Union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee at Nalco Bhavan in Bhubaneswar. Picture by Sanjib Mukherjee

Bhubaneswar, Jan. 9: In the face of skyrocketing food inflation, Union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee today said he had written to all the chief ministers to exercise powers under the Essential Commodities Act to prevent hoarding.

“I have written to all the chief ministers that the powers have been vested in them under the Essential Commodities Act to prevent hoarding,” Mukherjee told reporters on the sidelines of Foundation Day celebrations of the public sector National Aluminium Company (Nalco) here today.

The Union minister said he had asked the chief ministers to ensure supply of subsidised food and other items to the weaker sections of the society, mainly BPL families, through the public distribution system.

“If the public distribution systems are improved and through them we can deliver these items, a section of the people will, to some extent, find relief from the adverse impacts of high prices.” Expressing concern over the rising prices, Mukherjee said: “The measures we have taken both from the demand and supply side and also by allowing import of essential food items, which are in short supply, with zero duty can improve the situation.” He conceded, however, “there is no way we can completely insulate ourselves from the adverse impacts of rising fuel prices, especially diesel”.

Talking about the country’s recuperation following the economic recession, while delivering the Nalco foundation day lecture, Mukherjee said: “We have done well in recovering our growth momentum from the impact of the global financial crisis and other external shocks. More importantly, the recovery has been broad-based with agriculture, industry and services contributing to consolidation of the growth process.”

The GDP growth in the first half of 2010-11 has touched 8.9 per cent after an average of 7 per cent in the last couple of years.

“One of the biggest challenges before the country today is to balance the need for economic growth, sustainability of resources and natural habitats, and opportunities that need to be created for integrating people in the tribal belts in the mainstream of development process.

“We need to enhance investment, rapidly improve our infrastructure and make the growth process more inclusive,” he said, adding that financial outlays to the tune of over one trillion US dollars had been envisaged for infrastructure projects in the next five year plan period ( 2012-17).

“The spending on social sector stands at 37 per cent of the total plan allocation of 2010-11; another 25 per cent is devoted to development of rural infrastructure. With growth and opportunities that are generated, we hope to further strengthen the process of inclusive development.”

Emphasising that the 11th plan had endorsed a need for inclusive growth, the finance minister said a multi-pronged strategy had been adopted that included rapid growth for reducing poverty, creating employment opportunities and improving access to essential services in health and education. “We outlined a strategy for taking the Green Revolution to the eastern part of India and renewed the thrust for the development of physical infrastructure.”