Chidambaram to be named finance minister soon: Govt source

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The government will soon name Palaniappan Chidambaram as the new finance minister in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's cabinet, a senior government official said on Tuesday.

Chidambaram, currently home (interior) minister, has held the finance post twice before and was hailed for his deft handling of the economy during the global financial crisis in 2008.

His appointment would come at a time when economic growth has faltered to a nine-year low due to policy inaction, high inflation and interest rates and global economic uncertainty.

A failure to rein in subsidies has strained public finances and has put India's investment-grade sovereign debt rating in peril. A record current account gap, policy flip-flops and waning global appetite for risk have hammered the rupee.

To make matters worse, light monsoon rain has raised the spectre of a drought, which could force higher spending and aggravate the fiscal situation.