Hope Exists
A HEALTHY economy is the necessity of any
country. Without the economy functioning in the way it should, due to various reasons, the
general people have to suffer the most. In this context, the recent Maoist activities have
dealt great blows to the very development infrastructures that are deemed essential for
the nations' prosperity which means the people's welfare. The industrialists and business
people are the most hurt because of the attacks on their installations and also as a
result of the unqualified bandhs that are being called at regular intervals. It is no
wonder that the economy of the country as a whole has suffered to a great extent. Security
is a main problem and the present government has made commitments to improve it. It may be
a difficult task but not impossible to accomplish. The new government formed just over a
month ago seems to have a set of plans to meet the goals. The objectives are to maintain
law and order and hold the elections at the earliest possible date. There is no doubt that
these can be achieved if the right atmosphere can be created with the support of the
recognised political parties. The political parties must not shy away from their
responsibilities to see the country revive. Petty interests do no good for the country in
particular.
National Planning Commission (NPC) has a great
burden to shoulder in seeing that the national level programmes are implemented in the
right and efficient manner. In this connection, NPC Vice-Chairman Dr. Shankar Sharma,
speaking at an interaction programme on "Economic Reform Programme and Future
Strategies", the other day, stressed on the fact that works were in progress to
improve the efficiency of service delivery in the basic needs sector such as health and
education. This may be a priority issue and deserves praise for the commitment made. The
reference to the Tenth Plan also merits attention as that will show where the country will
be heading for. A main point referred to at the interaction programme was that of the lack
of regular evaluation of the implemented programmes. The Plan, according to NPC
Vice-Chairman, revolves around minimising public expenditures, prioritising the public
sector and improving the service delivery mechanism. They are required to improve the
overall economy of the country. It is not just plans and programmes that give results but
the implementation must be the major focus. In this direction, optimism has started
prevailing.
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