Newly appointed Union Home Minister, P. Chidambaram said that no one in the country is more capable than Dr. Manmohan Singh for the finance portfolio. Admitting to some unfinished tasks in the finance ministry, he hoped to complete them under the control of the PM. Dr. Singh is an economist of international repute, having exceptional background as a union finance minister, governor of reserve bank and chairman of planning commission. He would definitely control the Indian economy in the wake of the financial crisis.

He expressed satisfaction on the current level of inflation and hoped that it would further slide following the concrete management by the government. Indian economy would grow at satisfactory level of 7-8 per cent this fiscal despite unfavorable international financial conditions. Chidambaram reiterated that India would be marginally affected by the global financial crisis due to its strong fundamentals. He said that finance ministry is his favorite portfolio but he could not decline the request of the Prime Minister and his party chief Sonia Gandhi to assume charge of the Union Home Ministry.

Meanwhile, any decision on the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) is likely to be dealt with by the Prime Minister, after meeting of FIPB on December 12.