Middle Class & Budget 2018

New Delhi: This budget caters to all sections of the society, including the Middle Class.

This is a budget which not helps us in our day to day lives but also builds the foundation of a better future.

BJP Government has ensured that the entry level income tax is one of the lowest in the world. A person earning around Rs 42,000 a month pays 5% income tax. After today’s exemptions, incomes upto Rs 2.9 lakh attract no tax.

Middle class comprises of a sizeable number of senior citizens. Income from interest upto Rs 50,000 has been made tax free. This results in savings of Rs 2,000 to Rs 12,000 a year.

Deductions for Health insurance premium of senior citizens have been raised from Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000. This results in a saving of Rs 1,000- Rs 6,000 a year.

Deductions in the event of Hospitalisation for senior citizens have been raised from Rs 60,000 to Rs 1,00,000. This leads to savings of Rs 2,000-Rs 12,000 a year.

There needs to be more nuance in the discussions of LTCG. Considering a 15% return on equities, earnings from Rs 6 lakh invested will be around Rs 1 lakh, which is not taxable. Similarly, on an investment of Rs 9 lakh, the tax would be around Rs 400 per month.

People normally view only direct taxes but ignore the indirect taxes they are paying. Under GST, tax on a lot of items of consumption have been reduced from 28% to 12%-18%. Thus a 10% decrease on most items would translate to a saving of Rs 1,200 per month on a spending of Rs 10,000.

The NaMoCare initiative of Ayushman Bharat will provide a critical health insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh which will also help the lower middle class.

The aspirations of middle class are not and cannot be limited to tax breaks and discounts. The needs of India’s middle class are diverse and need to be addressed in a holistic manner. India’s middle class travels by trains as well as planes and we are improving rail as well as airport infrastructure. India’s middle class wants good education opportunities & good urban infrastructure.

New IITs, IIMs, Medical Colleges, Schools of Planning & Architecture are being set up across the country, providing unprecedented education opportunities for the middle class. Improvement is also happening on Quality of Education, and focus has being put on skilling programs to improve future of youngsters.

Huge allocation and activity is happening through Smart Cities & AMRUT which will improve life in cities.

DeshGujarat