The Indian Finance Minister P Chidambaram presented highly anticipated Union budgets for 2013-14 on 28 February 2013. Though nothing extraordinary came out of this budget yet there are certain things which need to be seen.
Below are the highlights of the Union Budget 2013-14
1. Cheaper - Leather products
2. Expensive - Mobile phones, dinning out in A/C hotels, cigarettes, SUVs, motorbikes, set-up boxes
3. Duty free limit for Gold raised to Rs. 50,000 in case of a male passenger and Rs. 1 lakh for female passengers
4. The current Tax slabs remains unchanged.
5. Tax credit of Rs. 2000 for every person who has an annual income of 2-lakh to Rs. 5 lakh
6. In 2007-08 Tax GDP ratio touched a peak; in short term we must regain that peak
7. Rs. 1000-crore Nirbhaya Fund announced for the empowerment of women
8. All Regional Rural Banks and cooperative banks to be e-linked by this year-end
9. National Housing Bank (NHB) to set up urban housing bank fund and Rs. 2,000 crore will be allocated in this regard
10. Rs. 14,000 crore capital infusion into public sector banks in 2013-14
11. PSU banks to have ATMs at all their branches by March 31, 2014
12. Rs. 6,000 crore to be allocated for rural housing fund in 2013-14
13. Defence allocation increased to Rs. 2.03 lakh crore
14. Rs. 6,275 crore to ministry of science and technology, Rs. 5,880 crore to Department of Atomic Energy
15. Coal imports during Apr-Dec 2012 crossed 100 million tonnes and expected to go up to 185 million tonnes in 2016-17
16. Two new ports to be set up in West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh to add 100 million tonnes handling capacity
17. Tax-free infrastructure bonds of Rs.50,000 crore to be issued
18. Textile ministry allocated Rs.50 crore for establishing apparel parks
19. Handloom sector allocated Rs.96 crore to benefit 150,000 weavers
20. Infrastructure debt funds to be encouraged
21. Regulator to be appointed for road projects; 3,000 km of road projects to be awarded in first six months of 2013-14
22. Incentive allowance of 15 percent over and above permitted depreciation to those investing over Rs.100 crore in infrastructure projects
23. Rajiv Gandhi Equity Scheme to be liberalized
24. Seven new cities identified along Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor
25. Preliminary work begun on Bangalore-Mumbai Industrial corridor
Foodgrain production during 2013-13 estimated at 250 million tonnes
26. Household sector must be incentivised to save in financial instruments rather than gold. Person taking a home loan for his first home during the period 2013-14 will be entitled to an additional deduction of Rs. 1 lakh
27. Re-financing capacity of SIDBI increased to Rs. 10,000 crore from Rs. 5,000 crore for Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises
28. Rs. 27,049 crore allocation to the Agriculture Ministry in 2013-14
29. Rs. 7 lakh crore targets fixed for agriculture credit for 2013-14 compared to Rs. 5.75 lakh crore in the current year.
30. Eastern Indian states to get Rs. 1,000 crore allocation for improving agricultural production
31. Govt committed to food security bill Rs 10,000 crores set apart for expenditure likely under the act
32. Rs. 37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare
33. Rs. 110 crore to be allocated to the department of disability affairs
34. Rs. 3511 crore allocated to Minority Affairs Ministry which is 60 per cent of the revised estimates
35. Additional sum of Rs. 200 crore to Women and Child Welfare
36. Only China and Indonesia growing faster than India
37. By 2013 only China will grow faster than India
