Speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Expectations from the Union Budget 2008-09’ organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in the city today, Suman K Mukherjee, Director, JD Birla Institute and Birla Institute of Management, said: “The government would need to tighten its belt and bring in measures such as wage freeze. Otherwise, efficient India would end up funding inefficient India.”

He said as salary of government officials was being hiked with each successive pay commission, nothing has been done to better their performances.

“Only 20 per cent of the budget outlay makes sense. The rest is spent on paying interest for outstanding debts, defence, subsidies, grants to states and other non-planned assistance,” Mukherjee added.

Participants at the discussion stressed on the importance of opening the agriculture sector to private investment.

According to them, this will turn around the fortunes of the sector that employs 60 per cent of the country’s population and contributes merely 20 per cent to the nation’s GDP.

The executive vice-president of ITC Pvt Ltd, B B Chatterjee, observed that the country’s corporate sector would be willing to contribute more by way of taxes such as corporate tax, fringe benefit tax, education cess and others, only if the government could ensure accountability of the money thus collected and a proper delivery channel towards the purpose intended.