Government's measures to stop depreciation of rupee 'half-hearted': Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Saturday said the Narendra Modi government's five measures to stop further depreciation of the rupee and widening of the current account deficit (CAD) were "half-hearted and too late".

"Government's five "measures" announced yesterday are half-hearted and too late. Because government was in denial," the former Finance Minister said on Twitter.

"The worsening of the CAD has been evident for several months; yet the government did nothing. The slide in CAD, the FPI outflow, the weakening rupee and the depletion of forex reserves were wake-up calls that were ignored," he added.

To stop further depreciation of the rupee and widening of CAD, the government on Friday took five measures and a broad policy decision to curb non-essential imports and increase exports.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, after holding a detailed discussion with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said the government is committed to maintain its fiscal deficit target even as it monitors the impact of external factors on the Indian economy.

"One broad policy decision was to address the issue of expanding current account deficit. The government will take necessary steps to cut down non-essential imports and increase exports," Jaitley told reporters after the high-level meeting.

--IANS

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