National
‘RBI shouldn’t hike rate for fear of Budget stoking inflation’
New Delhi, Feb 4 (IANS) The RBI should refrain from raising interest rates owing to concerns about inflation being stoked by the pro-farm sector proposals of the budget 2018-19, industry chamber Assocham said on Sunday ahead of the central bank’s final bi-monthly monetary policy review of the fiscal slated for the next week.
Presenting the Union Budget for the next fiscal, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday announced that the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for notified kharif crops will be 1.5 times the input cost, and also stepped up total budgetary allocation for the sector for next fiscal by about 5 per cent.
“The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should not over-react to the high yield pressures of the bond market, along with the government promising a substantial revision in the MSP for farmers, and refrain from going in for any hike in the benchmark policy lending rates when the Monetary Policy Committee meets on February 7,” Assocham said in a press release.
Jaitley also made a significant announcement of fiscal slippage with implications for pushing inflation, revising upwards the government’s fiscal deficit target for 2017-18 to 3.5 per cent of the GDP, or the equivalent of Rs 5.95 lakh crore. The higher target came in place of the 3.2 per cent — or Rs 5.46 lakh crore — for the current fiscal announced earlier.
“Yes, some of the macro indicators, including pegging of higher fiscal deficit of 3.3 per cent for FY’ 2019 and 3.5 per cent of the GDP for the current fiscal, look difficult, but reaction of the bond market to the budget-related would ease out soon,” the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) said.
With the RBI maintaining status quo on its key lending rate at 6 per cent over three previous policy reviews, citing concerns on the rising trajectory of inflation, Assocham said the concerns over MSP leading to increase in retail inflation were exaggerated for various reasons.
“In the first place, effectively, there is no MSP for the vegetables at the ground level. As for the Operation Green for onion and potato, the entire institutional mechanism would have to be worked out by the NITI Aayog along with the states,” the industry body said.
“Same is the situation with regard to the MSP for several other agri commodities where the NITI Aayog and the states would bear in mind the farmers’ interest, while the institutional mechanism would surely strike a balance between remuneration to the growers as also the impact on the retail prices,” the statement added.
With the Bombay Stock Exchange plummeting 840 points the day after the budget announcement, Assocham described it as “a healthy correction which was overdue” in the stock markets.
“It is time the RBI joined the initiative by ensuring that the growth which seems visible, should be encouraged by at least not revising the interest rates upward, if at all the present macro situation does not favour any reduction,” the statement added.
The continuing rise in food and fuel prices pushed India’s annual retail inflation rate over the five per cent mark in December, to 5.21 per cent, from 4.88 per cent in November.
–IANS
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Lucknow: Vishal Singh, a renowned social worker from Lucknow, also known as Foodman, has once again made India proud. He was honored by the Happy Hands Gloves Cooperative Limited Company in Korathai, Thailand, for his work with the Hunger Free World Mission.
The Hunger Free World Mission’s meeting was held in Korathai, Thailand, under Vishal Singh’s leadership. Representatives from several countries, including Mr. Raja Dwivedi (Managing Director of Happy Hands Gloves Limited), Thailand Coordinator Mr. Raja Mishra, and member Mr. Varun Singh, attended the event.
Under Vishal Singh’s leadership, the attendees took a pledge to work together toward creating a hunger-free world.
Speaking on the occasion, Vishal Singh explained that the main goal of the Hunger Free World Mission is social participation. He said the mission is not just about feeding people but also about meeting other basic needs of those who are struggling. The mission focuses on helping families of terminally ill patients in hospitals by providing food and shelter. It also works to fulfill essential needs like education, jobs, and care for the elderly.
For the last 16 years, the Vijay Sri Foundation has been providing free services, benefiting thousands of people. Vishal Singh highlighted that the mission aims to gain global recognition like other organizations such as WHO, WWF, and Red Cross, which work for social causes.
During this meeting, Vishal Singh was appointed as the Chairman of the Hunger Free World Mission by representatives from various countries. They also discussed holding regular meetings in different countries to push the mission forward.
Business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has also supported this humanitarian mission, vowing to promote the idea of “Seva Parmo Dharma” (Service is the highest duty) worldwide. Vishal Singh praised him, stating that people like Dr .Abhishek Verma inspire others to work for the betterment of society.
Recently, Romania’s Ambassador, Mr . Daniela Sezonov Ţane, invited Vishal Singh to the Romanian Embassy in Delhi, where they discussed the mission in detail. Impressed by his humanitarian work, she honored Vishal Singh and invited him to Romania to take the mission forward .
Food man Vishal Singh has been serving the people of India for the past 16 years. Through the Vijay Sri Foundation, he provides free meals to cancer patients & their families ,shelter, and education for women & children along with running free old-age homes in Lucknow.
In addition to his humanitarian work, Vishal Singh also addresses issues like crime and corruption through his role as Chairman of Seva Path Media and Managing Director of Vijay Sri Foundation.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Vishal Singh and his team worked tirelessly to provide food and help to the needy, including starving children, elderly citizens, and pregnant women. Despite contracting the virus himself, he continued to assist others after his recovery. He even created a life-saving oxygen regulator using household items, which was praised by doctors both in India and abroad.
In his address at the meeting, Vishal Singh spoke about his mission to create a hunger-free world. He pointed out that India’s large population, along with issues like unemployment and poverty, has caused the country to fall on the Hunger Index. He urged people to contribute just one handful of grains daily to help create a hunger-free world.
He concluded by saying that through social participation, we can empower the people around us, meet their basic needs, and work together to build a stronger, more prosperous, and developed society.
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