The Union budget 2014-15 was a ‘conscious and cautious’ one for all. The personal income-tax exemption limits for general and senior citizens were increased, together with more Public Provident Fund saving, apart from housing loan rate deduction.
These were done consciously by the new government as part of its growth story, said chairperson FICCI and joint managing director, Apollo Hospitals Group, Sangita Reddy. The effort to spend Rs. 3,600 crore on safe drinking water to 20,000 habitations through the National Rural Drinking Water Mission, Rs. 200 crore on women’s safety and empowerment, building more national institutions like AIIMS, IIMs and IITs, she pointed out, were a conscious effort to build Skill India Programme.
It is a positive sign that the government is keen to revive the manufacturing and infrastructure sectors, give a boost to the development of smart cities, coal-based power technology, low-cost housing for the poor and the low-income segments. These measures will make India shine again, she said.
Simplification and rationalisation of systems (procedures) will boost industrial productivity and investor confidence. Corporate India, Ms. Sangita Reddy said, is positive to participate in the growth story.
