Budget 2009: Highlights

Following are the highlights of Budget 2009-10:

 * IT exemption limit raised
 * Limit raised by Rs 15,000 for sr.citizens (65 yrs & above)
 * Limit raised by Rs 10,000 for general tax payers & women
 * 10% surcharge on personal income tax scrapped
 * Fringe Benefit Tax, Commodities Transaction Tax abolished
 * Corporate Tax unchanged; Minimum Alternate Tax hiked to 15%
 * Legal services brought under Service Tax net
 * Cosmetic & plastic surgery become taxable services
 * Rs 3472 cr for Commonwealth Games, up from Rs 2112 cr
 * LCD TVs to become cheaper; Set-Top boxes costlier
 * Stimulus for print media for another six months
 * Branded jewellery to become cheaper; excise duty goes
 * Govt plans to bring back economy to high growth of 9%
 * GDP growth dipped to 6.7% in FY'09
 * Fiscal deficit up from 2.7% to 6.8% of GDP
 * Total fiscal stimulus in 2008-09 amounts to Rs 1, 86,000 cr
 * Return to fiscal prudence at the earliest
 * Defence gets Rs 1, 41,703 cr, up 34%
 * Govt for providing Rs 100 a day as wages under NREGA
 * Allocation of Rs 39,100 cr to be made for NREGA, up 87%
 * NREGA coverage increased to 4.74 crore households in FY'09
 * Work on National Food Security scheme has begun
 * Allocations for highways being stepped up by 23 per cent
 * Direct tax proposal revenue neutral
 * Govt to gain Rs 2,000 cr from indirect tax proposals.