G-20 3

Finance Minister of India Pranab Mukherjee has already
set a target of halving the deficit by 2011 and that may be
the period by which the stimulus withdrawal could also be
attempted domestically, say the officials. But, they also
point out, that the challenge is how the countries agree to do
it in a coordinated manner.
The other major issue that is likely to come up at the
Summit is the strong demand for a universal bank tax for a
bail-out of banks, a move triggered by the 2008 financial
crisis following the collapse of banks in the US and Europe.
French President Sarkozy and German Chancellor Merkel
have written to G-20 leaders pushing the demand for the bank
tax. The new coalition government in Britain has already
introduced one.
But India has strong reservations on the issue and has
made clear its position. New Delhi feels the banks in India
have been conservative, a reason that stood them in good stead
during the global crisis, and the sector is healthy. The
Indian banking norms were sound and the system did not
collapse unlike in the West, officials point out.
"I don't think the proposal will go through in an
undiluted form. I think it will end up something like those
who want can go ahead," an official said, adding in a lighter
vein, "We don't like it (the tax). Those who have money don't
want the tax. Those who don't have want it." MORE PTI