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Persons with taxable income of Rs 1 lakh will not have to pay income tax
Income tax rate slabs for others unchanged
Two per cent education cess on income tax, corporation tax, excise duties, customs duties and service tax
Service tax rate raised from 8 to 10 per cent.
More services to pay service tax
Income tax exemption on interest paid by banks to non-residents' deposits in foreign currency withdrawn.
Purported gifts from unrelated persons, above the threshold limit of Rs 25000, to be taxed as income
No change in interest rates on small savings
Equity oriented MFs will continue to be exempt from tax on dividends
Automobile industry will be entitled to 150 per cent deduction of expenditure on in-house research and development facilities.
Shipping ministry's demand for levy of tonnage tax accepted.
New hospitals with 100 beds or more set up in rural areas to get tax sops.
Long-term capital gains from securities transactions to be replaced by a tax on transactions
Short-term capital gains tax slashed to 10 per cent
Tractors, diary machinery and handtools to be fully exempt from excise
Preparations of meat, poultry and fish to attract 8 per cent excise, down from 16 per cent
Computers to be fully exempted from excise duty
LPG gas stoves costing less than Rs 2000 and footwear upto Rs 250 get excise relief
States' share of Union taxes to increase from Rs 63,757 crore to Rs 82,227 crore
Changes in direct taxes to yield Rs 2000 crore more, indirect tax changes to stay revenue neutral
Customs duty on refined palm oil increased from 70 per cent to 75 per cent
Full tax holiday for agro-processing industry
Customs duty on non-alloy steel reduced from 15 per cent to 10 per cent but excise duty raised from 8 per cent to 12 per cent
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| REFORMS
Sectoral cap for foreign direct investment raised from 49 per cent to 74 per cent for telecommunications; from 40 per cent to 49 per cent for civil aviation and from 26 per cent to 49 per cent for insurance sector.
Investment ceiling for FIIs in debt funds raised from $ 1 billion to $ 1.75 billion.
Banks with strong risk management systems to be allowed greater latitude in their exposure to capital market.
Investment commission to be set up.
Task force to be appointed on reforms in the cooperative banking infrastructure.
Procedures for registrations and operation of FIIs in the capital market to be simplified.
An alternative trading platform to be created for small and medium enterprises to facilitate raising of equity and debt from the capital market.
Steps to be initiated to integrate commodities markets and the securities markets.
States to be persuaded to implement value-added tax from April 1, 2005.
Board for Reconstruction of Public Sector Enterprises to be set up to advise the government on restructure of the state-run units, including those where disinvestment or closure or sale is justified.
Government to disinvest 5 per cent of its holding in NTPC through the public issue route.
85 items taken out of the reserve list for small scale sector.
Automobile industry will be entitled to 150 per cent deduction of expenditure on in-house research and development facilities.
An international container transshipment terminal to be established at Vallarpadam in Kochi port on build, operate and transfer basis.
New law to be enacted to regulate and encourage exclusive economic and export zones.
National Institute of Public Finance and Policy to prepare a blue print for better targeting of subsidies.
Ten per cent tax to be deducted at source on the amount of compensation paid to owners for acquiring their land or residential buildings
Excise duty levied on contact lenses and playing cards, raised to 16 per cent on several other items like plastic insulated ware, scented supari, prefabricated buildings imitation jewellery, etc.
Mandatory Cenvat abolished on all textile items. No mandatory excise duty on pure cotton, wool and silk, but different tax regime for blended textiles and pure non-cotton items.
The securitisation Act will be amended to appropriately address the Supreme Court's concerns regarding a fair deal to borrowers while, at the same time, ensuring that the recovery process is not delayed or hampered. Related amendments to the Recovery of Debts Due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993 will also be made.
A system of distributing food stamps will be tested on a pilot basis in two or three contiguous districts in a selected State. Such stamps can be used to buy foodgrains from any food shop.
