President of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), S Gopalakrishnan said the government’s move to almost double gas prices with effect from April 2014 will have a “cascading effect” on power tariffs. He said this while addressing a press conference.

He disfavoured the dollar pricing of domestically produced natural gas by saying the following, “I do not believe that the price of gas (produced in India) ought to be set in dollar terms."

He opined that “dollarised” gas tariff made the situation “more difficult” for industries, especially because of the rupee’s slide in recent weeks.

He cautioned that the government’s “fiscal consolidation” ought to be done “gradually, over the next few years.” “The challenge is to cut the fiscal deficit without cutting capital expenditure,” he said.

The Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) ought to focus on speedy clearance of 50 large projects involving investment of more than Rs 1,000 crore each, within the next three months. Investment in manufacturing projects, involving a minimum investment of Rs.250 crore each should also be “fast-tracked”, he said.