Economy weak, needs bold reforms, says P Chidambaram

New Delhi: Congress leader and former finance minister P. Chidambaram on Thursday said the Union Budget 2019-20 does not chalk out a clear roadmap to take India on the path of high economic growth and lacks bold steps and structural reforms.

Participating in the debate on the Budget in the Rajya Sabha, Mr Chidambaram said the country’s economy is weak and requires bold steps to take it forward on fast growth track, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi should take.

The Congress leader also termed finance minister Nirmala Sitharam-an’s speech as “insipid” and said the budget does not have any steps to propel investment and savings. The former finance minister downplayed the Modi government’s call of making India a USD 5 trillion economy by 2024-25, saying the economy itself doubles due to the “magic of compounding” in six to seven years and does not require a Prime Minister or finance minister.

The senior Congress leader sought to corner the finance minister, saying she did not present macro economic data, including receipts from revenue, in her budget speech. Mr Chidambaram said the finance minister should have mentioned figures in her speech as people deserve to know broad numbers as they do not go through annexures and other Budget documents. Mr Chidambaram urged the finance ministry to ensure important data gets mention in the Budget Speech in future.