29 Feb 2008, 2.00 pm
Highlights of Union Budget for 2008-'09 by Finance minister Mr. P. Chidambaram
- Banking transaction tax to be withdrawn from April 2009
- Reduce central sales tax to 2%
- Increase in short term capital gains tax to 15%
- 5-yr tax holiday for setting up hospitals in tier-II, tier III regions
- Short-term capital gains increases to 15%
- Excise duty of Rs 1.35/litre on unbranded petrol
- Excise duty of Rs 4.6/litre on unbranded diesel
- Commodities Transactions Tax on futures to be introduced
- Securities Transaction Tax to be treated like deductible expenditure
- 5-yr tax holiday to 2,3,4-star hotels in UNESCO's heritage sites
- Pharma : Excise down from 16% to 8%
- No FBT on creche, employee sports facilities
- Ad Valorem duty on diesel and petrol removed
- No change in corporate income tax rate, surcharge stays
- Women exemption threshold extended from Rs 1,45,000 to 1,80,000
- Income Tax exemption raised to Rs 1,50,000
- Income Tax exemption for senior citizens raised to Rs 2,25,000
- Anti-AIDS drugs to be exempt from excise duties
- Refrigeration components to become cheaper
- Cigarettes to be taxed more
- 4 new sectors brought under service tax net
- No change in peak rate of customs duty for non agriculture imports.
- Tax to GDP ratio increased from 9.2 per cent in 2004-05 to 12.5 per cent 2007-08.
- No excise duty on wireless data cards
- Customs duty on specified life saving drugs reduced from 10% to 5%
- Customs duty on specified sports goods machinery down from 7.5% to 5%
- Special Countervailing Duty on power imports.
- Excise duty on small cars cut
- Excise duty down on 2 & 3 wheelers to 12%
- Some sports goods raw materials exempt from duty
- Convergence products, duty cut from 10% to 5%
- No duty on set-top boxes
- Custom duties to be reduced on some power projects, steel & alumninium melting scrap & some life saving drugs.
- Duties on project imports cut to 5% from 7.5%
- Govt needs one more year to eliminate revenue deficit
- Rs 32,667 for food subsidies under PDS scheme
- Rs 50 crore for the National Tiger Fund Authority, to deploy a special tiger protection force.
- Rs 624 crore allocated for Commonwealth Games
- Revenue deficit at 1.4% of GDP
- Govt to set up Central Plan Scheme Monitoring system
- One time settlement scheme for farmers
- 6th Pay commission will meet employee expectation
- Defence spending to increase by 10 percent
- Govt to tap into resources of SCBs to set up funds
- Commercial banks advised to have 250 rural accounts every year
- Completion rate of Golden Quadrilateral project at 98.6%
- Rs 16,436 cr allocated as equity support to public sector enterprises
- Rs 12,970 cr allocated for National Highways
- Govt to create national fund for power transmission & distribution
- Rs 303 cr as debt support to PSUs
- Implementation of debt waiver to be completed by June 2008
- Populism in farm loan waiver, bank shares to be hit
- Loan waiver for farmers with 1-2 hectares of land; at least 4 cr farmers to benefit from this
- Loans for small & marginal farmers due up to 31st March 2007 have been waived; waiver amounts to 4% of total bank loans
- Rs 20,000 cr allocated for irrigation schemes
- Rs 16,202 cr for schemes with 30% women representation
- Govt to set up Irrigation & Water Resources Corporations
- Rs 70,300 cr allocated for Drinking Water Mission
- Rs 500 cr for development of North-east
- NREG scheme rolled out for all 596 rural districts
- Rs 11,460 cr allocated for 100% women specific schemes
- Allocation for Ministry of Minority Affairs raised to 1,000 cr
- Rs 1200 cr for sanitation programme
- Rs 195 cr for ST development programmes
- Rs 164 cr for development of OBCs
- Rs 804 cr for SC development programmes
- Urban Infrastructure allocation to be 6,870 cr
- Rs 1200 cr for sanitation programme
- Health insurance of 30,000 to people below poverty line
- 16 Central universities to be set up
- National Programme for elderly with a plan outlay of Rs 400 cr
- Total allocation for NRHM scheme to be at Rs 12,050 cr
- Health spending to increase by 15%, allocated 16,530 cr
- Rs 31280 cr allocated to Bharat Nirman Program
- Proposal to set up 3 new IITs in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar & Rajasthan
- Upgraded mid-day meal scheme to help 2.5 cr children
- Education sector funding raised to Rs 34,400 cr
- Agriculture sector at a disappointing 2.6%
- Keeping inflation under control is top priority
- There is immense pressure on domestic prices
- International prices of Iron Ore, other metals are up
- Growth in GDP in 2007-08 has been 8.8%
- 8% GDP growth for 12 successive years
- 2007-08 has been one of the most challenging years
- Confident of maintaining 8% growth
