An action-packed agenda loaded in favour of the social sector and inclusive economic reform, with a heavy accent on monitoring expenditure was unveiled by President Pratibha Patil in her address to members of the two Houses of Parliament today.
Cleared by the Union Cabinet, the President’s address is delivered traditionally at the first Lok Sabha session of the calendar year or the first sitting of Parliament after a general election.
As with every inaugural presidential speech, this 5,200-word text will serve as the annual road map for the second term of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
| Promises to keep (What the President’s speech has committed) |
| New monitoring mechanisms: a new public data policy, district-level ombudsmen for NREGA, a new Independent Evaluation Office for flagship programmes, five Reports to the People, a model Public Services Law, delivery monitoring unit in PMO, quarterly press conferences by ministers on Bharat Nirman |
| Social sector: Rural health to have a new source of human resource; Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan to be expanded; Higher education policy to be revamped; Rs 3 a kg rice/wheat for all Below Poverty Line families by law; no urban slums in five years; all women to be literate in five years |
| Financial sector reforms, recapitalisation of banks |
| PSU reform: no strategic sale, divestment without losing majority stake |
| SEZs:Land Acquisition and R&R Bills to be reintroduced |
| Infrastructure spending to be centrepiece of growth |
| Review of subsidies: ensuring only those who are needy get them |
| Roadmap for time-bound judicial reform |
Overall, the intent to push forward reform in banking and insurance — which had stalled owing to Left pressure during the UPA’s previous stint — was clear, in that the speech mentioned plans to relax the foreign direct investment (FDI) regime in banking and insurance sectors. In addition, the government would recapitalise state-owned banks and also bring legislation to establish a regulator for the pension sector.
The speech also left nobody in doubt that public sector disinvestment would be back on the agenda, even though the government would not lose majority stake in such companies.The legislative bills to allow land acquisition for special economic zones and rehabilitation of displaced persons will be reintroduced.
Public-private partnership norms will be revamped in a bid to get more investment for infrastructure. Coal sector reforms will be initiated and the government will remain committed to introducing the goods and services tax.
There is a 25-point action plan for the government’s first 100-days agenda that focuses on social and welfare schemes, judicial reforms and strengthening the machinery for effective delivery of all the government's schemes. In addition, the second phase of Bharat Nirman, with enhanced targets for each of the schemes under it was outlined, with the promise of a new bill on food security for all, an urban housing scheme under the Rajiv Gandhi Awas Yojana and an expanded rural employment guarantee scheme.
Much of the President’s speech was a reiteration of statements that ministers have made so far or those made as part of pre-election promises. The aam aadmi focus is intact but the notable point is the extreme focus on accountability.
Monitoring to be beefed up
Without mentioning the word “corruption”, the government has promised to set up a host of monitoring measures for investment-intensive ministries and programmes. This would include the creation of an Independent Evaluation Office “at an arm’s length from the government” and catalysed by the Planning Commission, to evaluate the impact of flagship programmes and make it public and a Delivery Monitoring Unit in the Prime Minister’s Office for the same task.
Ministers will hold quarterly press conferences on these programmes.
The government will also present five annual reports to the people on education, health, employment, environment and infrastructure to spark public debate.
Meanwhile, district-level ombudsmen will be created for social audit of the National Rural Employment Guarantees Scheme (NREGS), the UPA’s flagship social sector scheme.
There will also be constant tracking of where public money is going through a new public data policy, the President said in her speech.
As part of the focus on governance, the President’s address also dwelt at length on how government institutions will be recast and remodelled to become more efficient, though details were not available. Foreign Direct Investment will have a new policy regime, though the speech didn’t spell out what this would be.
Public sector banks will be recapitalised, and the pensions sector will have a new regulator.
Meanwhile, a new public services law will bind government functionaries to a charter that will set out exactly what they will provide to the people. This will be enforceable statutorily.
Post offices will be leveraged to deliver more services — including scholarships and social security schemes.
Recognising that rural health institutions suffer from an endemic shortage of professionals, a new national council for human resources in health will deliver a supply of skilled health personnel.
Autonomy in education through an independent regulatory authority and a thorough overhaul of the higher education system will be carried out.
Despite his best efforts, Manmohan Singh was unable to take these recommendations forward — when made by the National Knowledge Commission — during his last term because of the unrelenting resistance of Human Resource Development Minister Arjun Singh.
And the aam aadmi get their share
In addition to policing expenditure and performance, the government promised to spend more on those sections that need money.
Thus, every woman in India will be made literate in five years. The government will build 120,000 more rural houses over the next five years (double the number built between 2004 and 2009). The rural water supply scheme will be completed by 2011. Every panchayat will have broadband network over the next five years. Urban housing will redesigned so that there are no slums in India in the next five years.
Also, 25 kg of rice and wheat will be made available at Rs 3 per kg for every family below the poverty line by law — which means successive governments will be bound by this statutory provision.
Stimulus through reforms
Reiterating earlier statements by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on the economic stimulus, the government said it would increase spending on infrastructure through public private partnership (PPP) projects to tackle the global crisis.
This would be done along with sector-specific measures for small and medium enterprises, textiles, commercial vehicles and housing.
At the same time, the UPA government will maintain fiscal discipline. With tax collections expected to slow down in the current fiscal, the Centre might be looking at non-tax receipts like disinvestment to keep the fiscal gap under check.
The speech also touched upon some contentious areas. Although it was silent on oil sector reform, it did refer to subsidies and promised a new policy framework that would target subsidy delivery only to the needy.
