news details |
|
|
| Income Tax limit won't be touched | | Chidambaram announces relief to taxpayers | | NEW DELHI, FEB 28
Finance Minister, P Chidambaram, has announced some relief to tax payers, especially in view of what he has termed as the "cooperation they have extended" to the Department of Revenue. Presenting the Union Budget proposals for the year 2007-08 to Parliament on Wednesday, the Finance Minister said that the government "is committed" to tax regime which helps growth and rewards honest taxpayers.
Chiudambaram announced that the Income Tax limit will not to be changed and there will be a one per cent cut in Central Sales Tax. The Income Tax threshold limit in the Budget has been raised by Rs 10,000, giving every assessee a relief of Rs 1,000.
The current slabs and rates of Personal Income Tax (PIT) were introduced only two years ago. They constitute a moderate tax regime. A comprehensive review should await the proposed Income Tax code which will be introduced in Parliament this year. Nevertheless, without altering the rates, Chidambaram said that he was inclined to consider giving some relief to taxpayers, especially in view of the cooperation they have extended to the Department of Revenue.
Accordingly, he proposed that the threshold limit of exemption in the case of all assessees be increased by Rs.10,000, thus giving every assessee a relief of Rs.1,000; consequently, in the case of a woman assessee, the threshold limit be increased from Rs.135,000 to Rs.145,000, giving her a relief of Rs.1,000; the threshold limit of exemption in the case of a senior citizen be increased from Rs.185,000 to Rs.195,000, giving him or her a relief of Rs.2,000; and the surcharge on corporate income tax on companies below rupees one crore has been removed.
Chidambaram also announced that bank credit rate grew by 29 per cent during first ten months of 2006-07. He said that inflation during 2006-07 estimated at between 5.2 and 5.4 per cent against 4.4 per cent during the previous year. There will be no new forward contract to be launched on wheat and rice from today (Feb. 28). He said that Abhijit Sen report on forward trading would be submitted in two months' time.
Chidambaram said that government is concerned over inflation and would take all steps for moderating it."Already a number of steps on fiscal, monetary and supply management side have been taken", he said.
"Government would continue to take steps to curb inflation. We share the concern of the common person on the price rise", he added. According to him, priority areas include how to maintain and manage high economic growth. Fiscal prudence and high investment also remain priorities, he said.
This is the sixth time Chidambaram presdented the national budget-- and the fourth for the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. Scholarships programme for minorities students to be of the order of Rs 72 crore for pre-metric, Rs 48 crore for graduate and postgraduate. Total Budget for the Northeastern region raised from Rs 12,041 crore to Rs 14,365 crore. Talking on the FDI inflows, he said that FDI inflows between April and January this fiscal touched 12.5 billion dollars while portfolio investment reached 6.8 billion dollars.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
