‘The Budget has tried to take care of the basic needs of the economy in terms of higher allocation to sectors like Agriculture, Horticulture, Health, Renewable Energy, Environment, Infrastructure etc which should benefit the upliftment of the poor in the medium to long term subject to effective implementation.
The decision to increase the insurance for bank deposits to Rs. 5 lacs from Rs. 1 lac will help increase the trust and faith of general public in Banks. This should lead to higher funds availability to the banks .
Proposing to take LIC to the public through IPO is a welcome step , which will serve the purpose of bridging the fiscal deficit and also bring the mammoth LIC to transparent and accountable level.
The removal of Dividend Distribution Tax and changes in Personal Income Tax rates are very welcome step. However, the proposal to do away with exemptions and deductions under the new tax regime could lead to lower savings for an individual. Again the Direct Tax dispute resolution scheme is welcome step which will help increase the collections on one hand and reduce the litigations on the other hand.
However Industry was expecting structural changes to boost consumption, Budgetary allocation to Banking sector, and increasing Export competitiveness. Although fine print needs to be seen and analysed to understand further.
ICC compliments Government of India for taking several budgetary measures to support Indian Economy during global slowdown.’
Mr. Mayank Jalan, President, Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
