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Thursday, July 10, 2014

Reducing Importance of the budget

The first budget of the new Indian government is scheduled to be announced in a few hours. However, I believe budget announcement has outlived its excitement value.

I would rather see the past expenditure analysis session and a strategic planning session replace what is currently made into a single event. 

There is absolutely no discussion about effectiveness of past expenditure as against their objectives. I don't want to see how welfare expenditures have contributed to the economy as it would be too premature to so such analysis making the budget useless. I would rather see how effectively were the cash transfers were made, what was the loss, what was the cost required to transfer that cash, etc. I also want to know that how fiscal deficit target was achieved using cash accounting jugglery by simply delaying payments. 

Similarly, we do not have a strategic planning session. The presidential address to both houses intends to do that but is hardly ever used that way. The election manifesto is the strategic plan we look to. I think that is inadequate. However given the level of understanding in the houses of the strategic issues, one wonders if it is better to not let the parliament do strategic planning. Most of the MPs are "knowledge proof" as the popular adjective goes. 

In sum in a few hours you will see much hula boo about a non event. Let us hope Arun Jaitley breaks another norm. 


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