Budgetbuzz

8226; Former Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee describes the Budget as a 8216;8216;mixed8217;8217; one and expresses concern that it will lead to inflation. The Budget is 8216;8216;not up to the expectations8217;8217; and 8216;8216;promises are many but no resources to meet them8217;8217;, he adds.

8226; BJP president M. Venkaiah Naidu and former Finance minister Yashwant Sinha say both the economic survey and the Budget 8216;8216;vindicate8217;8217; the 8216;8216;India Shining8217;8217; and 8216;8216;feel good8217;8217; campaign of the NDA government. 8216;8216;This Budget is carrying forward the programmes and policies our government had implemented over the last six years. The taxation proposals have been borrowed straight from then Finance minister Jaswant Singh8217;s interim budget,8217;8217; says Sinha, adding: 8216;8216;It is run of the mill ghisa pita budget hai.8217;8217;

8226; Shiv Sena leader Suresh Prabhu says Finance Minister has failed to balance the Budget during the 8216;8216;tightrope8217;8217; walk between the Left and the Right to remain at the Centre.

8226; JDU leader Prabhunath Singh says nothing substantial has been proposed for farmers and the poor, and calls the Budget a gimmick.

8226; Nationalist Trinamool Congress describes the budget as 8216;8216;anti-people8217;8217; and says its commitment to the people prior to the elections has been belied.

8226; DMK president M. Karunanidhi congratulates Chidambaram for presenting a 8216;8216;well thought-out8217;8217; Budget. In a statement, he says the Budget has most of the points mentioned in the Common Minimum Programme of the UPA Government.

8226; Welcoming the Budget, the industry says it is a good budget given the compulsions before the Government. 8216;8216;This is another dream budget by Finance Minister P. Chidambaram. This is a dream budget for the food, agriculture and rural development sectors8230;The earlier Chidambaram budget 1997-98 was a dream budget for the corporate sector,8217;8217; says Tarun Das of CII.

8226; RBI says the measures announced by the Finance Minister will send a 8216;8216;strong8217;8217; message of fiscal consolidation in the country and will be good for the capital market but ruled out any change in its interest rate and inflation stance.

8226; The farming community hails the Budget, with a prominent association saying the Centre8217;s proposals amount to saving the agricultural sector from sinking.

8226; Insurance industry expresses disappointment on levy of 10 per cent service tax on the risk premium for life insurance policies, and lack of tax exemption for single premium products. It, however, welcomes hike in the ceiling on FDI to 49 per cent from 26 per cent.

8226; Hailing the Budget as investor-friendly, Commerce Minister Kamal Nath says many aspects of the Budget will be reflected in the trade policy, which he will unveil next month.

8226; Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi says the Budget aims at protecting the interests of the common man and less developed states.

8226; Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy says the Budget has laid extraordinary emphasis on agriculture, rural development and employment, health and education.

8226; 8216;8216;Highly disappointing and uninspiring8217;8217; is how Madhya Pradesh CM Uma Bharti describes the Budget, which , she says, was prepared under the pressure of Left parties and Railway Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav. The special package for Bihar, she says, is 8216;8216;gross injustice8217;8217;.