Union Budget 2013 Highlights: No revision in Income Tax slabs; surcharge on Super Rich - See more at: http://zeenews.india.com/business/budget-2013/union-budget-2013-highlights-no-revision-in-income-tax-slabs-surcharge-on-super-rich

 Finance Minister P Chidambaram on February 28 did not tinker with the Income Tax slabs while presenting the Union Budget 2013-14 in the Lok Sabha.

Chidambaram however said a surcharge of 10% would be imposed on those earning over Rs 1 crore in a year, for 2013-14. This would be applicable for both individuals and corporates.

The Finance Minister announced that housing loan for first time loan takers of up to Rs 25 lakh would get additional deduction of interest of up to Rs 1 lakh in 2013-14. The additional exemption would mean tax benefit gets raised from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh.

Chidambaram also announced the setting up of Nirbhaya Fund for women safety and allocated Rs 1000 crores to it.

Chidambaram noted that the global economic growth has slowed, including that of India. He however added that high growth is a novelty and not beyond India's capacity.

Highlights of Union Budget 2013-14:

Personal Tax


• No changes in personal Income Tax slabs


• Surcharge on super rich


• Surcharge of 10% for income of Rs 1 cr or more per annum for one year


• Surcharge to be applicable for individuals and corporate


• 1% TDS for property sale worth more than Rs 50 lakh; agri land exempt


• Tax credit of Rs 2000 on incomes between Rs2-5 lakh


• 5.5% tax to GDP ratio for direct tax


• 4.5% tax to GDP ratio for indirect tax


• Tax administration reform commission to be set up to strengthen the system


• Our tax to GDP ratio is very low


• Should reclaim 11.9% Tax-GDP ratio in short-term


• There are 42,800 persons in the country who admitted to a taxable income exceeding Rs 1 cr per year


• Donations to National Children's Fund will be eligible for 100% tax deduction


• Long-term infra bonds also eligible for tax deduction; additional Rs 1 lakh deduction for home loans


• TDS on value of immovable property as transaction on immovable properties are usually undervalued


• Extends tax cuts benefits to Rupee Infrastructure Funds


• Educational Cess to continue at 3 %


• Securitization Trust income to be exempt


• Tax on Royalty for services provided abroad increased by 10%

Corporate Tax 


• CTT on non-commodities futures at 0.1%


• Surcharge on DDT doubled to 10%

Indirect Taxes


• No change in peak rate for CD non-agri products


• Eco friendly concessions to be prolonged till 2015


• Leather and goods duty reduced to 5%


• Luxury cars import duty at 100%


• Yachts duty at 25%


• Luxury motorcycle duty at 75%


• No change in customs duty of 10%


• No change in excise duty or service tax


• Precious, semi-precious duty reduced


• Luxury motor vehicles to be taxed more


• Baggage rules to permit bringing jewellery duty free limit raised to Rs 50000 for males and Rs 1 lakh for females


• Tax on SUVs increased from 27% to 30%; taxis exempt


• Excise duty on set top box increased


• 6% duty on mobiles costing more than Rs 2000


• Excise on service tax on all air-conditioned restaurants


• Handmade carpets exempt for excise duty


• Increase in excise duty on cigarettes by 18%


• Excise on readymade garments reduced


• Excise on Service Tax defaulters from 1-10-2007 can submit tax without being penalised or interest charged


• Advocates need for GST


Miscellaneous


• For housing loans limit till Rs 25 lakh – additional Rs 1 lakh exemption for 2013-14 for first time loan takers


• Divestment target of Rs 40,000 crore


• Rs 50,000 cr tax free bonds to be allowed by select institutes


• Inflation indexed Bonds and NSCs to be issued


• SMEs to enjoy benefits for 3 years after they outgrow category


• Fiscal deficit contained at 5.2%; target set at 4.8%


• Direct benefit transfer scheme – 11 lakh have received benefits directly to bank accounts


