NEW DELHI: Armed with a convincing victory in the confidence vote, the UPA government is now set to fast-track economic liberalisation onto a new trajectory with finance minister P Chidambaram attaching top priority to reforms in banking, pension sector and capital markets.
Streamlining of the commodities market and facilitating merger of State Bank of India’s subsidiaries with the parent bank are also high on the agenda. Disinvestment and hike in foreign direct investment (FDI) ceiling in the insurance sector are other areas shortlisted by the finance minister.
The Banking Regulation (Amendment) Bill is likely to be introduced in Parliament during the forthcoming monsoon session. This bill is to allow foreign investors to have voting rights in banks in proportion with their equity holding , rather than being capped at 10% now.
It is felt that liberalisation in these areas should be put on the fast track to make up for lost time now that the Left (which was blocking most of these reforms) is out of the picture. The new allies of the UPA like the Samajwadi Party would support these moves and there is no time to lose, top government managers feel. While containing infla-tion would be the key priority , these reform initiatives have got a shot in the arm with the government’s victory in the trust vote.
Streamlining of the commodities market and facilitating merger of State Bank of India’s subsidiaries with the parent bank are also high on the agenda. Disinvestment and hike in foreign direct investment (FDI) ceiling in the insurance sector are other areas shortlisted by the finance minister.
The Banking Regulation (Amendment) Bill is likely to be introduced in Parliament during the forthcoming monsoon session. This bill is to allow foreign investors to have voting rights in banks in proportion with their equity holding , rather than being capped at 10% now.
It is felt that liberalisation in these areas should be put on the fast track to make up for lost time now that the Left (which was blocking most of these reforms) is out of the picture. The new allies of the UPA like the Samajwadi Party would support these moves and there is no time to lose, top government managers feel. While containing infla-tion would be the key priority , these reform initiatives have got a shot in the arm with the government’s victory in the trust vote.
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