The Union Budget for 2010-11, presented by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee in the Parliament today, aims to address the concerns of the common man and improving the investment climate while at the same time achieving fiscal consolidation.

The Budget aims to focus on inclusive growth and ensuring food security, in order to address the concerns of the common man. It also provides for increased allocation for the social sector and to those industrial sectors, which affect employment and incomes most.

The increased focus on infrastructure goes hand in hand with credible measures for improving investment climate, strengthening infrastructure and fiscal consolidation. As the country looks to 'quickly revert to high GDP growth path' in the wake of 'uncertain times', concerns for inclusive growth targeting the disadvantaged sections form the defining features of the Budget.

Towards this, the Budget proposes several new initiatives. These include setting up of Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana, Financial Stability and Development Council, Gold Regulatory Authority, Technical Advisory Group for Unique Projects, National Mission for Delivery of Justice and Legal Reforms, Independent Evaluation Office and National Clean Energy Fund.

Mukherjee said the three main challenges before the policy planners are to quickly revert to the high GDP growth path of 9 per cent and then cross the double digit growth barrier; consolidate recent gains in making development more inclusive; and lastly, removing administrative weaknesses at different levels and improving public delivery mechanism.

The Budget, therefore, focuses on fiscal consolidation, making growth more broad-based and ensuring that supply-demand imbalances are better managed.