Betting big on rural India, Pranab Mukherjee has hiked the allocation under the NREGA to Rs 39,000 crore.
The government has raised Income Tax exemption limit by Rs 10,000 for general taxpayers and by Rs 15,000 for senior citizens.
Here's the full text of Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee Budget speech in Parliament.
India Inc on Monday welcomed the focus on reviving economic growth to nine per cent as also the indications for bold tax reforms, but expressed regret that the MAT was raised and Security Transaction Tax was left to continue.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Monday said that he has taken tremendous risk to return to higher growth rates by opting for higher deficit and hoped to achieve nine per cent growth next fiscal.
The key benchmark indices plunged today, led by a sharp decline in banking, metals and oil & gas stocks.
The government announced loans at a subsidised interest rate of six per cent for farmers who pay their dues in time, which is one per cent less than what others would get.
The government has announced increasing people's holding in public sector undertakings through the disinvestments programme, but said it would retain at least 51 per cent equity in these enterprises.
The government on Monday raised the Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) to 15 per cent even as it abolished the Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) and Commodities Transaction Tax (CTT).
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said the Budget is aimed at minimising the impact of global recession and achieving 8 to 9 per cent growth in the medium term.
The government's fiscal deficit is estimated to be 6.8 per cent of GDP in 2009-10 against the low of 2.5 per cent projected for the previous fiscal a year ago.
The government said it will soon introduce a Bill to enact a Food Security law that will provide 25 kg of rice and/or wheat at Rs 3 to each family below the poverty line -- a key poll promise of the Congress that heads the ruling coalition.
In a move to send the right signals to the minorities, the government has announced a 74 per cent increase in the Plan outlay for the Minority Affairs Ministry.
The government today abolished the Commodity Transaction Tax that was announced in the Budget last year, but was yet to be implemented. The commodity exchanges rejoiced the decision.
The government on Monday hiked the allocation for its flagship rural job scheme by 144 per cent to Rs 39,000 crore.
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