SOME KEY ANNOUNCEMENTS

MGNREGS given boost

Putting to rest doubts about the continuation of the Mahatma Gandhi tiol Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS), Jaitley announced an initial allocation of Rs.34,699 crore for the programme. In addition, the minister said he would allocate an additiol Rs.5,000 crore to MGNREGS if he gets more revenue due to tax buoyancy.

Gold bonds, monetisation schemes

Jaitley proposed steps to monetise the yellow metal by introducing a gold bond and a monetisation scheme besides announcing plans to make indigenous gold coins. He said an estimated 20,000 tonnes of gold stocks in India were neither traded nor monetised. Besides, the Centre is also coming out with an Indian gold coin with the Ashoka Chakra embossed on its face.

Procurement law to prevent scams

The Fince Minister advocated a procurement law to check wrongdoings by officials in public procurement. “I believe parliament needs to take a view soon on whether we need a procurement law and, if so, what shape it should take,” he said.

Visa on arrival

India will provide visa on arrival (VoA) to visitors from 150 countries — a sharp rise from the 43 countries now, the Fince Minister announced.

Super rich taxed, wealth tax abolished

Jaitley proposed to abolish the wealth tax and proposed two percent surcharge on the super rich. Presenting the budget for 2015-16, he said the government’s goal is to have “minimum government and maximum governce” with the focus on ease of doing business and simplifying tax procedures. The Fince Minister said it would be replaced with an additiol surcharge of two percent on the super-rich with a taxable income of over Rs.1 crore.

Cash-less society

The government wants to drive the country towards a cash-less society to curb the flow of black money, Fince Minister Arun Jaitley said. “One way to curb the flow of black money is to discourage transactions in cash... now that a majority of Indians have, or can have, a RUPAY debit card,” the Fince Minister said.

Ultra mega power projects

Jaitley said his government is planning to build five new ultra mega power projects totalling 20,000 MW which will unlock investment of up to Rs 100,000 crore.