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The Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee started presenting the budget for this fiscal in the Lok Sabha on Monday with a promise that this government will do to ensure inclusive growth and address the growing aspirations of the country's young population.
The 73-year-old politician said UPA government will push forward an agenda which will ensure 12 million new jobs each year and reduce poverty to half by 2014.
"The government recognises the challenges," he said, referring to the global recession and the decline in India's growth rate in the past year to 6.7% from over 9% in the preceding 3 years.
"The first challenge is to bring back the GDP (gross domestic product) growth rate to over 9 percent per annum," he said, setting the tone of what is his fourth career budget. "There are signs of an economic recovery."
He added that the other challenges included better governance and to ensure that the fruits of development reached across regions to touch the lives of every citizen.
