Thaindian News

New Delhi, Aug 20 (IANS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Saturday India needed to take some difficult decisions to achieve a target of 9 percent growth during the next five-year plan, that runs from 2012-13 to 2116-17.

Chairing a meeting of the full Planning Commission, the prime minister said the plan panel had examined the range of 9 to 9.5 percent growth for the five-year period beginning April 1, 2012.

However, he said the commission has proposed to set the target at 9 percent.

“Given the uncertainties in the global economy, and the challenges in the domestic economy, even a 9 percent target is feasible only if we can take some difficult decisions,” the prime minister said in his opening remarks at the full Planning Commission meeting at his official residence here.

He said to achieve 9 percent growth during the next plan period, India would require large investments in infrastructure development.

“The approach paper notes that we have been fairly successful in the eleventh plan in using a combination of public investment and public-private-partnerships for infrastructure development. We need to bring greater momentum to both these components so that present infrastructure shortages can be addressed in the shortest time available,” he said.

The full plan panel is likely to finalise the draft of the 12th five-year plan. The paper will be then sent to the federal cabinet and eventually to the National Development Council for their approvals.