SME Times News Bureau | 03 Feb, 2020
Finance Secretary Rajiv
Kumar has said that the budget making process was based on promoting a
trust-based environment and that the government did not go overboard in making
any projections.
Speaking at the 'FICCI
National Executive Committee Meeting', Mr Kumar said, "The
entire strategy is to base the budget making process and the environment a
trust-based environment. We have not gone overboard in projecting anything. We
have not breached the FRBM Act as 0.5% point deviation in fiscal
deficit is as per law."
Kumar said that
the direct tax dispute resolution scheme has been designed to end up
litigation with government and that directions have been issued to banks to
differentiate between genuine business failure and fraud.
"We do not want an
environment in the country where one after another you have failures somewhere
or the other disturbing the entire system. So, the Banking Regulation Act is
being amended to bring the rigour in whosoever takes the deposit and deal with
the public money," he said.
Atanu Chakraborty, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, said
that the budget has not considered the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) of telecom
companies while making the budget calculations.
Responding to a query on the budget announcements that will act as a
stimulus to kickstart the economy, Chakraborty said, "There has
been an unprecedented Rs 76,000 crore increase of the capex in the budget
itself. On the demand side, there is a big stimulus on the direct tax
side."
He also cited package of 16 points linking farm to the market and also
export of one commodity per district aimed at doubling of farmers income and
substantial outlay for National Infrastructure Pipeline, along with the
infrastructure finance companies, which have been put in place.
"If today you see the bond market the yields are already down, cost
of capital is coming down and when the cost of capital comes down the monetary
transmission is far more efficient," he added.
Krishnamurthy Subramanian, Chief Economic Adviser, Ministry of Finance,
said, "The economic survey provided the intellectual foundations for the
hand of trust to support the invisible hand of markets. So, it is important to
recognise that ethical wealth creation has always brought results, and, in this
context, the government has made the first move".
YK Modi, Past President, FICCI,
chaired the panel discussion with the senior officials of the Ministry of
Finance, which was also attended by Dr John Joseph, Chairman, Central
Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs and Member (Tax Policy), Central Board of
Indirect Taxes and Customs, Ministry of Finance, and Mr Rajesh Kumar Bhoot,
JS (TPL)-II, CBDT, Ministry of Finance.