Here are some major announcements made by Mukherjee in his Budget speech in the Parliament:
- Disinvestment target for the next fiscal at Rs 40,000 crore. Proceeds for this fiscal at Rs 22,144 crore
- RBI’s final guidelines for new bank licences to private players by March-end; Bill to amendments in current session
- Financial sector reforms to move forward
- Bills on Insurance amendment,LIC and Pension Development Authority, Banking Laws amendment, SBI subsidiaries and BIFR in the current session
- Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission, to be headed by former Supreme Court judge B Srikrishna, to complete its work in 24 months
- The Commission to overhaul financial sector regulations
- New Companies Bill to be introduced in current session
- Discussions on to further liberalise FDI policy
- Govt to move towards direct transfer of cash subsidy as regards kerosene, LPG and fertilisers.
- Constitution Amendment Bill for introduction of GST in this session
- Goods and Services Tax Bill this year
- Direct Taxes Code Bill likely to be passed by Parliament next financial year after getting Standing Committee report
- Public Debt Management Agency Bill in the next fiscal
- Indian mutual funds to get direct access to foreign markets; FIIs to be allowed to invest in MFs
- Investment limit for FIIs in corporate bonds to be raised.
- Government to put in place a framework for safeguard of small borrowers in the micro finance sector
- Current account deficit and average inflation in 2011-12 likely to be less than current year
- Total food inflation down from 20.2 per cent last year to 9.3 per cent in Jan; still a matter of concern
- RBI steps to help further moderate inflation in coming months; high current account deficit also poses some concern
- Economy estimated to have grown a 8.6 per cent in 2010-11; Growth expected at 9 per cent in next fiscal
- Corruption identified as a problem that needs to be fought collectively
- FM says he sees Budget 2011-12 as transition towards more transparent and result-oriented economic management
- Fiscal Deficit target at 4.6 per cent for 2011-12, down from 5.1 per cent estimated for current fiscal
- Total expenditure estimated at Rs 12,57,729 crore for the current fiscal; gross tax receipts at over Rs 9.3 lakh crore
- Budget proposes to raise housing loan limit from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 25 lakh for priority sector lending; 1 per cent interest rate subsidy for home loans up to Rs 15 lakh
- To give Rs 6,000 cr to public sector banks for maintaining capital-to-risk assets ratio norms
- Tax free bonds of Rs 30,000 crore to be issued for infrastructure development, this will cover Warehousing Corporation, NHAI, IRFC and HUDCO
- Credit flows to farmers raised from Rs 3.75 lakh crore to Rs 4.75 lakh crore
- Existing interest subvention scheme on short term farm loans at 7 per cent interest to continue
- Allocation under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana to be raised from Rs 6,755 crore in the current year to Rs 7,860 crore
- To provide Rs 300 crore to promote pulses cultivation in rain-fed areas; another Rs 300 crore to promote farm product cultivation
- To promote organic farming methods to enable farmers get best from their land
- NABARD capital base to be strengthened; Rs 10,000 crore to be provided to it as short term credit fund
- Proposal to increase rural housing fund to Rs 3,000 crore
- Plans to create a Women Self Help Group development fund with a corpus of Rs 500 crore
- Capital investment in fertiliser production to be considered as infrastructure sub-sector
- A new scheme to be introduced for refund of service tax on lines of drawback of duties
- Proposal to introduce self-assessment of customs duty wherein importers and exporters will themselves assess payment of duty
- Remuneration of anganwadi workers raised from Rs 1,500 to Rs 3,000 per month. Helpers to get Rs 1,500 from Rs 750
- Old age pension to persons over 80 years raised from Rs 200 to Rs 500
- Compensation of Rs 9 lakh to be given to men of defence and Central paramilitary forces for permanent disability and discharged from service