"It would come down below double digit this fiscal. I am sure of that," he said. The country's wholesale price-based inflation is at a 13-year high of 11.98 per cent, just 0.02 per cent shy of 12 per cent.

Reserve Bank Governor Y V Reddy feels inflation will ease to 7 per cent by the end of current fiscal.

The view has been endorsed by Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council Chairman C Rangarajan, who expects inflation to ease to around 8-9 per cent by the end of the year.

Rangarajan said if inflation goes further down it would mainly be because of oil prices, which has cooled to $118 a barrel level on Wednesday after touching a high of $147 a barrel in July.

Admitting that the public expenditure on health is low, Ahluwalia said there is need to increase allocation for the health care sector. Public-Private Partnership can help leverage limited government resources to improve health services, he said. PPP will also bring in an element of competitiveness in the sector, he added.

Inflation: The silent killer