Manmohan Singh. Telegraph picture

New Delhi, Feb. 28: The Prime Minister today said Pranab Mukherjee had done a good job under constraints by responding to the challenges faced by the nation and promising a reforms-oriented agenda.

“This is a budget which meets all the challenges our economy and polity face in the next fiscal year. Sustained growth, inclusive growth, equitable growth and, thus, a determined effort to curb inflationary expectations,” Manmohan Singh told Doordarshan.

“It is certainly necessary to curb inflationary expectations for which it is very essential that there should be a path of fiscal consolidation, and the finance minister has done a commendable job by planning to reduce fiscal deficit and revenue deficit.”

Singh said the budget was aimed at fiscal consolidation and moderation of taxes and stressed the need to maintain a high growth rate. Mukherjee, he said, had “walked on both legs” by keeping the taxes moderate through a simplified system.

The Prime Minister noted that the budget signalled a “reforms-oriented” government and that Mukherjee had promised legislation on insurance and pension. “If these promises are converted into solid acts of Parliament, this will provide a boost to the capital market as well as corporate sentiments.”

Singh said the direct tax code would become a reality by April 1 next year. As for the other promises, much depends on “what we can push through Parliament”.

“There is no lack of effort on the part of the government. Although there are some difficulties with regard to GST (goods and services tax) as some states are not on board, I am confident we will persevere and we will succeed.”

Singh said the moderation on taxes on balance was a good thing to play with and “if you are moving towards a GST, I think it is also necessary to have that end product in mind. The finance minister has thought it through.”

On social sector spending, he said these programmes required a boost in delivery services and the problem had to be faced head-on.

Asked whether it was an easy budget, Singh said that considering the international climate, maintaining high growth was “something for which the finance minister and the government deserve congratulations”.

Asked about the budget’s silence on an amnesty scheme to bring black money back, Singh said such schemes had yielded little in the past.

“I don’t think they have succeed in providing a permanent cure for black money. We need to have a systems reform in a holistic manner to deal with this menace.”

The Congress praised the budget and said it was being criticised only for political reasons.

Spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi lauded the increased allocations in the social sector and agriculture. He congratulated the Centre for the “balanced, inclusive, growth-oriented budget that offers something to every segment of society and fulfils the Congress promise to people.”