Thread: Manjor highlights of Union Budget 2008-2009

New Delhi: Union Finance Minister, P Chidambaram, presented the Union Budget for the year 2008-09 today in the Lok Sabha. The Budget which will be the last (as the next General Elections are likely to be held in 2009) for the incumbent United Progressive Alliance Government, was framed to please maximum stake holders. Headlines India brings you its major highlights:

Taxes

* Income Tax exemption (general) increased to Rs 1.5 lakh
* Income Tax exemption for women increased to Rs 1.8 lakh
* Income Tax exemption for senior citizens raised to Rs 2.25 lakh
* Tax slab for income group between Rs 1.5-3 lakh fixed at 10 per cent
* Tax slab for income group between Rs 3-5 lakh slated at 20 per cent
* Tax slab for income group of above Rs 5 lakh have been modified at 30 per cent
* Waiver on insurance premium up to Rs 35,000

Agriculture

* Loan waiver and debt relief for farmers having land up to 2 hectares
* Marginal and small farmers to get complete loan waiver; all loans up to March 2007 under the scheme
* Other farmers to get one time relief settlement by paying 75 per cent debt
* Implementation of relief of farmers scheme w.e.f June 2008
* Total relief package for farmers to cost Rs 60,000 crore
* Agricultural growth estimated at 2.6 per cent
* Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojna launched
* National agriculture insurance scheme to continue in the present format
* Agricultural credit to reach Rs 2.4 lakh crore by year end
* Haryana & Chandigarh to develop smart card facility for food subsidy distribution
* Rs 40,000 crore allocated for special purpose Tea fund
* Fertiliser subsidy to continue in the current form

Sops for Industry
* Rs 5000 crore fund for enhancing re-finance operations
* No change in corporate tax
* Excise duty on Pharma products down to 8 per cent from last year's 16 per cent
* Excise duty on two and three wheelers down to 12 per cent
* Excise duty on Hybrid cars reduced to 14 per cent from 24 per cent
* Excises duty on buses and chassis reduced to 12 per cent
* Special exemptions and reductions for paper, fertilizers and auto industries
* Four new services (Asset management service provided under ULIP, services provided by stock / commodity exchanges and clearing houses, right to use goods in cases where VAT is not payable and customised software) brought under tax net
* Custom duty on project import have been reduced from 7.5 per cent to 5 per cent
* Public Sector Units to get Rs 16436 crore in 2008-09
* Export taxes on key raw material of steel to be increased
* Bulk cement to attract excise duty of Rs 400 per Metric tonne
* Excise duty on packaged software increased from 8 to 12 per cent
* Change in Security Transaction Tax (STT)
* Short-term capital gains to increase to 15 per cent
* Banking Transaction Tax (BTT) withdrawn
* Commodity Transaction Tax introduced
* No double deduction of Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT)

Employment
* Rural job scheme to roll out in 596 districts
* Allocation of Rs 16,000 crore for NREG scheme

Defence
* Defence allocation increased by 10 per cent, raised to Rs 1,05,600 crore
* Minority community to be included in Central Paramilitary forces

Education

* Education gets a hike of 20 per cent, a total of Rs 34,400 crore allocated
* Three IITs to be established in Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan
* 16 Central universities to be setup across the country
* Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan gets Rs 13,100 crore
* Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya to get Rs 130 crore
* Two IISERS to be established at Bhopal and Thruvananthapuram
* Benefits for NIIT educamp and Aptech to be increased by 20 per cent
* Nehru Yuva Kendra to be opened in 123 districts
* Two schools of Planning and Architecture to be brought at Bhopal and Vijaywada
* Mid day meal scheme to be extended to upper primary classes in government and government aided schools; their total allocation to go up to Rs 8000 crore

Health

* 15 per cent hike in Health sector
* Rs 1042 crore allocated for Polio eradication programme
* Rs 990 crore allocated for AIDS programmes
* Anti-AIDS drugs exempted from excise duty
* Higher tax rates on cigarettes
* Allocation to National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) increased to Rs 12,050 crore
* Custom duty on certain life-saving drugs and, bulk drugs used in the manufacturing of such drugs, have been reduced from 10 per cent to 5 per cent

Special Initiatives

* Rs 3966 crore allocated for the upliftment of SC, ST and OBCs
* Rs 11460 crore for women specific allocation
* Rs 33,434 crore allocated for child specific schemes
* National programme for elderly to receive Rs 400 crore
* Rs 50 crore allocated to set up Tiger protection force
* Rs 12,970 crore allocated to Natonal Highway
* Commercial banks advised to have 250 rural accounts every year
* Rs 32,667 crores for food subsidy under Public Distribution System (PDS) scheme
* Rural credit target set to be increased to Rs 80,000 crore
* Total allocation for north-east regions pegged at Rs 16,447 crore
* Govt to tap in resource of SCB's to set up funds
* Rs 624 crore allocated for 2010 Commonwealth Games

Raw Material

* Export taxes on key raw material of steel to be increased
* Iron ore export duty decreased by 15 per cent at Rs 300 per tonne
* Exercise duty on finished steel products reduced to 8 per cent
* Customs duty on import of scrap metal to be scrapped
* Custom duty on natural rubber and basic raw materials to be reduced