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| EXPENDITURE
Total budgetary expenditure pegged at Rs 477,829.04 crore, including Rs 385,493.25 crore revenue expenditure and Rs 92,335.79 crore capital expenditure
Non-Plan expenditure fixed at Rs 332,238.79 crore. This includes Rs 293,649.87 crore revenue expenditure and Rs 38,588.92 crore capital expenditure
Plan expenditure proposed at Rs 145,590.25 crore. It includes Rs 91,843.38 crore revenue expenditure and Rs 53,746.87 crore capital expenditure
Central assistance for state and Union territories under Plan expenditure to cost Rs 57,704 crore. It includes Rs 30,174.32 crore under revenue head and Rs 27,529.68 crore under capital head
Budgetary support for central Plan pegged at Rs 87,886.25 crore, including Rs 61,669.06 crore under revenue head and Rs 26,217.19 crore under capital head
Rs 75,834.04 crore set apart for non-Plan grants and loans to public enterprises
Total central Plan expenditure estimated at Rs 163,720.29 crore, including Rs 61,669.06 crore under revenue head and Rs 102,051.23 crore under capital head
Interest payments to cost the exchequer Rs 129,500 crore, up Rs 9,025 crore from last year's Revised Estimate of Rs 120,475 crore
Defence expenditure estimated at Rs 77,000 crore in 2004-05, against Rs 60,300 crore last fiscal
Food subsidy estimated at Rs 25,800 crore, up Rs 600 crore from last year's Rs 25,200 crore
Fertiliser subsidy estimated at Rs 12,662 crore, up Rs 865 crore from Rs 11,797 crore in 2003-04
Petroleum subsidy to decline by Rs 3,014 crore from previous year's Rs 6,573 crore to Rs 3,559 crore
Grants and loans to cost the exchequer Rs 18,821 crore, against Rs 15,017 crore last year
Expenditure on agriculture and allied services estimated at Rs 1,784 crore, up Rs 703 crore from last year's Rs 1,081 crore
Expenditure on police estimated at Rs 9,940 crore, up Rs 1,609 crore from last year's Rs 8,331 crore
Election expenditure pegged at Rs 1,162 crore, up Rs 701 crore from the previous fiscal's Rs 461 crore
Other non-Plan expenditure pegged at Rs 52,011 crore, down Rs 819 crore from last year's 58,830 crore
Expenditure on education estimated at Rs 2794.63 crore
Expenditure on health and family welfare pegged at Rs 950.22 crore
Labour welfare measures to cost Rs 770.73 crore
Social security and some other welfare schemes to cost Rs 457.50 crore
Rs 144.39 cr kept for loans to foreign governments
Additional budgetary provision of Rs 10,000 crore for programmes like food-for-work, Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, basic health care, drinking water and so on.
Antyodaya Anna Yojna for providing wheat at Rs 2 a kilo and rice at Rs 3 a kilo to be extended to 2 crore households.
Pilot scheme for distribution of food against food stamps to be introduced in two or three contiguous districts in selected states.
New food-for-work programme to be launched in 150 most backward districts.
A minimum of 100 days of employment in a year guaranteed to one person in every poor household under the National Employment Guarantee Act.
Entire revenue of Rs 4,000 crore to Rs 5,000 crore raised through education cess of 2 per cent to be used for education, including provision of nutritious cooked mid-day meal, in the schools.
Interest rates on small savings, including PPF, GPF and special deposit scheme, to be retained at present level.
New savings scheme called senior citizens savings scheme offering an interest rate of 9 per cent to be launched.
A new section 80CCD to be introduced to provide for deduction from the total income of a government employee of amounts paid in pension account subject to a maximum of 10 per cent of salary.
Rs 1,180 crore allocated for programmes aimed at the welfare of the Scheduled Castes and an additional Rs 1,146 crore for the Scheduled Tribes.
The National Minorities Development Finance Corporation to get Rs 50 crore.
Over 5.85 lakh self-help groups to be linked with the banking system by March 31, 2007
Universal health insurance scheme to be re-designed to make it exclusively for families below the poverty line |
