Budget Highlights 2005-2006

 

 

GENERAL

 

 

--Govt so far sanctioned 36.44 billion rupee for Tsunami relief

 

--Liquidity overhang, inflationary pressure seen in May' 04

 

--Chidambaram says disturbing trends noticed in May 2004

 

--Chidambaram: All engines of economy running at full speed

 

--Public, pvt sectors allowed to grow in industrial segment

 

--FY06 equity support to PSUs at 140.40 billion rupees

 

--To give 35.54 billion rupee loans to PSUs in 2005-06

 

--Bank key to raise funds to sustain investment

 

--Price stabilisation fund for commodities not effective

 

--Panel set up to probe, improve price stabilisation fund

 

--New repair scheme for water bodies in 16 districts in Mar

 

--Govt delivered on promise to accelerate foreign trade

 

--Exports to rise $150 billion by FY09

 

--Urges members to take pragmatic view on FDI

 

--To further liberalise in trade policy, promote exports

 

--Opportunities in mining, trade and pension sector for FDI

 

--Auto, software, telecom, electronic benefited from FDI

 

--Have proposals for more FDI in mining, trade, pension

 

--27.5 billion rupees outlay for Indira Awas Yojna

 

--To clear legal validity of OTC derivative contracts

 

 

BANKS & FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS

 

 

--To remove cap/floor for SLR for banks

 

--To allow banks to issue preference shares

 

--To enable RBI to do repos, reverse repos freely

 

--RBI roadmap for banking sector soon

 

--Banking Regulation Act to be modified

 

--To authorise SEBI to set up training institute

 

--FIIs to give cash/collateral for derivative trade

 

--To set up task force for reforming co-op banks

 

--Co-op banks to get package to wipe out accumulated losses

 

--To promote micro-finance institutions in a big way

 

--Chidambaram says most co-op banks are in shambles

 

--To ask RBI to open window for ECBs for micro-finance firms

 

--Govt to promote micro finance institutions

 

--Govt to support IRDA move to promote micro insurance

 

--SEBI to set up National Institute of Securities Market

 

--To amend securities definition to trade in securitised debt

 

--One-time exemption for stock exchanges on corporatisation

 

--NABARD to provide 1 billion rupees for RIDF

 

 

 

INDUSTRY

 

 

--Information technology to offer 7 million jobs by 2009

 

--Textile job potential seen 12 million in 5 years

 

--Sectors generating jobs will get govt's highest priority

 

--To set up 1.50 billion rupee corpus for R&D in pharma

 

--Stable policy environment for biotech, pharma sectors

 

--Capital subsidy allocation for SSIs up to 1.73 billion rupee

 

--Small-medium enterprise development bill soon

 

--Identified 108 items for de-reservation for SSIs

 

--To launch manufacturing competitiveness plan for SMEs

 

--To invest 300 billion rupees in textiles in FY06 vs. 200 billion

 

--10% capital subsidy scheme for textile sector proposed

 

--To extend insurance scheme for 2 million handloom weavers

 

--SIDBI launches 5-bln-rupee SME Growth Fund

 

 

 

MACRO ECONOMY

 

 

--FY05 growth rate seen at 6.9% according to CSO

 

--Economy grew 8.5% in 2003-04 vs. 4% previous year

 

--Chidambaram says inflation has been reined in

 

--Inflation for industrial workers lower than WPI

 

--Inflation based on CPI stood at 3.8% in Dec

 

--Non-food credit up 21.2% so far in FY05

 

--FY05 gross budgetary support for plan was 1.45 trln rupees

 

--FY06 gross budgetary support to GBS 1.72 trln rupees

 

--FY06 gross budgetary support for plan is 1.72 trln rupees

 

--FY05 gross budgetary support for plan was 1.45 trln rupees

 

--FY06 allocation to education 183.37 billion rupees

 

--FY06 health, family welfare allocation 102.80 billion rupees

 

--FY05 gross budgetary support for plan was 1.45 trln rupees

 

--Special economic package for Biharto continue till FY07

 

--143.79 billion rupee allocated for gender budget in FY06

 

