Finance, Appropriation Bills returned

The three-month-long budgetary process came to an end today with Rajya Sabha returning the Finance Bill, 2003, and the Appropriation Bill, 2...

The three-month-long budgetary process came to an end today with Rajya Sabha returning the Finance Bill, 2003, and the Appropriation Bill, 2003, on the promised note that the taxation system will be simplified and replaced by a 8216;green channel system8217;.

Terming the entire budgetary exercise and the following parliamentary debates as 8216;8216;exhausting and exhaustive8217;8217;, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh in his reply, said: 8216;8216;I do want to work on a tax regime based on trust and will bring in a simplified green channel system in all spheres including custom and excise.8217;8217; Singh reiterated his commitment to simplify the tax system, even as he admitted to debate fatigue.

8216;8216;The adversarial relation between the tax assessee and the assessor should end. We are slowly but certainly moving away from the discretionary method of taxation,8217;8217; he said.

The Finance Bill which gives effect to taxation proposals in the budget was passed by the Lok Sabha earlier. On the decision to defer implementation of the Value Added Tax VAT regime, Singh said it will be introduced after the states evolve a proper and uniform system. 8216;8216;It is after all expected to be a value added tax and not vexation adding tax system. Unless it is fully worked out, it cannot be implemented.8217;8217;

He also said lowering of Central Sales Tax and providing compensation to states for any loss in revenue was linked to VAT implementation and it would be taken up at an appropriate time.

Singh told the House that the government is replacing the eight per cent ad valorem on refined edible oil and vanaspati with a flat Re 1 special excise duty per kg on edible oil and Rs 1.25 per kg on vanaspati. Referring to service tax on education, he said this would be applicable only on tutorials and multiple academies preparing students for competitive exams.

He made it clear that the concessional package given to the North-East would continue, but steps were being taken to check its misuse. Earlier in the day, members expressed concern over the lowering of India8217;s market cap by nearly 10 per cent since the presentation of the budget.

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Congress member Murli Deora and Prithviraj Chauhan accused the government of not doing enough for investors who had lost a huge amount, the government said it was due to the Iraq war.

Chauhan, in his extensive speech, said the country needs high growth rate to combat poverty and this can be achieved by getting a high tax-GDP ratio.

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Nirupam attacked the government for allowing ICICI Bank, 8216;8216;on the verge of serious trouble8217;8217;, to float bonds and added the country should make good use of its substantial foreign exchange reserves.