CALCUTTA, December 20: The country has not done enough to further research and technological development in the country, West Bengal chief minister Jyoti Basu said during the inauguration of the 11th Industrial India Trade Fair on Friday.

"The government spends very little on research and corporates do not spend much either. This is a very dangerous tradition. It is important that we learn to stand on our own feet. It is okay to buy technology whenever it is necessary but at the same time there should be some effort to develop technology internally. Only that will help us to be competitive in the world as well as within the country when multinationals are coming in," Basu said at the fair which has been organised by the Bengal National Chambers of Commerce.

Regarding the competitive set up in which industry needs to operate, Basu said: "Unless quality goods are produced we cannot compete either inside the country or outside it. We cannot have an economy that is supported by the budgets. It should have been opened internally before it was opened up to the multinationals."

Discussing the new industrial policy and the future of the public sector in the country, he said: "It is important to see that in the process of ensuring the success of the new policy we do not destroy whatever we had built up during the earlier decades. It will be really sad if we have to see our public sector units go down, not being able to withstand the pressure of competition."

According to him, the country's economic performance "has been very unsatisfactory". "Endeavours to activate the pace of economic development were not made at the appropriate time.

Now we find there is a very lucrative market comprising the top 10 to 15 per cent of the population, while the rest of the 85 per cent is facing stagnation. It is good that foreigners are coming in but we cannot rest while the condition of this 85 per cent of the population does not improve.

Even today, despite the new policy the nation's economy suffers from major weaknesses. When the United Front was formed a Common Minimum Programme was formulated. However the United Front government was slow in implementing it," he said.

Regarding West Bengal, Basu said: "Though we have provided stability and steady growth on the agricultural front, we have been witness to a steady decline in the fortunes of the central public sector units."