--All govt departments to give gender-specific budgets

 

--To spend 93.08 billion rupees for schemes in north east FY06

 

--Pension scheme to be extended to unorganised sector

 

--7 states under defined contribution pension plan

 

--Stamp duty on CPs to be rationalised; to be uniform

 

--To set up high level panel on corp bonds, securitised debt

 

--Stamp duty on CPs to be rationalised; to be uniform

 

--CPs to attract uniform stamp duty for all issuers

 

--To allow MFs to launch exchange traded gold funds

 

--Gold Fund units to be tradable

 

--To make Mumbai regional finance hub

 

 

 

AGRICULTURE

 

 

--5.82 million new farmers have got bank loans

 

--Food-for-work plan announced in Nov now in 250 districts

 

--Assured irrigation facilities to add 10 million jobs in 5 yrs

 

--162.54 billion rupees subsidy for fertiliser in FY06

 

--To launch National Horticulture Mission;gets 6.3 billion rupee

 

--Comparative advantages in tea have eroded

 

--Allocates 4 billion rupees for promoting micro irrigation

 

--48 billion rupee in FY06 for Accelerated Irrigation Programme

 

--To bring 10 million hectares more under assured irrigation

 

--Sugar sector revitalisation financial package proposed

 

--2 year moratorium on new financial aid to sugar units

 

--Sugar units operational in FY03 to get aid for recast

 

--IBA, NABARD plan to recast interest on sugar unit loans

 

--To ask PSU banks to up FY06 farm credit by 30%

 

--To ask PSU banks to increase borrowers by 5 million in FY06

 

--Continues National Agri Insurance for kharif, rabi in FY06

 

--To mull new farmer-friendly crop insurance scheme

 

--To set up fund for strategic agriculture research

 

--5.82 million new farmers have got bank loans

 

--Farm credit disbursement likely to be 1.085 trln in FY05

 

 

 

INFRASTRUCTURE

 

 

--14 billion rupees for 4-laning 4000 km of highways

 

--To fund investments in infrastructure sector

 

--Rural electrification scheme to cover 12.5 million villages

 

--11 billion rupees for rural electrification scheme FY06

 

--To fund infrastructure investments via SPVs in few sector

 

--FX resources can be used to fund infrastructure projects

 

--SPVs proposed to fund roads, ports, airports, tourism

 

--100-bln-rupee limit in FY06 for new SPV for infrastructure

 

--National urban renewal mission plan for 7 mega cities

 

--55 billion rupees outlay for national urban renewal mission

 

--Mumbai metro, harbour link under Natl Urban Renewal plan

 

--4.50 billion rupees for highway development in Northeast

 

--NHDP outlay for FY06 up at 93.20 billion rupees

 

--FY06 special plan for J&K at 42 billion rupee vs. 30 billion

 

--4.50 billion rupees for highway development in Northeast

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SOCIAL WELFARE

 

 

--National Rural Health mission to start in FY06

 

--Allocation to health up to 102.8 billion from 84.20 billion

 

--FY06 health, family welfare allocation 102.80 billion rupees

 

--188,168 more anganwadi centres to be opened

 

--110 million children now get mid-day meals in schools

 

--30.1 billion rupees allocation in FY06 for mid-day meal plan

 

--To spend 30.10 billion rupees on mid-day meals vs. 16.75 billion

 

--62.53 billion rupee allocation in FY06 for SC/ST schemes

 

--To spend 47.50 billion rupees on water schemes FY06 vs. 33 billion

 

--To fund 2000 research fellowships for SC/ST in FY06

 

--Plan for further education in minority population blocks

 

--To set up Backward Regions' Growth fund

 

--To set up Backward Regions' Grant fund

 

--50 billion rupees for backward regional allocation fund

 

--To allocate 50 billion rupees for Backward Regions' Grant Fund

 

--Food for work to morph into rural employment guarantee plan

 

--Flood control in Northeast FY06 plan outlay 1.8 billion rupee

 

--To provide telephone connections to 66,820 villages

 

--66,800 villages to get phones connections in Bharat Nirman

 

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