• Revenue deficit estimated at 3.3%


• Seek same support of everybody to navigate the Indian economy through crisis


• Global economy has slowed from 3.9% to 3.2%


• Not unaffected what happens in the world


• Current year CSO has estimated growth at 5% and RBI at 5.5% - below India's potential growth rate of 8%


• No reason for gloom or pessimism


• Only China and Indonesia are growing faster than India


• In 2013-14 only China will grow faster than India


• Indian economy growing below potential of 8%


• Goal of higher growth leading to inclusive and sustainable growth


• Plurality and diversity lead to inequitable distribution which needs to be addressed


• Women, SCs/STs and other backwards need to be included


• Need to create economic space and achieve socio-economic objective


• New Fiscal Consolidation measures undertaken to achieve 5.3%


• Current Account Deficit major worry


• CAD due to higher coal, oil and gold imports


• We have to find 75 bn dollar to finance current account deficit


• No solution but FDI, FII, ECB to bridge CAD


• Achieving high growth is not a novelty and beyond our capacity


• Without growth there will be no development and inclusiveness


• UPA govt believes in inclusive development with emphasis on improving human development index


• At present economic space is constrained


• India doesn’t have the choice between welcoming and spurning foreign investment


• Development must be sustainable and must have democratic legitimacy


• The battle against inflation must be fought on all fronts


• Our battle has brought down headline inflation to 7% and core inflation to 4%


• Wisdom lies in finding current level of govt expenditure


• Faced with huge fiscal deficit no choice but rationalise expenditure


• We have retrieved some economic space


• Sufficient funds to each ministry and departments


• One overarching goal of the budget is to create opportunities for youth


• Estimated expenditure Rs 1490925 lakh cr; Revised Rs 1430825 lakh cr


• Planned expenditure will be 29.4% more than previous; all projects to be fully funded


• Onus on ministries to completely projects in timely manner


• Rs 41561 cr for SC sub plan


• Rs 24500 cr to ST sub plan


• The funds for sub plan cannot be diverted


• Rs 77236 cr for child budget


• Rs 200 cr for gender equality


• Maulana Azad education foundation corpus gets Rs 160 cr more


• Rs 110 cr for dept of disable welfare


• Rs 37330 cr to ministry of health and family welfare out of which new national health mission to get Rs 21239 cr


• Rs 4727 cr for medical education, training


• Rs 1069 cr to department of ayush


• Rs 1650 cr to AIIMS like institutions


• Rs 65867 cr to HRD ministry


• Rs 27258 cr for Sarva Siksha Abhiyan


• Rs 3983 cr for Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan


• Rs 13215 cr for mid-day meal scheme


• Rs 17700 cr for children care and education


• Rs 15260 cr for clean drinking water


• Rs 1400 cr for water purification/ clean arsenic


• Rs 80195 cr for MNREGA, Indira Awas Yojna, NREGS


• PMGSY II to benefit states like Haryana, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka


• Rs 14800 cr for JNNURM


• Foodgrains production will be 250 mn tonne


• Earned Rs 138403 cr due to agri exports


• Rs 27049 cr for agri ministry


• New scheme for rural road development


• Rs 500 cr for crop diversification


• The avg growth of agri was 3.6%


• Agriculture to get over Rs 3000 cr


• Green Revolution in eastern India has been a remarkable success – Rs 1000 cr to these states


• Original Green Revolution states to get Rs 500 cr for crop diversification


• Watershed management to get Rs 5387 cr


• Rs 7 lakh agri credit target


• National Institute of Biotic Stress Management for addressing plant protection at Raipur, Chhattisgarh


• National Livestock Mission to be launched in 2014 for which Rs 307 cr allocated


