Tribune News Service
New Delhi, July 12
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam today hit back Congress leader P Chidambram for criticising her maiden Budget for 2019-20, saying that she has “learnt a number of lessons” from the former Finance Minister’s tenure for managing the economy. She asserted that every estimate, which she has made, was “realistic” and turning India into a $ 5-trillion economy in next five years was achievable.
In her more than 100 minutes reply to the Budget discussion in the Rajya Sabha, the minister spent about 45 minutes countering the points raised by Chidambram. She said she would love to “learn a lot of lessons” from every former Finance Minister and highlighted that some of the shortcomings of Chidambaram’s time were “lessons for the government” and are handled by this government.
Countering Chidambaram’s claim that even money lenders can tell that the economy will automatically double every five years by a mere mathematical calculation, Sitharaman said, “If that is indeed the case, why are all of us here? Why should there be a government.”
On Congress leader’s claim that the tax projections in the Budget are “unachievable”, she, while reading out the numbers, asserted that on all fronts, revenue collection targets are “achievable” be that of income tax, excise or GST.
Elaborating the expenditure side, which many Opposition leaders criticised during the debate, the minister said adequate provisions particularly for defence, pension and salary and internal security have been factored in.
She also asserted that the big picture presented in the Budget is backed with a plan to increase investment without compromising on the fiscal consolidation roadmap, while taking the size of the economy from $ 2.7 trillion to $ 5 trillion by 2024-25.
On the issue of projected investment, the minister said, besides a focus on agriculture, the plan includes increasing investment coming by way of further liberalisation of FDI rules, lowering of corporate tax to 25 per cent to companies with turnover of up to Rs 400 crore, tax cut on electric vehicles and giving push to infrastructure development with an investment of Rs 100 lakh crore over the next five years.
She said over the last five years, public sector banks have been recapitalised by Rs 3.19 lakh crore. “NPA problem has been addressed by the government.”
‘Want to learn a lot from former FM’
I love to learn a lot of lessons from every former Finance Minister but just because former Finance Minister (Chidambaram) has slighted our targets, (he) didn’t think it had any virtue, I just want to say that I want to learn from his kaaryakaal (tenure) as Finance Minister. — Nirmala Sitharaman, Finance Minister
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