The Hindu Business Line : Budget must address concerns of farmers and women: Sonia

New Delhi, Feb 20 The UPA Chairperson and Congress party President, Ms Sonia Gandhi, on Wednesday expressed hope that the Union Budget for 2008-09 would address the concerns of the farmers and women.

“The Finance Minister will be presenting the Budget at the end of this month and I am sure he will keep the common man’s difficulties, especially that of farmers and women in mind while preparing the Budget”, Ms Gandhi said at a Bank of Baroda’s function in Rae Bareli today.

Noting that the 8-9 per cent economic growth rate was no mean achievement, she said that the real happiness would come only when the common man’s difficulties are removed. Health and education for all is key to achieving real happiness, she added.

At the BOB function, the Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram said that banks have special obligation to serve the people of the districts in which they are lead banks.

He also informed that he had asked the CMD of Bank of Baroda to increase the lending through its branches so that the credit ratio increases from the current level of 35 per cent to at least 50 per cent in the next 12 months in Rae Bareli and Sultanpur districts.

He felt that women are one of the best borrowers from a bank as almost 100 per cent of the money lent to them comes back to the bank in repayment.

On Wednesday, Ms Sonia Gandhi also laid the foundation stone of Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology (RGIPT), being set up in Rae Bareli to create engineers capable of addressing nation’s energy needs.

RGIPT will have a governance structure and legal empowerment to grant degrees similar to that enjoyed by the IITs.

The institute will be set up at a total cost of Rs 435 crore in Rae Bareli.

At the function, the Petroleum Minister, Mr Murli Deora, indicated that the Government is considering reviving a long-pending project to set up a refinery at Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh.

“We will discuss the possibility of setting up of the refinery in the next one week and a decision will be taken,” he said.

The Minister said that the prospect of the refinery in Allahabad will be studied and a decision will be taken based on the study.

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