Terming the 13 crucial economic bills cleared during the winter session of Parliament as 'building blocks for the future', Finance Minister Jaswant Singh on Friday said that the government is 'now geared up' to hasten reforms for growth in the budget.
"Thirteen financial legislations were passed in this session and they are very timely and give a kind of support system for annual budgetary exercise," Singh said.
"They are the building blocks for the future," he stated.
"It provided very good preparation for work that lies ahead for January and February. The finance ministry is now ready, geared up to produce a kind of leadership needed for a new generation of growth," Singh told reporters summing up the session.
The crucial bills passed in the session included Prevention of Money Laundering Bill, Companies Amendment Bill to disband Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction, Competition Bill to disband archaic Monopolies Restrictive Trade Practices Act and setting up of Competition Commission, repeal of Unit Trust of India Act to split the mutual fund into two and Securitisation Bill.
About the economic situation, Singh said firming up of global oil prices at $30 a barrel was 'worrying' but with comfortable foreign exchange reserves at $68 billion, the situation was manageable.
The tense situation in Iraq too was 'worrisome' but the reserves could take care of the country's two years' imports and any war in the Middle-East is not expected to last more than a few days or weeks, he said.
Tracing the achievements since he took over as finance minister in July last, Singh said he would single out the management of drought which had hit 14 states in the country as the most successful.
This was for the first time ever that during a drought situation the prices had remained 'stable' with Inflation hovering around 3-4 per cent.
"We have moved from an era of shortages (of foodgrains) to an era of surplus."
Singh said he also wanted to get the Constitution Amendment Bill passed in the session to allow states to levy service tax for implementation of VAT from April 1 next.
The bill is now ready and a note will be circulated during the National Development Council meeting on Saturday for the consideration of chief ministers, he said.
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