The interim budget, presented by union minister Piyush Goyal in Lok Sabah on Friday, brought major relief for middle-class taxpayers, farmers and labourers working in unorganised sectors.
In a major tax reform proposed in the last budget of the Modi government, the Goyal proposed tax exemption for individual annual incomes of Rs 5 lakh, from the current level of Rs 2.5 lakh.
Goyal announced the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme under which small farmers will get an assured income of Rs 6000 per year. For workers in unorganised sectors, he announced monthly pension of Rs 3000 in the interim budget.
Speaking after the presentation of interim budget 2019, PM Narendra Modi said the government has taken care of people from all walks of life in the budget.
"From middle class to labourers, from farmers’ growth to the development of businessmen, from manufacturing to MSME sector, from growth of the economy to development of New India, everyone has been taken care of in this interim budget," PM Modi said.
Individual taxpayers having taxable annual income up to Rs 5 lakh will get a full tax rebate and therefore will not be required to pay any income tax, announced Piyush Goyal in the interim budget 2019. Addressing citizens following the presentation of the interim budget, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated middle-class taxpayers for the tax relief announced.
Piyush Goyal during his media briefing explained the tax structure mentioned in the Budget. The Union Minister clarified that the tax would be counted after calculating deductions.
Piyush Goyal: Those sitting in AC rooms cannot understand the plight of the small farmers. Keeping this in mind, we have introduced Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme. This is a historic decision.
Union Minister Piyush Goyal took a swipe at previous UPA government. He said that previous government on made hollow promises, but the Modi government actually did substantial work for the welfare of people.
BJP chief Amit Shah hailed the Interim Budget 2019. he also praised the Modi government for bringing 'Rashtriya Kamdhenu Ayog' to protect cows. He also appreciated the government for giving relief to farmers in the budget.
In the interim budget, Piyush Goyal announced to give a full rebate to taxpayers having annual income up to Rs 5 lakh. He also said that small farmers will get an assured income of Rs 6000 per year under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi.
In his interim budget speech, Piyush Goyal announced full tax rebate for individuals having annual income upto Rs 5 lakh. He also announced to raise standard tax deduction from current Rs 40,000 to Rs 50,000 for salaried persons.
In his interim budget speech, Piyush Goyal said India is poised to become a 5 trillion dollar economy in the next five years. "We aspire to become a 10 trillion dollar economy in the next eight years," Goyal added.
New Delhi, February 1: Union Minister Piyush Goyal, who has been given additional charge of the finance portfolio in the absence of Arun Jaitley who is undergoing medical treatment in the US, will present the interim budget 2019 in Parliament and deliver a speech today. The interim budget could be a full budget of Prime Minister Narendra Modi led government ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, and not a vote-on-account. Catch live updates on interim budget 2019, its impact on various sectors and income tax changes (if any) here. Watch Live Streaming of Interim Budget 2019 Speech by Piyush Goyal Here.
While the Modi government on Wednesday said that the budget will be called 'Interim Budget 2019-20', Jaitley had asserted that the interim budget may go "beyond the traditional" vote-on-account as tackling agricultural challenges "can't afford to wait". In the interim budget, the Modi government may announce a relief package to address agrarian distress. The agriculture sector is likely to get more attention after the recent election defeat for the BJP in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh owing to farmers' distress. Rail Budget 2019: How Platform Ticket Price Changed From 2014 to 2018.
The possibility of income tax relief for the middle class and the corporates cannot be ruled out either. The government may raise the income tax exemption limit for the middle-class taxpayers from the present Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh per annum. The corporates have also been clamouring for reducing the peak rate from 30 to 25 per cent. For micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector, which was largely affected by the demonetisation decision of 2016 and GST implementation following that, the interim budget could contain incentives and easier flow of credit.
Budget 2019 Expectations: Tax Sops, Increase in Exemption Limit; What's on Cards? Watch Below
Defence experts are of the view that the government must increase its expenditure on the defence sector. Recently, a parliamentary panel, headed by BJP MP Kalraj Mishra, slammed the Modi government for not allocating enough fund for armed forces. The panel had said it didn't understand the rationale behind inadequate fund allocated for defence forces. The Defence Ministry sought Rs 1.72 lakh crore under the capital budget for 2018, however, only Rs 93,982 crore was allocated by the Ministry of Finance.
Meanwhile, the Congress has issued a whip to its MPs ahead of the interim budget presentation, which will be the last before the Lok Sabha elections slated for April-May 2019. The budget session will conclude on February 13.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 01, 2019 07:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).