The following is the text of the opening remarks by The Prime Minister:

    "I am happy to chair this first meeting of the Planning Commission of the present Government. The agenda and the papers circulated for this meeting sets the tone for our discussions.

    The mid-term review of the Ninth Plan provides a balanced assessment of the state of the economy. It presents our achievements which are considerable. It also points to areas of weakness and highlights some of the critical problems which we must face in the years ahead.

    It should be a matter of legitimate satisfaction that India’s economic growth has been a sustained one despite several shocks in recent years. Despite these shocks, our rate of growth in the 1990s makes us one of the ten fastest growing economies in the world. The macro fundamentals of our economy is reasonably strong. There are, no doubt, pressures particularly on the fiscal side.

    There are also new worries created by the steep rise in oil prices. The situation arising out of the oil prices needs to be kept under constant review. It is, however, a matter of satisfaction that poverty has declined during this period, though not as much as we would want.

    And yet, the challenges we face are very considerable. The growth and poverty reduction we have achieved is commendable but it is not enough. The aspirations of our people, especially the new entrants into the labour force, require us to move much faster.

    It is necessary to build a society which provides more opportunities for growth and development for all sections of our people. And this must be done in a world in which globalisation is a reality forcing us to face the challenge of competing with other countries.

    We live in a world in which technology is a major driving force for development. No society can progress if it cannot keep pace with technological development round the world. These developments hold the key to solving many of our problems. They range from food security and agricultural modernisation to health care, environmental protection, penetration of export markets.

    India is uniquely placed in having the capacity to absorb modern technology and indeed even contribute to its development. At the same time, almost 40% of our population is still illiterate and the percentage is much higher for women and girls. We must give top priority to improving our performance in this sector.

    Massive investments are needed to develop an economic infrastructure capable of supporting rapid growth. India’s infrastructure whether we talk of power or roads or railways, telecommunications needs major transformation to come up to the standards even applicable to developing countries.

    The mid-term review prepared by the Commission draws attention to these problems. It frankly examines the weaknesses in our existing programmes and indicates the directions in which policies must be changed in future. The time left for the Ninth Plan is only 1 ½ years. We must renew our efforts in this period to assess the corrective steps necessary to achieve the Ninth Plan targets.

    More importantly, we must also reflect on the issues posed by this document to undertake a more fundamental restructuring of our policies. This is necessary for making faster progress in the Tenth Plan period, which is now just round the corner.

    I would like the Commission to examine the feasibility of raising our growth target from 6.5% in the Ninth Plan to 9% in the Tenth Plan. Even this, in my view, is less than the expectations that have been raised in our society. As a start, however, we should define the minimum necessary set of policies to achieve a 9% growth in the Tenth Plan.

    This is only possible if we can take a number of difficult steps with far reaching changes in existing policies. It is time that these issues are frontally addressed and both the Centre and the States are faced with a clean statement of what needs to be done in their respective areas.

    In this context, the proposals to restructure the Planning Commission which are before us are particularly important. The role of planning is obviously very different from what it was in the earlier years.

    In the economic sphere the role of the private sector has increased enormously and much of the prospects for achieving higher growth depend upon private sector initiatives in both industry and agriculture, working within the framework of a competitive market economy. However, this does not mean that planning has no relevance in this context.

    The shift from a control economy which emphasised the public sector does not mean that Government can give up its responsibility for ensuring balanced development. The role of Government remains extremely important but somewhat different. It must ensure that the environment is such that the private sector can perform its requisite role.

    The role of the Government in a market based economy becomes increasingly one of a facilitator. It is that of a regulator, a provider of basic social and economic infrastructure and the driving force behind poverty alleviation.

    Planning has to move beyond undertaking mere budgetary allocations towards ensuring policy harmonisation with a view to creating a productive environment. I would expect that in the course of this move from largely investment planning orientation, the Commission would create within itself the capacity to undertake independent assessment of issues and policy options.

    Planning Commission, in today’s context must also act as a "Think Tank" for the Government.

    I compliment the Deputy Chairman, Members and the officers of the Planning Commission on having recognised the need to undertake institutional corrections.

    These changes, can become meaningful only if they are matched by the willingness of the other arms of Government to seek and abide by the advice of the Planning Commission."

    Dr. D.P.S. Seth has been appointed as the Chairman-cum-Managing Director of the newly-created Corporation of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. Prior to his assignment, he was senior Deputy Director General Customers Services in the Department of Telecom Operations, Ministry of Communications.

    B.S.N.L. will come into existence from tomorrow. The Corporation will be launched by the Minister of Communications, Shri Ram Vilas Paswan at a function organised by the Ministry of Communications, tomorrow.