India may not be called upon to give $10 billion ( Rs. 55,000 crore) it has committed to the IMF for bailing out debt-wrecked Eurozone if the global economic situation improves, Indian media reported on Wednesday. “The amount we contribute is entirely liquid, in the sense that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) assures contributors that it will be available whenever needed. It will, therefore, continue to form part of our reserves,” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said in a statement. Indian officials explained that the situation has not reached a point where the funds committed by Singh at the G20 Summit on Tuesday would have to be transferred to the IMF. According to R Gopalan, Secretary in the Department of Indian Economic Affairs, “the country may not be called upon to give the money if the world situation gets better.” India’s contribution to the IMF bailout fund, Singh said, “reflects our recognition that as a responsible player in the global community, we must play our part.” The G20 countries, he added, have responded to the need to enhance the resources of the IMF to enable it to play its role in the current situation. “India has contributed $10 billion. BRICS and other countries have also contributed, taking the total commitments, including what was earlier agreed in April, to almost $460 billion,” Singh added.
Having second thoughts, are we?
