Press Statement : Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu on Union Budget 2013-14

Statement issued by Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, MP and
former President of the Bharatiya Janata Party
on the Union Budget 2013-14

New Delhi - 28 February 2013

Because of the gross mismanagement of the economy in the last four years of UPA’s second tenure, the economy has been completely ruined.  UPA is now saying that their options are limited!  The Budget is cosmetic and full of verbosity.  No bold ideas, now new incentives to revive the economy.

Before presenting the budget, the Finance Minister said he would present a responsible budget.  Not only is it irresponsible but is also unresponsive.  Every section of the population is disappointed with this budget; be it farmers, middle class, poor, women or youth including the business community.  The Finance Minister cut down expenditure in 2012-13 budget thereby affecting the growth.

Allocations to the so-called flagship programmes are disappointing.  Allocation to MGNREGA has been brought down from 40000 to 33000 crores and only a meager sum of Rs.10,000 crores has been allocated for food security which means each citizen will roughly get Rs.80 per month.

Is this budget the game-changer of the UPA? If it is so, this game-changer will become the regime-changer.  1,000 crore here and 1,000 crore there, will not be build infrastructure and will not revive the economy or cannot take care of those sections of society mentioned by the Finance Minister -  the youth or the women.  No clear and positive signals have been sent to the industry.  Another major concern of both the middle class as well the business community is reduction of interest rates which has not been taken care of.  The salaried class of people also expected some relief on the direct tax front, whom the Finance Minister disappointed.

There is no continuity in this government.  Whatever the previous Finance Minister proposed the present Finance Minister disposed.  The UPA in 2004 inherited a robust economy (which the FM admitted then).  They have bankrupted such a robust economy entirely because of their mismanagement.

The core issue of the agrarian crisis in the country is controlling prices of agricultural inputs and providing remunerative prices to the farming community.  The recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission have not been addressed.  It seems the Government is totally unconcerned about the plight of the farmers and frequent suicides.

No steps to contain inflation and to bring down prices have been spelt out.  No action plan to unearth black-money within the country and to get back the black money stashed abroad.

The Budget neither provides nor offers confidence and hope.

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