The Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has disappointed all sections of the society, former Puducherry Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy has said.
In a virtual statement, the former Chief Minister said the budget did not have anything to offer the common man. The annual budget only catered to the interests of corporates, he charged.
The middle and salaried classes expected a revision in the Income Tax slabs. Instead of revising the slabs, the government decided to maintain the ₹ 2.5 lakh fixed by the United Progressive Alliance.
People from all walks of life expected some relief due to the economic hardships caused by COVID-19. However, the government has failed to provide any relief to the poor and middle classes, the former CM said.
The government’s announcement to create 80 lakh jobs was very meagre considering the huge number of people left unemployed in the country. The Centre had also failed to improve the medical infrastructure in the country, he noted.
In a statement, CPI secretary A. M Saleem said the focus of the budget was the benefit of corporate entities. He said while the corporate surcharge was reduced from 12% to 7% to benefit the business community, the allocation for the rural employment guarantee scheme was reduced from ₹93,000 crore to ₹73,000 crore. The reduction in the allocation amounted to cheating the poor, he said.
He also sought to know from the Prime Minister the status of his announcement to create two crore jobs per year. “In total the budget was very disappointing,” he said.