For many families affected by price rise, the budget has given some relief in terms of income tax.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley increased the income tax exemption limit from Rs. 2 lakh to Rs. 2.5 lakh for those aged below 60. For senior citizens, the limit has been increased to Rs. 3 lakh from Rs. 2.5 lakh. The investment limit under section 80C of the Income-tax Act has been increased to Rs. 1.5 lakh an annum from Rs. 1 lakh. He also announced a Rs. 50,000 relief for those with housing loans for self-occupied properties.
Explaining the benefit of the proposal, a chartered accountant said that a person earning Rs. 5 lakh a year will have a basic tax exemption of Rs. 5,000. The total relief for those earning up to Rs. 10 lakh a year, who also have home loans and investments, will be around Rs. 25,000 and for those earning more than Rs. 10 lakh an annum, it could be around Rs. 35,000.
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“I had high expectations but am not entirely disappointed. The increase in basic tax exemption and investment limit by Rs. 50,000 comes as a relief. Those who have home loans too will benefit as the relief has been hiked to Rs. 2 lakh,” said Varadaraja Prahaladacharya, an IT professional.