Government keeping eye on inflation: Nirmala Sitharaman in Rajya Sabha

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman speaks in the Rajya Sabha during the Winter Session of the Parliament, in New Delhi, on December 21, 2022.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on December 21 said the government is keeping an eye on inflation which is purely “extraneous” nowadays because of the fuel and fertilizer prices.

Replying to the debat on the Supplementary Demands for Grants in the Rajya Sabha, the Minister said wholesale inflation has fallen to a 21-month low.

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Later, the Rajya Sabha returned the Supplementary Demands for Grants to the Lok Sabha, thus completing the process of authorising the government to spend an additional ₹3.25 lakh crore in FY2022-23.

Retail inflation based on consumer price index which remained above the Reserve Bank’s tolerance level of 6% since January this year has declined to 5.88% in November.

The Minister also said private investment capex is taking place in India because of favourable policies such as PLI and cited few examples. Ms. Sitharaman also stressed that the supplementary demand for grants is essentially for food security, fertilizer requirements and providing support to the Indian economy.

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She said the buoyancy in tax collection will help the government in meeting the additional expenditure being sought through the Supplementary Demands for Grants for grants. The Lok Sabha approved the Supplementary Demands for Grants, authorising the government to spend additional ₹3.25 lakh crore in 2022-23 fiscal.

The Finance Minister also informed the House that Gross NPAs of banks has declined to 6-year low of 5.9% in March 2022. She also said the government’s targeted approach to deal with COVID-19 impact has helped India in reviving growth without going into recession.