The committee has suggested that a study be conducted with a view to examining the feasibility of identifying the rural rich. The committee, whose chairman is member of parliament Murli Deora, is of the opinion that the number of tax payers in India is still too small compared with the potential tax payers in the country.

The committee has made wide-ranging recommendations in respect of machinery and equipment for the budget press, modernisation of Government of India mints, strengthening of regional rural banks, priority sector lending to agriculture, rural posting of bank staff, banks' investment in government securities, need for legal reforms for toning of the recovery process, capital contribution to nationalised losses suffered, steps to revitalise the capital markets and need for containingthe fiscal deficit.

The committee has recommended urgent steps to constitute expenditure management and reforms commission consisting of distinguished people and leaders from national political parties to have consensus approach in the policies which need to be evolved for revamping the expenditure patterns of the central government without further delay.

The committee is of the view that the ever-increasing fiscal deficit might push out the commercial sector from raising funds from the market which in turn will result in the hardening of interest rates.

The committee believed that there is a distinct possibility of firming up of the interest rates in the light of sanctions, downgrading of India's credit rating by international rating agencies by two notches and the consequent drying up of international sources of finance.