Budget in due time: Mukherjee

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday expressed the hope that government would be able to present the budget in due time to avoid uncertainties.
    
However, he parried questions whether the government would go for a vote-on-account now.
    
"Indian economy is resilient, strong and we shall have to build up and come back to the growth track as early as possible. We will be able to, I hope, present the budget in due time so that uncertainties can be avoided and time of spending can be renewed," he told reporters shortly after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh retained him in the finance ministry.
    
After being given the charge of finance ministry earlier this year, Mukherjee had presented the vote-on-account in view of the elections.
    
To a question whether the government would present a vote-on-account now, he said he would not answer these questions now. "Don't create problems for me and the people".

Mukherjee, who was the first one to take oath of office after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, said that he would be assuming office on Monday.
    
"We will address all major issues. Various efforts will be made to insulate the Indian economy from the adverse impact of financial meltdown", he said.
    
Earlier in the day briefing reporters about the first meeting of the Union Cabinet, Home Minister P Chidambaram said the new government would strive to get the budget approved by Parliament by July 31, the day when the vote-on-account approved by the interim budget expires.
    
"We hope we will be able to pass the full Budget by July 31", Chidambaram said, adding that in case the government was not able to get the Budget passed by then it would go in for another vote-on-account for a short period.
    
The government through an interim budget in February sought the approval of Parliament to withdraw money from Consolidated Fund to meet necessary expenditure until July 31.
    
The vote-on-account, which is approved by Parliament, allows government to spend money from the exchequer only for a specified period of time.
    
Outlining the priorities of the new government yesterday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had said, "(The) first task is to restore the economy and its growth momentum ... There is global recession, we have to protect our growth."
    
"We have made number of promises and we have promises to keep," Chidambaram quoted Singh as saying in today's Cabinet meeting.