constituted - of Planning Commission

Chapter-1IntroductionThe Working Group on Centre’s financial resources for the Twelfth Five YearPlan was constituted by the Planning Commission vide order No. 3/2/2010-FRdated April 1, 2011 with Prof (Dr.) Kaushik Basu, Chief Economic Adviser,Ministry of Finance as the Chairperson. The composition and terms of referenceof the working group is given at Annexure-I. The Group was mandated toassess the resource position of the Centre in light of the recent developmentslike the implementation of the Thirteenth Finance Commission award,resumption of the process of fiscal consolidation after two years of purposefulexpansion, the recommendations of the High level Expert Committee onEfficient Management of Public Expenditure chaired by Dr. C. Rangarajan,Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister and take intoreckoning likely policy changes such as the introduction of the goods andservices tax (GST) etc. Based on the assessment, the Group was required tomake projections of resources and expenditure for the Twelfth Five Year Planand present its scheme of financing the Plan.The Approach Paper to the Twelfth Five Year Plan, which has been prepared onthe basis of extensive consultations with stakeholders, indicates that the Indianeconomy continues to be characterised by strong macro fundamentals, and goodperformance over the Eleventh Plan period, though clouded by someperceptible slowdown in growth in the current year, continuing concern aboutinflation and a sudden increase in uncertainty about the global economy. TheApproach Paper documents the significant achievements in terms of growth aswell as indicators of the inclusive agenda in the Eleventh Plan and continuingwith the focus on the theme of faster, sustainable and more inclusive growth.The Approach Paper has explored two alternative targets for economic growthin the Twelfth Five Year Plan. The first is a restatement of the Eleventh PlanWorking Group Report on Centre’s Financial ResourcesPage-1