FM presents Union Budget; textiles sector to benefit from duty cut

Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee today unveiled the Union Budget for the financial year 2011-12 in the Parliament. The Union Budget 2011-12 aims to sustain economic growth, strengthen infrastructure, moderate the price rise, particularly of agricultural produce and reduce social imbalances through inclusive development.

Presenting the budget 2011-12, the Finance Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee said that the budget is a transition towards a more transparent and result oriented economic management system in India.

The Finance Minister said that huge differences between wholesale and retail prices are at the expense of remunerative prices for the farmers and competitive prices for consumers.

Following are the salient points and proposals made by Mukherjee in his budget speech:

• For sustaining growth tax reform will continue with the Direct Taxes Code (DTC) to be operationalised from April, 2012 while a Constitution Amendment Bill is proposed to be introduced during the current session of Parliament as a step towards roll out of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

• He said the introduction of DTC and GST will result in moderation of rates, simplification of laws and better compliance.

• Rs. 3000 crore will be provided to NABARD to help handloom weaver cooperative societies to become financially viable.

• A nominal 1 per cent central excise duty is being imposed on 130 items. The basic customs duty has been reduced from 30 to 5 per cent on raw silk, from 5 to 2.5 per cent on certain textile intermediates and from 7.5 per cent to 5 per cent on certain inputs for manufacture of technical fibre and yarn.

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