After Finance Minister P Chidambaram unveilved Union Budget with a whopping Rs 60,000 crore (Rs 600 billion) loan waiver to farmers, Congress said on Monday the euphoria over high economic growth has to be 'tempered' as one-fourth of Indians still live below the poverty line.
Participating in the discussion on the Motion of Thanks on the President's Address to Parliament, senior Congress leader and party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi said in the Rajya Sabha that the economy has grown by over eight per cent in the last four years.
"But this gung-ho spirit has to be tempered" in the face of hard reality of 25 per cent people still living below the poverty line, he said. Singhvi expressed concern that while poverty was coming down, the rate of decrease was
"The rate of decline is slow and has remained under 0.8 per cent between 1999 and 2005," he said.
This was the rationale behind the philosophy of inclusive growth as reflected in the President's address, he said.
The Congress leader pointed out while parameters like increase in number of car sales and the great demand for IIT graduates were indicators of strong economic growth, 39 per cent of the people were under-nourished.
"Though malnutrition has been lowered, more needs to be done," he said.
Singhvi said the financial outlays for agricutlure, health and rural development have been trebled in the 11th Plan from the previous Plan and added if the outlay for education was added, the four heads would account for half of the total plan outlay.
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