Congress young guns want lower taxes

'FOCUS ON agriculture, infrastructure'.

The young guns of the Congress want a reduction in income-tax rates and an improvement in tax compliance in order to improve the government's finances as well as kickstart a demand-led growth in the economy.

"The top rate is high, which should be reduced, and more people should be brought under the tax net," said 39-year-old Sandeep Dikshit, who represents East Delhi in Parliament.

Dikshit, who holds a post graduate diploma in rural management from the Institute of Rural Management, Anand, said, the income-tax structure in the country had become regressive and needed to be looked into afresh.

"Tax compliance is more important than the tax level. The tax regime should be structured in such a manner that it should augment the national exchequer. And the benefits should spread over a long term," added Milind Deora, the 27-year-old MP from South Mumbai, who has an MBA from Boston University.

Outlining its agenda for economic reforms, the Congress' youth brigade wants the Manmohan Singh government to focus on agriculture, undertake disinvestment only when necessary and pump money into infrastructure.

"A country is only as good as its infrastructure. We should get foreign direct investment in this sector," said Harvard Business School-educated 26-year-old Sachin Pilot, MP from the family borough of Dausa in Rajasthan.

Before taking the plunge into politics, Pilot had put in two years with Delphi, the erstwhile General Motors subsidiary.

So far as disinvestment is concerned, these MPs want the breakneck pace of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government to be halted.

"There should be disinvestment in non-strategic sectors only and strategic areas should remain with the government," said Ajay Maken, the 40-year-old MP from Karol Bagh.

"I'm not against disinvestment. But there has to be a clarity of objectives. The money earned from divesting public sector units should be spent on infrastructure and not for deficit financing. Also, we must make sure that the working class is not adversely affected," added Pilot.

All of them said more focus was needed on the rural economy for a balanced growth of the country.