Cabinet finalises president’s speech to parliament

NEW DELHI - The government Tuesday finalised President Pratibha Patil’s speech Feb 21 to the joint session of parliament that marks the beginning of the budget session, official sources said.

The text of the president’s speech was finalised at a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The speech will highlight the government’s policies for the year ahead and list its achievements during the year gone by.

The sources said the cabinet also deliberated on the government’s strategy for the budget session in the wake of opposition threats to stall parliament’s proceedings over corruption scandals.