Budget reforms excise duty structure, widens service tax

Gujarat Plus - Gujarat on Web

Rediscover Gujrat .....Rediscover the Gujrati in You

Announce this site to others •
Feedback •
Site Survey •

This page is no longer updated. Please go to our main page here

Budget reforms excise duty structure, widens service tax Thursday, March 1, 2001

New Delhi, Feb 28 (PTI) The 2001-02 Indian Budget on Wednesday drastically reformed the excise duty structure by bringing in single CENVAT rate, widened the service tax net to 14 more items, removed all Income tax surcharge except two per cent Gujarat levy, attempted major labour reforms and dereserved 14 small-scale sectors.
Blending income tax sops with increased excise duty on several items by moving on to a single rate 16 per cent Central Value Added Tax (CENVAT) excise duty, Federal Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha slapped a 15 per cent special surcharge on cigarettes, bidis and Pan Masalas to replenish the National Calamity Fund in the wake of Gujarat Earthquake.

While personal and corporate income tax rates have not been changed, some sops have been given to lower salaried people in the form of reliefs under section 88 and a hike in the deduction of interests on housing loans for self-occupied property from Rs 100,000 to 1,50,000.

Presenting his fourth Budget in the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament), Sinha brought up all eight per cent excise duty items excepting LPG, Kerosene, diesel engines upto 10 hp and cotton yarn to 16 per cent single rate CENVAT.

Diesel and petrol will attract higher 16 per cent excise duty but consumers have been promised that the burden would not be passed on to them.

Pegging the coming year's fiscal deficit at 4.7 per cent of GDP in line with the Fiscal Responsibility legislation, Sinha has rationalised subsidies by decontrolling urea and announced plans for restructuring state electricity boards.

The Finance Minister hiked the Defence outlay by Rs 75.39 billion, provided for interest payment of Rs 116.33 billion and grants to state governments of Rs 22.21 billion which in all would carry non-plan expenditure to a level of Rs 2751.23 billion against Rs 2492.84 billion in revised estimate for the current year.

This site is dedicated to our friend Younus M, who passed away on 28th Sept 00, and left on us an indelible memories ! - Team GujaratPlus.com

[P] Privacy Policy | © Copyright 2000-2006 | Designed & Hosted by eZee Web Solutions