Panel proposes new system to estimate corporate savings

A committee headed by former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor C Rangarajan has recommended using MCA 21, an online filing system for companies, to capture savings by the private sector.

Besides, the committee also suggested comprehensive income-expenditure survey of households on periodical basis. The National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO), which comes under the Ministry of Statistics, has agreed to begin a pilot survey from 2010-11.

These two measures would significantly improve the quality of data available on domestic savings and investments as using MCA 21, which is run by the corporate affairs ministry, would enable the data to move from survey-based to census-based one.
 

OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS

* CSO could use the central excise database to cover production of medium- and large-scale industrial undertakings

* RBI should capture NGOs and self-help groups in the returns for deposits provided by banks

* NABARD should provide details on household deposits in cooperative banks and credit societies

* A census once in five years of all non-banking companies

* NSSO to launch annual enterprise surveys focusing on large enterprises

The other suggestions of the committee, which took 16 months to submit its report, include involvement of other regulatory or statutory agencies like the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), Insurance Regulatory Development Authority (Irda), National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) and National Housing Bank (NHB).

These agencies will supply new databases that will be used along with the income-expenditure survey to improve reliability. For example, Irda could supply aggregate data on “life funds” for all insurance institutions, while the Provident Fund Regulatory and Development Authority could supply information on pension funds.

As for estimating public sector savings, the committee recommended a separate category for quasi-government bodies.

For capital provided by the central and state governments to state-owned firms, the report says that such amount should be treated as revenue expenditure in the books of the donor (Centre and the states). If this is adopted, government savings would reduce.

Apart from Rangarajan, others members of the committee include Planning Commission member Kirit Parikh, Saumitra Chaudhuri, member of Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council, and Ravindra Dholakia, professor with the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad.