New Delhi: Finance Minister P Chidambaram today (Jul 17, 2004) said the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) Government is committed to carrying forward economic reforms and broadening and deepening the capital markets.

"We need to press on with reforms...and we need to deepen and broaden the capital markets," he said inaugurating a CNBC-TV 18-sponsored investor camp.

At the same time, Chidambaram said that his duty is to respect the mandate of the people, which is to improve the lot of the rural population and the poor. The point to remember is that the UPA Government has got a complex electoral mandate.

"It is my duty as Finance Minister of India to interpret the mandate," he said.

The mandate, in turn, is meant to develop agriculture and rural economy and give attention to those sections who have been deprived all along, he said.

However, this does not mean there is no mandate for reforms. "The mandate is also for reforms, continued reforms and not to retract or rollback, so that the Indian economy is strengthened to become more competitive and leading economy in the world," he added.

He also said that the overwhelming majority of India does not believe in restructuring Public Sector Undertakings. "We want the public and private sectors to compete with each other."

Asserting that the structure of the economy must be enlarged, Chidambaram said there is a need to bring in new technology and improved management systems. The industry should rely more on capital markets for funding their capital requirement, he said.

The capital market punishes bad governance and bad behaviour, which acts as a check on the industry, the Finance Minister said.

Since the stock markets play a major role in the development of economy, it is crucial to deepen and strengthen them, he said adding that this calls for well-regulated markets as volatility is inherent in them.