Expenditure panel to submit interim report before Budget

The Expenditure Management Commission would stick to its deadline for submitting its interim report before Budget 2015-16.

Bimal Jalan, Chairman of the Expenditure Management Commission, said the final report would be submitted, as scheduled, before Budget 2016-17. Jalan was speaking at an event organised at the Calcutta Chamber of Commerce on Monday. The NDA Government had set up the commission in August for having a long-term plan for reducing Government expenditure, particularly subsidies, to bring down fiscal deficit. The commission is to suggest ways to reform management of oil, fertilizer and food subsidies, one of the biggest drag on public expenditure.

Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Jalan told BusinessLine the dip in international price of crude oil and fall in value of rouble against dollar needed to be watched closely.

“We have to look into the developments. The Russian Government and the central bank have taken some measures,” he said. There were elements of uncertainty and inexplicability over the issues, he said. “It is difficult to gauge the impact (on the Indian currency and economy). How long would these continue cannot be predicted,” he said.

The former RBI Governor said the impact on country’s foreign reserves and balance of payment on trade owing to fall in value of rouble was not significant. The real effective exchange rate remained within a range, he said.

Replying to another question, he said allocation of natural resources through auction was an acceptable way of generating revenue.