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Budget Highlights : 2008

Indian finance minister, Mr. P. Chidambaram presented the budget in the parliament for the fiscal 2008-09.
Highlights of the budgets are:

  • Personal income tax exemption hiked to Rs 1.5 lakh
  • Senior citizens threshold tax limit increased from Rs 1,95,000 to Rs 2,25,000
  • Tax exemption for women increased to Rs 1.8 lakh
  • New tax slabs: 10 per cent for 1,50,000 to 3,00,000, 20 per cent for 3,00,000 to 5,00,000 and 30 per cent above 5,00,000
  • Small cars to become cheaper
  • Reduced excise duty on two, three wheelers
  • Rs 50 cr for tiger conservation
  • Govt withdraws banking transaction tax
  • Sixth Pay Commission report by March 2008
  • Defence allocation up by 10% from Rs 96,000 cr to Rs 1,05,600 cr
  • No excise duty on refrigerating equipments
  • 22 Sainik schools get Rs 44 crore
  • Short term capital gains to be taxed at 15%
  • No change in surcharge of corporate tax
  • Rs 624 cr for Commonwealth Games
  • PAN sole identification in securities market
  • Debt waiver scheme and relief to small and marginal farmers
  • Duty reduced on life saving drugs
  • Rs 750 crore for upgradation of 300 ITIs in 25 districts.
  • Tax to GDP ratio at 9.2% in 2004 up by 12.5% in 2007-08
  • Custom duty on steel scrapped
  • Set-top boxes to become cheaper
  • Farmers eligible for fresh agri loans post the waiver or one time settlement
  • Haryana and Chandigarh to introduce smart card based delivery system under PDS
  • Govt asks commercial banks to add 250 rural household accounts every year in rural and semi-urban banks
  • FDI in Apr-Dec at $12.7 billion, FII inflow over $18 billion
  • Jawaharlal Navoday Vidyalaya to be set in 20 new districts for SC/STs
  • 3 IITs to be set up in Bihar, AP, Rajasthan
  • Special attention, more funds for North East
  • 54 gender budgeting cells set up
  • Rajiv Gandhi drinking water mission to get Rs 7,300 cr
  • Rs 3,966 cr for SC/STs schemes
  • IT industry gets Rs 100 cr for connecting knowledge institutions
  • NREGS to be extended to 596 rural distt with an outlay of Rs 16,000cr
  • Inflation will be kept under check
  • More allocation for polio and AIDS
  • Health covers of Rs 30000 for workers in unorganised sectors
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