Budget ignores BPL populace, says economist

EMINENT ECONOMIST and Head, Department of Economics and Rural Development at RML Avadh University (Faizabad) Prof. PK Sinha has termed the Union Budget-2006-07 as a ?Zebra Budget? which looks grand but will not serve the cause of the common man.

EMINENT ECONOMIST and Head, Department of Economics and Rural Development at RML Avadh University (Faizabad) Prof. PK Sinha has termed the Union Budget-2006-07 as a ‘Zebra Budget’ which looks grand but will not serve the cause of the common man.

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Delivering the keynote address at a seminar on ‘Union Budget-2006-07: For Pauper or for Popular’ in the Economics Department of Social Science Faculty of Banaras Hindu University here on Monday, Prof. Sinha said that the budget might prove to be a popular one but it would not help the poor and the downtrodden.

The government had failed to broaden the tax base in the Union Budget for the fiscal year of 2006-07. There was lack of dimension and direction in this budget which was required to drive the country’s economy further, he said, adding that there were several provisions in the budget but nothing for the poor . “For example, if the income of poor people increased by Rs 10, a tax burden of around Rs. 25 was levied on them”. People living Below Poverty Line (BPL) were not to get the benefit of budgetary allocations on agricultural sector, he said.

Director of Institute of Agricultural Sciences (BHU) Prof. Janardan Singh, who was the chief guest at the seminar, welcomed the Union Budget. He said budget allocations on agricultural research would help the country achieve its target of producing 300 million tonne grain by 2030.

Presiding over the seminar, the Dean of Social Science Faculty, Prof. PN Pandey said there was lack of proper provisions for the common people in the budget. The Union Budget-2006-07 was meant for the upper and middle classes.