Amritsar: Farmers, industry pin hopes on Budget

Neeraj Bagga

Amritsar, July 22

Ahead of the Union Budget, farmers, industrialists, traders and families from the middle income group in the city have demanded special attention from the government.

Dr Satnam Singh Ajnala, president of the Jamhoori Kisan Sabha, Punjab, said that last year allocation for the agriculture sector was three per cent of the entire Union Budget. He anticipated that this time, the government may reduce it further.

Dr Ajnala said the only demand of the farmers was to cover the entire agriculture produce under the MSP. Then the farmers will turn to diversification of crops, he pointed out. The state government recently offered Rs 17,500 per hectare to those who replace paddy with other crops. He added that the sowing season was already over, so there was no need for the scheme at this juncture.

He claimed that the MSP guarantee offer would force the government to shell out Rs 1.50 lakh crore whereas the country was already shelling out Rs 1 lakh crore for importing cereals and pulses, besides Rs 1.50 lakh crore on importing edible oil.

He favoured introduction of direct taxation and a strict no to indirect taxation to resolve different problems.

He recalled that during the Indira Gandhi government of the Congress, 33 per cent corporate tax and about five per cent wealth tax used to be levied on corporate houses. After assuming power at the Centre, the Narendra Modi-led NDA government eliminated wealth tax and brought down the corporate tax to 15 per cent.

Gunbir Singh, president, Dilbir Foundation, said: “Our aspiration is that the government should discard the populous and hugely expensive programmes that give out doles and yet keep the needy poverty-stricken. A good budget ought to rather equip people with jobs, while looking after their healthcare and educational needs.” Farm economies such as Punjab need a revamp to face the challenge of climate change, including degraded soils and depleting water table. Funding towards remediation must come from the Union Budget.

Those operating the MSME units say the government should shed its pro-corporate image that has been cornering the lion’s share in previous budgets. Instead, it should give priority to the MSME sector.

Harjit Singh, employed as a salesman with an apparel store, said the budget should take note of lower middle income group families who fall in the General category. They cannot enjoy the benefits of the schemes being rolled out for the reserved classes while their financial condition is pathetic.