Budget verdict?
Published by MadMan July 8th, 2004 in EconomicsBefore The Cartel pronounces its verdict on our new Finance Minister’s budget, what are the opinions of AnarCapLib readers? Are you happy? Sad? Excited? Depressed?
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Update: Nilu asks a valid question:
In a typically of the Indian way of doing things, the Finance Minister tries to hog the limelight by making a speech that is over 3 hours long. That speech often deals with more political issues than economic one’s. Why should policy decisions be made only annually and that too in a statement of revenue and spending? - and why not on a case by case basis?
Why not indeed!
well, this is how i see them stealing all our money.
for the first 45 minutes, the FM spoke about how he would spend our money, through the bureaucratic kleptocratic system, on HELPING THE POOR. of course, we have heard this all for the past 50 years and the poor are getting no richer.
then, after helping the poor, the FM spoke about how the socialists and the communists would then help themselves, by sinking more of our money into PSU, defence and so on.
i wonder why chennai’s desalination p-lant is in the state sector?
not a word was mentioned about that critical public good - roads. urban india, with its huge problems and tremendous potential is being ignored (and taxed). the money is all being spent on rural clients of the state who will never feel the winds of free trade and urban commerce. we must fight manmohanomics with grit and determination.
An exercise in redistribution. Result, everyone of us, including the poor, will be poorer. PC is no more P. Chidambaram, rather a Pawn of Communists. With left at the right places, there is no right policy left in any place. :(
Sathish, the FM is spending oodles of money on education. I thought you of all people would have been thrilled about that. :)
Ambivalent would be my reaction to the budget ‘04.
It looks pretty idealistic on paper and we know what happens to fiscal encounters of those kinds.
I’d give it at least 6 months before passing a verdict whether it is going to go down the drain, in line with the history of most welfare-oriented stuff here.
Would be something, though, if PC can pull it off.
Sauvik: I thought spending on defence was as a universal addiction — red, yellow or whatever. Save the green, maybe.
The officials incharge of handing out goodies are going to have the time of their life. Implementation will decide the fate of this budget.If implemented properly it might not be half as bad as it looks no.
The budget doesn’t matter so much anymore. Most people (except our top politicians) have realised that it is governance reform that will improve the state of affairs in our country rather than any annual proclamation of the loot (revenue) and the proceeds (expenditure) of the government.
There have to be changes in the way that the money has to be spent. Changes that will make it more difficult for the netas to use the state as a personal chequeing account to dole out sops to the thugs who brought them to power.
If this government shows any interest in simplifying government processes, only then will it make me stand up and listen.
eg. A common indian mmarket for agricultural goods.
The thing I liked most in the budget speech was the promise to cut through the ‘tangled web’ of schemes and transfer a bulk to the state governments. Whether it’s actually implemented is a different story.
2% cess for education and midday meals- I’m with the skeptics on this. Even if every single rupee winds up being spent on education, the quality of government education means it’ll still be wasted.
about defence: first, there have been no changes in the way the armed forces conduct capital expenditure even after tehelka and bofors, the coffin scam, and so on. there is no reason to believe that a lot of money will be looted by the kleptocracy in kickbacks.
second, our greatest security threat is not pakistan or china, but our unsafe streets, where death lurks at every corner.
third, it is very important that serving defence personnel realize that this sop of additional expenditure on arms will not get them safe streets or clean cities and towns or good roads. they will need these when they retire. and their children will need these too in order to survive. i am in poona now, rahul bajaj city, and there is a two-wheeler death in the papers every day. i met general tutakne over dinner. he is now vice chancellor of symbiosis university and was for long the director-genereal of the armed forces medical college in poona. he told me that while he was director, at least one cadet a week died in a motorcycle accident. nda kharakvasla is in poona. we must get defence personnel to understand economics and oppose manmohanomics.
and can someone please question the stupidity of having a “Railway Budget”????
My friends in my lab will laugh their everything off…if I tell them India actually has this..
I think the budget could have been much much better. PC is being too PC.
A little more fire in the budget would have appealed.
I dont like the rather obvious socialistic tinges in the budget. education cess and all is ok.
But that, plus the 10% service tax is sure to raise prices of fuel and the other stuff.
ends up that the people who really, actually end up paying taxes have to pay more.
Hmmmm.
the budget might be hailed as AAM ADMI’s budget but the AAM AURAT has to face the brunt of high prices for goods including LPG and a 2% edu cess..
Also did u notice the tax on playing cards?( The babus fear excessive “indulgence” in gambling, you see)