The government has reduced excise duty on cars and two-wheelers, and capital goods and consumer durables to boost manufacturing and growth. Presenting the Interim Budget for 2014-15, Finance Minister P Chidambaram reduced the excise duty on small cars, motors cycles, scooters and commercial vehicles from existing 12 per cent to 8 per cent. Sports Utility Vehicles, SUVs will attract a lower duty of 24 per cent from 30 percent earlier. Large cars will attract a duty of 24 percent and mid segment cars 20 percent. Justifying the excise duty reliefs, Mr Chidambaram said, the current economic situation demands some interventions that cannot wait for the regular Budget. In particular, the manufacturing sector needs an immediate boost.
Mr Chidambaram said excise duty has been reduced from 12 to 10 per cent on capital goods and consumer non-durables falling under Chapter 84 and 85 of the Schedule to the Central Excise Tariff Act.
Mobile phones will be cheaper with restructure of excise duty to encourage domestic production. The rates will be 6 percent with CENVAT credit or 1 per cent without CENVAT credit.
In a major relief to ex-servicemen, the Minister announced that the government has accepted in-principle their demand for one-rank-one-pension.
To promote education of young students and the poor, Mr. Chidambaram proposed a moratorium period for all education loans taken upto 31st March, 2009 and outstanding at the end of last December. He said, the government will take over the liability for outstanding interest as on December 2013 but the borrower will have to pay interest after this January. He said, about nine lakh student borrowers will get a benefit of about 2,600 crore rupees.
The interim budget proposes one thousand crore rupees more to the Nirbhaya fund for safety of women which was begun with the same amount of allocation. It will be a permanent fund from now on. An amount of one thousand crore rupees will be transferred to the National Skill Development Corporation to take up the ambitious programme of providing skill to millions of men and women.
Terming the performance of the agricultural sector as stellar, Mr. Chidambaram said, foodgrains production is estimated to go up to 263 million tonnes this year, an increase of eight million. He proposed exemption of service tax for the loading and unloading, packaging, storage and warehousing of rice.
He also later tabled the relevant Finance Bill.
The Finance Minister said the government is fully committed to the unique identification number Aadhaar which has been issued to 57 crore people so far. He said, Aadhaar is a tool of empowerment, especially for migrant workers, the homeless and the oppressed. He said, a sum of 3,370 crore rupees has been transferred to 2.1 crore LPG beneficiaries.
Mr Chidambaram said, money is transferred to beneficiaries under 27 schemes, including the National Social Assistance Programme.
