The government says economy is on the path of distinct recovery but some worrisome areas still remain. Inaugurating the economic editor’s conference in New Delhi this evening, the finance Minister Mr. Mukherjee said government is looking at steps to cut subsidy on fertilizer and oil sale with an aim to cutting non-Plan expenditure and contain fiscal deficit. He said that the fiscal deficit would be rolled back to 5.5 per cent in the next financial year from 6.8 per cent in 2009-10. <br/>He expressed government's keen desire for achieving higher growth rate and called form improvement in governance, broadening the agenda of inclusive growth on a priority basis for the purpose. According to official sources this rate of 8.5 to 9 percent in the coming years. Mr. Pranab Mukherjee said that the dismal performance of agriculture sector due to scant monsoon has added to the worries of the government apart from the low demand of the exports in the devolved countries. <br/>He asked the state governments to start new projects in public private partnership mode in new areas to speed up the growth process. He asserted that the foreign exchange reserves have increased and India’s external debt position is also within the comfort zone. He however said that there is a need to speed up infrastructure projects. <br/>The finance minister asked the banks to ensure that credit is available to all sectors particularly farm sector and small and medium industries who are the largest employment providers. He said a few more PSUs have been identified for disinvestment after the overwhelming response to NHPC and Oil India IPOs. Pinning hopes on tax reforms for boost in revenue, Mr. Mukherjee said the introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST) in 2010-11 is on track.<br/>The proposed indirect tax structure, GST, scheduled to be introduced in April 2010, will do way with most of the indirect taxes like excise and service taxes at the Center and also state level taxes like VAT and octroi.<br/>Allaying concerns on the implication of large government borrowings, the Finance Minister said the RBI has taken several steps to improve liquidity in the market. He said though the impact of some normal south-west monsoon is yet to be felt, the agricultural economy may fare better than the initial estimates of decline in food production.<br/>The Finance Minister, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee today said that the ineffective Public Distribution System, PDS, in the state is largely responsible for the rise in food prices. He asserted that the benefits of the scheme do not reach the targeted <br/>vulnerable sections of the population mainly due to inadquacies in the PDS. <br/>Participating in the economic editors' conference in New Delhi, Mr. Mukherjee, however, said that the inflation may rise in the coming months and there are certain factors including global economic melt-down responsible for it. Mr. Mukherjee said that an effective Public Distribution System is the answer to counter the rising prices at least for the poor. Sharing the concern of public, he called for strengthening the public distribution system and also advocated for coordinated efforts by the states and <br/>the centre to deal with the situation. According to estimates, inflation is likely to touch 6.5 per cent by the end of this fiscal. <br/>