timeslots can be developed by the hospital concerned to facilitate contact between patients and their family.

He underlined that administrative and medical teams should be responsive to the psychological needs of patients admitted in Covid-19 wards and ICUs of various hospitals.

"Social connection can calm down patients and also reinforce the psychological support given by the treating team. Please instruct all concerned that they should allow smartphones and tablet devices in patient areas so that the patient can video conference with their family and friends," stated the letter issued on July 29.

"Though mobile phones are allowed in the wards to enable a patient stay in touch with his or her family, we received representations from the patient families from some states stating mobile phones are not being allowed by hospital administrations because of which they were not being able to stay in contact with the patient," said Dr Garg.

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