news details |
|
|
| Rather is soft on "kitchen queens" but hard on tipplers | | | ET Report
Jammu, Mar 6: If not for poor governance the National Conference led coalition Government in Jammu and Kashmir deserves appreciation and praise for what the Finance Minister, Abdul Rahim Rather, has described his budget proposals for 2012-2013 year, which he presented in the state legislature on Monday, as "peace dividend." Really people in the state deserved a people friendly budget proposals for their contribution to a year of peace, which has surprised those who continue to shiver over the unprecedented civilian strife, in which 120 people were killed in police firing, that had rocked the Kashmir valley for five months during the summer of 2010.
Therefore, if the Finance Minister has announced several sops for people of different categories it should be treated as a dividend for the efforts of people in ensuring violence free state. If the opposition parties criticise Rather for not having included something new in his budget proposals they are wrong. Do they mean that Rather should have proposed a dose of heavy taxes which could have been treated as something new and totally different from the trend that has been witnessed in the budget proposals presented in the state legislature by the successive state Governments since 1996.
Abdul Rahim Rather has again succeeded in sustaining and retaining his image of being a votary of soft and people-friendly budgets. Out of his vast experience as a Finance Minister he has always been in the habit of consulting different segments of people, especially those connected with trade and industry, before carrying out his task of framing budget proposals.
One thing goes to the credit of Rather that he, being the son of the soil, has been able to measure the pulse of people and their economic strength or lack of it while avoiding imposing new taxes. If not for any other thing Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, should thank Rather for budget proposals which can make up for all the lapses, ommissions and commissions, that the National Conference led Government has committed during the last three years.
Despite poor economic health of Jammu and Kashmir state Abdul Rahim Rather proposed to keep all types of foodgrains, including rice, besin, Suji, wheat atta and maida outside VAT. The biggest gift Rather has given to the "queens" of kitchen, including his wife, is his proposal to exempt domestic cooking gas from VAT.
Rather deserves added appreciation for having proposed VAT exemption to chemical fertilisers, bio-fertilisers, micro nutrients and fungicides and the entire IT sector, including computers, pen drives, CDS, memory cards, chips and head phones.
Another step proposed by Rather, which is bound to help the needy and the patients, pertains to tax exemption to medical diagnosis centres, clinical laboratories etc. His plan to continue all tax concessions being enjoyed by tourism and industry sectors may help those engaged directly and indirectly with the tourist traffic and those intending to set up new units in the state.
Notwithstanding series of sops Rather has incorporated in his budget proposals he has, once again, displayed his anger, rather hatred, for tipplers. This is indicated by his plan to hike GST on liquor from 25 per cent to 30 per cent. This way IMFL and the country liquor will sell at rates far higher than applicable in neighbouring states of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh. Hence Rather may inadvertently encourage bootlegging. Rather has opted for hike in excise on liquor simply to allow the Government to earn about Rs. five to Rs. 10 crores a year. One wishes Rather to read Ghalib's verses and once he does so he may stop being anti-tipplers.
If there is any failure on the part of Rather it is his inability to reduce the burden of wage and pension bill on the Government exchequer. If the official figures are to be relied on about 42 per cent of the annual budget is spent on the wage and pension bill. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
STOCK UPDATE |
|
|
 |
| BSE
Sensex |
 |
| NSE
Nifty |
|
|
| |
CRICKET UPDATE |
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
