In his first ever budget as the union finance minister, Arun Jaitley has increased the limit of tax exemption for investments. The range has been taken up to INR 1.5 lakh from INR 1 lakh and this has been done as per the Section 80C of the Income Tax Act. Till now the exemptions in this case were granted as per Section 80CC and 80CCC in addition to the previously mentioned section. This is expected to be good news for the smaller investors.
Indian government extends tax breaks for small investors and salaried class
The new limit of exception will also be beneficial for the people who earn regular salaries but are highly affected as a result of increasing prices. This decision is also supposed to provide a massive boost for the levels of household savings in India. The increased limit for tax exemption is also supposed to encourage people as far as putting their money in various financial instruments is concerned. Now, it is being assumed, they will be less inclined to use their extra money in buying assets such as gold that are increasingly proving to be not so smart investments.
State governments set to receive excess amount from budget 2014-15
Apart from the increased tax exemption limits, Arun Jaitley has also provided greater allocation for the state governments. This is an effort on his part to make sure that the states are able to participate more in the model of growth that is being created for India as a whole. In the previous financial year, the states had received INR 2.12 trillion through grants and loans from the union government, this year the figure has exceeded INR 4 trillion. While announcing this surfeit during his budget speech Jaitley had stated that he wanted to show that the government was committed to working more closely with the state counterparts and thus make India’s federal structure stronger. The end aim in this case was the greater good of the common people.
In addition to the above mentioned amount the states will also be in line to receive INR 3.82 trillion as part of the Indian government’s revenues from duties and taxes. Compared to the year that went by, this represents an increase of almost INR 40,000 crore. As far as the centrally sponsored schemes are concerned the states will however see a major reduction from INR 40,000 crore to INR 6,000 crore.
Karnataka CM criticises union budget, says nothing in it for the poor
Siddaramaiah, the chief minister of Karnataka, has disapproved of the new union budget saying it has completely overruled critical sectors like the common society as well as agriculture. He has likened it to a bitter pill for the common folks. According to him the budget lacked in pragmatism and only turned out to be a vehicle for the prime minister to show off his dreams. Siddaramaiah also mentioned that the budget was not clear when it came to delineating the priorities of the newly elected government.
The Karnataka CM stated that the new budget had nothing that could be regarded as positive by the farming sector. He also said that the promise of Narendra Modi that good days would be there with his regime was yet to attain fruition. Siddaramaiah stated that the budget lacked any proper direction as such and has allotted very limited resources for key projects. For the Beti Bachao Beti Padao project only INR 100 crores has been allotted. The amounts for key projects such as river linkage study and National Adaptation Fund are similar as well.
Saudi Arabia recruiting housemaids from India
During January 2014, India had signed a labour pact with Saudi Arabia. It was the first ever agreement of such a nature signed between the two countries. Now that the Middle East nation is facing a tremendous paucity of housemaids it has started to recruit women, who are adept at these jobs, from India. Mufarrij Al-Huqbani, the deputy minister of labour of Saudi Arabia, has stated that a combined team of officials from both the countries has come up with a finalised version of the recruitment contract for the said purpose. The contract is supposed to have provisions that will make sure that the employment deals are authentic and its various terms and conditions are properly implemented.
The said agreement also has provisions to make sure that there are arrangements for recruitment related expenses and action is taken against hiring entities that violate any law. There is also a system in place to ensure that the middlemen do not cheat the workers. The said agreement will be considered acceptable till the next five years and then it shall be renewed automatically for a period of 5 years. As per the agreement there will also be a mechanism in order to provide round the clock assistance to the maids.
Harsh Vardhan asks sex education to be replaced by child pregnancy awareness programs
Harsh Vardhan’s comments on sex education in schools had stoked much controversy. He has however stated now that this needs to be substituted by a format that makes people aware of pregnancy among children and other related phenomena that he termed as evils. During June he had called for a ban on sex education being imparted in schools but has recently stated that he has become more rational compared to before. He confessed to having complete support for any pedagogy that was acceptable from a cultural point of view and could be supported by science.
He had stated that any form of education that was not in agreement with the sensibilities of the common people and taught by people regarded to be responsible enough had to be done away with. The health minister focused on creating procedures and content of learning that was acceptable to one and all. As per a report by WHO, India is one of 7 countries of the world where 50% of the pregnancy cases among adolescent girls happen. A report by UNFPA, published in 2011, had revealed that each year almost 4 million teenagers, below the age of 18 years, give birth to babies.
Parkash Singh Badal asks for safe comeback of Punjabis during meeting with Sushma Swaraj
The chief minister of Punjab, Parkash Singh Badal, had a meeting with Sushma Swaraj where he asked the union external affairs minister to ensure that it stepped up efforts so that Punjabis who are still stranded in Iraq can quickly and safely come back to their country. The Punjab CM also stated that he was thankful to the ministry for its efforts so far with regards to the secure return of Punjabis from the country that is being torn apart by strife.
He also told Swaraj that the worried near and dear ones of the Punjabis still stuck in Iraq had come to meet him a few days back and requested him that he talk directly with her so that they can be released as soon as possible. It is being said that the external affairs minister assured him by saying that the Indian embassy of Iraq had been asked to provide duplicate passports. The embassy also has clear orders to arrange free tickets so that the Indians, who are helpless and stuck in Iraq can come back to their country soon enough.
Economic indicators
| Indicators | Value | Rise/Fall |
| SENSEX | 25372.75 | -72.06 |
| NIFTY | 7567.75 | -17.25 |
| Rupee/Dollar | 60.19 | 0.44 |
| Gold | 28,465 | 852.00 |
| Silver | 46,125 | 1,338.00 |
| Crude oil | 6,177.00 | 61.00 |
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