• National biotech centre at Ranchi


• National food security bill gets Rs 10000 cr towards incremental cost


• Rs 50 cr for FPOs


• Equity grants of Rs 10 lak per FPO


• Rs 1000 cr for eastern Indian states


• Rs 55 lakh cr needed for infra including private funds


• Infra Debt Funds will be encouraged; 4 already floated


• Rs 25,000 cr raised by institutions as tax free bonds in 2012-13


• WB help to be taken for NE states to be connected with Myanmar


• Godowns to be constructed with help of panchayats


• USD 1 trillion investment in infrastructure


• 47% of the cost will be shared by private sector


• Infrastructure debt funds will be encouraged


• 4 IDFs have been registered with SEBI


• To allow some institutions to raise money through tax free bonds to the total of Rs 50000 cr


• Rs 5000 cr for construction of warehouses


• Regulatory Authority to oversee road projects


• Zero CD for semi conductors/ electronics


• First time Rs 12 lakh income limit increased from Rs 10 lakh for MF s


• Rajiv Gandhi Equity scheme raised Rs 2 lakh cr


• Rs 5000 cr to NABARD to finance construction of warehouses, silos, cold storages


• New regulatory authority for road sector


• 3000 km of road projects in some states will be awarded in first 6 months of 2013-14


• Cabinet committee on investment to take up more projects


• FM to approve Rs 50,000 cr tax-free bonds in FY14; moving on to infra, he says CCI is the answer to all policy hurdles


• New instrument to save savings from inflation called as Inflation Index Bonds details of which will announced in due course


• Seven new cities on Delhi-Mumbai corridor


• Chennai Bengaluru Industrial Corridor to be developed


• Preparatory work has started for Bengaluru Mumbai Industrial Corridor


• Two new ports - in Sagar in WB and one in AP


• New outer harbour at Tuticorin through PPP


• 5 inland waterways have been declared as national waterways, one more announced in Assam


• Natural gas pricing policy would be reviewed


• 5 MMTPA terminals will be fully operational


• Non-tax benefits to be made available to MSMEs after they graduate to higher units


• Textile tech upgradation to get Rs 2400 cr


• Handloom workers to get working capital at concessional rates


• SIDBI gets Rs 500 cr


• Standing council of experts in ministry finance to analyse competitiveness of Indian financial sector


• 13 PSU banks to get Rs 14000 cr in 2013-14 as capital infusion


• All cooperative banks to be brought under CBS


• All PSU banks to have ATMS at their premises


• India’s first women bank as a PSU bank with Rs 1000 cr as initial capital


• New fund for urban housing to get Rs 2000 cr


• All towns with a population of 10000 or more will have a branch of LIC and one general insurance company


• Group insurance schemes to be available for teachers, nurses


• RSBY to be extended to rickshaw, autorickshaw, sanitation and mine workers


• Rs 50 cr for textile ministry for apparel park


• Rs 6000 cr for Rural Housing Fund


• SEBI Act amendment under consideration


• Investor with stake less than 10% will be taken as FII; more than that it will be taken as FDI


• New scheme to encourage waste to energy projects


• Clean and green energy is a priority


• KYC of banks sufficient for insurance


• Debt segment to be set up in Exchange


• Rs 800 cr for Ministry of Non Renewable Energy


• Hope Insurance and Pension Bills are passed soon


• Rs 6000cr for Rural Housing Fund


• Banks can act as insurance brokers


• Defense expenditure at Rs 2 lakh cr appx


• Rs 6275 cr for science and tech ministry


• Rs 5580 cr for dept for atomic energy


• Rs 100 cr each to AMU, BHU, Tata Institute of Social Sciences Guwahati, INTACH


• National Institute of Sports Coaching in Patiala


• Rs 532 cr for post offices to undertake banking activities


• Rs 5880 cr to DAE


• Over 800 FM channels will be auctioned


• Gadar memorial in San Francisco to be upgraded


• Donations to academic institutions and R&D to be treated as CSR


• Mutual Fund distributors can now become members of Stock Exchange


• Nirbhaya Fund for women’s security at Rs 1000 cr


• Insurance, Provident Funds can trade directly in debt segments of stock exchanges