Prime minister Manmohan Singh today decided to keep the finance minister’s portfolio himself, but will certainly bank heavily on his confidante Montek Singh Ahluwalia, deputy chairman, planning commission, to address the demands of the $1-trillion domestic economy. Of course, the senior team at North Block or the finance ministry will report to the prime minister only.

In fact, Ahluwalia was his sherpa or chief coordinator in the Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy called by US president George Bush and attended by G-20 leaders in Washington DC on November 15. Government sources said he is scheduled to submit a detailed infrastructure spending plan in the next 2-3 days to the prime minister.

The economic agenda for the next six months, according to a senior government functionary, will be to impart monetary and fiscal stimuli to sustain the India growth story. “The United Progressive Alliance government will not present a full Budget. Much of the work undertaken in the coming months will be preparatory in nature and provide the Budget framework for the new government,” a Cabinet minister told The Indian Express.

The minister said that the present UPA dispensation will only prepare and present a vote on account — a special provision in the Constitution that allows the government to ensure enough money is at its disposal to run the administration till a full Budget is presented by the next government. The United Progressive Alliance completes its tenure before May-end 2009, less than two months after the new fiscal starts in April.

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