New Delhi, Feb 12 (UNI) Underlining that “This government is for, by and of the capitalists,” the All India Trinamool Congress Member Abir Ranjan Biswas on Friday said there was no the explanation of sector-specific revival of the economy in the Budget.
Participating in the debate on the Union Budget 2021-22 in the Rajya Sabha, he said that the Budget allows for unbridled growth of corporates.
"They intend to privatise two more public sector banks, but haven't mentioned which ones”, he said, adding that the LIC has been sacrificed at the altar of crony capitalists.
"The announcement of Rs 100 crore package for the tea plantation workers in Assam and West Bengal will provide only Rs 2,000 per worker for the entire year. There are 5 lakh such workers," Mr Biswas said.
LJD lawmaker Shreyams Kumar said, "There has been a 34 per cent reduction in Budget in comparison with the previous one," and demanded to restore MPLADS fund.
Ashok Siddharth of BSP said that the Budget did not offer anything for a larger section of the people of the country. "There is no reservation in private sector. Will the government provide reservation benefits to SC/ST who will be left out if banks and other public sector units are privatised by the government?" Mr Siddharth wondered.
CPI MP Binoy Viswam said that this government will become the executive committee of the Bourgeoisie. “You have given bhoomi, akasham, pathalam... all for FDI( Earth, sky, and mines, all for FDI),this government is for FDI. The market model has failed everywhere, including the USA”, he said.
"You put sanitation, health, and nutrition under one basket and claim there is a hike in allotment. There is actually a decrease of allocation in the times of pandemic,"he further said.
Taking dig it the Government, the Congress lawmaker Shaktisin Gohil said that this government wanted the poor to become Aatma Nirbhar but provides protection to friendly corporates. "
"You present lucrative schemes but with a terms and conditions. You said senior citizens do not have to file income tax but then terms and conditions were applied," he said, adding a that the Government has zero duty on scrap imported from foreign countries but slaps 2.5 percent duty on scrap collected here.
Explaining how the mandis will be shut if farm laws are implemented, he said whenever you sell a product you have to pay tax to APMC, if products are sold outside and tax was not paid, how will APMC survive? Don't assume that farmers are fool, they have understood", he added.
" Former PM Manmohan Singh had constituted a committee of which CM Narendra Modi was the head. He had said in the report that MSP should not be removed. Now that same person, after become PM is misquoting Dr. Singh and Shard Pawar," he concluded.
Supporting the Union Budget, the BJP Lawmaker Bhupender Yadav said that the Opposition has been misreading statistics to create fear among people. He countered Congress leader P Chidambaram's remarks from yesterday and said that it was intellectual dishonesty to quote numbers out of context.
He quoted Chaudhary Charan Singh, who had argued that PSUs should have been privatised a long time ago instead of being fed tax payer's money.
Former Prime Minister HD Devegowda of JD(S) complimented the government for the Budget presented. "MNREGA which proved to be one of the saving grace of our country's economy and creating employment saw a Budget cut. The government did little after removing the main safety net for rural India”, Mr Gowda said, adding that the general direction of the Budget aimed to withdraw the support for the agricultural sector.
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