Committed to increasing growth rate; working overtime to push reforms: Arun Jaitley

New Delhi, Dec 12: Committing to push growth rate to 6-6.5 per cent in the next fiscal year, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday said the government is "working overtime" to push reforms, especially, in sectors like insurance and coal, and the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

"We are working overtime on reforms... Insurance Bill will be taken up next week", Mr Jaitley said while speaking at a programme organised by a TV channel.

The minister further said that he sat late on Thursday with state finance ministers to sort out issues hampering the roll-out of the long-pending GST.

"I will try to introduce the Constitution amendment Bill for GST in the current session of Parliament so that it could be discussed and considered in the next session," he said, adding that the Bill to clear mess in the coal during UPA regime is being taken up by Parliament.

Mr Jaitley said the government was hopeful of achieving an economic growth rate of 6-6.5 per cent in the next financial year and over 7 per cent thereafter.

Refuting criticism that the government has not taken any big-ticket reform measures in the last six months, the minister said they are not about "sensationalising things" and that "one should see the big picture".

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he added, announced the important decision of abolishing the Planning Commission, an institution which became irrelevant after the introduction of the economic reforms in 1991.

He further said the government decontrolled diesel and would take more steps to streamline public expenditure and rationalise subsidies after receiving the report of the Expenditure Commission